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Egypt uncovers long-forgotten 1,600-year-old, Byzantine-era city in latest western desert discovery
New York Post • • world
Key Points:
- Archaeologists discovered a well-preserved 1,600-year-old Byzantine-era city called Fourth Center in Egypt’s Dakhla Oasis, featuring watchtowers, a basilica church, public squares, and a city grid with intersecting streets.
- The site includes a fortified structure, rows of houses with vaulted roofs, and the house of Tisous, believed to have been used for worship before the basilica was built.
- Researchers uncovered numerous artifacts such as bread ovens, kitchens, stone grinding tools, bronze coins with Byzantine emperors' portraits, and gold coins from the reign of Roman emperor Constantius II.
- At the Marina el-Alamein site near Alexandria, 18 new tombs were found, including rock-cut and limestone-built tombs, along with pottery fragments bearing inscriptions about daily life and business transactions.
- These discoveries provide unique insights into everyday life during the Byzantine period and are expected to boost Egypt’s tourism sector, which is vital for the country’s economy.
