Archaeologists discover the sunken temple of Aphrodite brimming with glittering jewels

In the fall of 2023, a team of archaeologists set forth in their vessel to explore the site of the sunken port city of Thonis-Heracleion, about four miles off Egypt’s coast, beneath the waters of the Bay of Aboukir in the Mediterranean Sea, per Artnet. Under heavy swells of the sea, they dived into the waters of the southern canal. Buried under more than a metre of sediment, they discovered a treasure trove of ancient objects including a lost temple of Aphrodite, the ancient Greek goddess of love.

According to IFL Science, the city of Thonis-Heracleion was known as the “Venice of the Nile” around 2,300 years ago. It was the biggest port in the Mediterranean at that time. The ancient temple was once the site where pharaohs visited to receive titles of their power as universal kings from Egyptian gods, per the Greek Reporter. However, over time, factors like rising sea levels, earthquakes and tsunamis led to the collapse of the city. Around 110 square kilometers (42 square miles) of the Nile Delta completely vanished under the sea, including the city of Heracleion. First discovered in 2000 by the European Institute for Underwater Archaeology (IEASM), the city has since been an active site for archaeological explorations.

This particular exploration was led by French marine archaeologist and IEASM president Franck Goddio. IEASM collaborated with the Department of Underwater Archaeology of the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities of Egypt to carry out the mission. The trove they unveiled beneath the rubble included priceless ancient treasuries such as silver ritual instruments, gold jewelry, alabaster jars that would have held perfumes for the ancient Egyptians, and most surprisingly, all inside the temple of goddess Aphrodite and god Amun.

This temple was identified with the help of a cache of bronze and ceramic statues. “Bronze and ceramic objects imported from Greece, as well as remains of buildings supported with wooden beams, have also been documented from the 5th century BC,” reported Mostafa Waziri, secretary-general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities of Egypt, per Heritage Daily. The discovery of this temple is a significant accomplishment as it carries a hotpot of historical information. It also “illustrates that Greeks who were allowed to trade and settle in the city during the time of the Pharaohs of the Saïte dynasty (664 – 525 BC) had their sanctuaries to their own gods,” IEASM explained.

Apart from the precious treasures, the team also found several weapons thought to have belonged to the Greek mercenaries. “It is extremely moving to discover such delicate objects, which survived intact despite the violence and magnitude of the cataclysm,” Goddio said in a statement. The team used new geophysical prospecting technologies to locate these objects.

“The objects recovered from the excavations illustrate the cities’ beauty and glory, the magnificence of their grand temples, and the abundance of historic evidence: colossal statues, inscriptions and architectural elements, jewelry and coins, ritual objects and ceramics - a civilization frozen in time,” Goddio wrote on his website. The discovery of this ancient temple and all these treasures is just like discovering a time capsule from way beyond the past.