Egyptian-Chinese archaeologists uncover ancient 'sacred lake' in S. Egypt

An Egyptian-Chinese archaeological mission announced on Saturday that it uncovered an ancient "sacred lake" at the Montu Temple precinct in the Karnak Temple Complex in Luxor, a city renowned for its rich monuments in southern Egypt.

The newly uncovered sacred lake, within the Montu Temple enclosure, lies west of the Maat Temple, dedicated to Maat, the ancient Egyptian goddess of harmony, justice, and truth.

Covering more than 50 square meters, the lake is an ancient man-made water reservoir with a well-defined structure and is well-preserved. The archaeologists say the lake has not been recorded in early archives.

Together with the previously known sacred lake of the Montu Temple, the discovery forms a unique layout of two sacred lakes aligned north and south within the Karnak enclosure walls, said Jia Xiaobing, the Chinese head of the project.

"The new find is the only sacred lake in the history of Egyptian archaeology that has undergone systematic and scientific excavation, providing a wealth of first-hand materials for research, especially studies of sacred lakes," Jia said. 

Sacred lakes were an essential component of ancient Egyptian temple architecture and were regarded as holy sources of water, distinct from domestic water supplies and reserved exclusively for ritual use within temples, he explained.

Hend Aly, a senior inspector at the Montu Temple and an Egyptian member of the project, said the discovery is a rare find that crowned the hard work of the joint mission for eight years.

She said that the joint team successfully developed and applied an advanced technological methodology to carry out the work.

"We started with a big dump of sand and dust, and now you can see the fruits of our joint work; this beautiful and great sacred lake that will open new paths for more research and discoveries in the near future," Aly said.

However, due to limitations caused by the groundwater level, the foundational construction of the lake has not yet been fully explored, and its initial construction date remains to be determined through further excavation and research, Aly added.

Archaeologists also unearthed dozens of cow jaw remains and reused stone blocks associated with kings and the Divine Adoratrice from the Late Period (747-332 BC) in this area.