Bust of Marcus Aurelius Found in Southern Egypt

I thought this is an interesting item in the news...

https://www.washingtonpost.com/worl...ory.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.aff045d9e8a5

 

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No pictures in that article? Waaaaaaaah!

 

Here's one with a picture....

http://www.newser.com/story/258235/in-egyptian-temple-a-new-bust-of-marcus-aurelius.html

Actually Kom Ombo is about 30 miles from Aswan. I've been to Kom Ombo temple, mostly built by Ptolemy V, main deity being worshipped was Sobek-Ra, the crocodile god.

 

Hmm, I wonder how they determined the identity of the bust. Not sure who I would have guessed, but it doesn't scream Aurelius.

 

I am with TIF. Nothing of that head is saying MA to me. Honestly, looks more like "generic Greek god head" than someone in particular. Maybe Zeus Ammon?

 

Interesting comments....to me it's not a slam dunk it's Aurelius' head either, don't know who did the attribution.

 

another article:

https://www.egypttoday.com/Article/4/48467/Discovery-of-Emperor-Marcus-Aurelius’-head-Osirian-temple

 

I don't see the ram's horn but it's hard to say for sure with the one suboptimal image.

I'd love to know why it is touted as Marcus Aurelius. Nothing else mentioned in or about the tomb provides a basis for the designation. Maybe the media simply got it wrong. Maybe a media member on site interview someone who tossed out the name as a guess, or maybe the reporter overheard the (baseless?) speculation. Maybe when the dust settles a more scholarly report will be issued.

 

Thanks for the additional story @Cyrrhus !

 

Yeah, I had forgotten about those. You understand my point though, right? It looks like a generic greek god more than any emperor in particular.

 

Here's a video of the discovery, also includes some pictorials of Kom Ombo temple which is one of the better preserved temples in Egypt...

https://www.usatoday.com/videos/news/world/2018/04/23/-bust-roman-emperor-found-egypt/34164879/

More on Kom Ombo temple, actually started by Ptolemy VI Philometer, rather than Ptolemy V Epiphanes as I stated in the original post...it wasn't unusual for the Roman emperors to add hieroglyphs of their names in cartouches to the temples, for example Trajan's name is inscribed in the temple of Esna (Khnum) whilst the last hieroglyphic inscription lists Trajan Decius as pharaoh.


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temple_of_Kom_Ombo

 

You did not read the same stories I did. Both said that the Egyptian tourist folks hoped such trinkets would restore what they lost in the 2011 turmoil. I can't say the item in question even looks ancient to me but I am no expert. There is a tendency for all items found to be identified as some emperor or famous person. I wonder if there are any statues of well to do merchants who fancied themselves as resembling the emperor and wore his hair in the same way?

I admit I have a really bad attitude about scientific/historical discoveries. Anyone who discovers a bone in the Eastern Mediterranean seems to attribute it to a Biblical figure. Helena, mother of Constantine, toured the Holy Lands and was sold the True Cross. Some discoveries that really might be genuine are hard to separate from the fabrications of the tourist people. I was taught in college that the True Cross of Helena had grown in mass to the point that by the middle ages there was enough to rebuild Noah's Ark. You still see occasional offerings of wood pulp mixed with clay sold as 'Pilgrims Tokens'.
http://www.pearlmansjewelers.com/information/christian-pilgrim-token-history/
We need to take care when we evaluate wonderful new discoveries. The place to start when gathering evidence is not the daily paper or TV news spots. I'm not sure where it is safe to read but articles like these tend to have issues.

 

Maybe this

 

Assuming its an emperor , I would go for Marcus Aurelius too,just my 2 cents.

 

I see it.

 

Generic. There are similarities to other emperors too. I think Doug and the video voiceover linked by @ancient coin hunter probably has the explanation: "Kom Ombo is a unique tourist attraction... Egypt hopes the recent discovery will help increase tourism..." If this bust is of an emperor, among the emperors it could be, only Marcus Aurelius has any "star power" to the general public.



Antoninus Pius:

Marcus Aurelius:

Septimius Severus:

Bust of unknown Roman man:

 

You've hit on something @TIF . The current exchange rate of the Egyptian pound to the U.S. dollar is .057, or roughly 17.5 pounds to the dollar. The exchange rate when I visited Egypt in 2011 was .18 Egyptian pounds to the dollar. Accommodations can be had for 30-50 pounds per night in most places, with Cairo being more expensive and places like Siwa Oasis very cheap.

One can travel as much as one likes seeing the sites without much of a dent in the pocketbook. Visas last for 30 days and if you leave the country at that point and return after visiting a nearby country (I visited Jordan and Turkey) you can get another 30 day VISA. I spent 4 months abroad on that trip.

The government of Egypt needs more tourists and a cash infusion of dollars/UK pounds. However, the political and social climate makes travel there slightly risky, especially in Upper Egypt with more Islamists in the small towns. I actually was held up at gunpoint outside of Kom Ombo temple and shaken down for 200 pounds one evening. Luckily they decided not to harm me.

 

YeeeeeIKES!

 

Yeah @TIF , it was not a fun experience. Also, I had my i-Phone stolen at Siwa Oasis. Couldn't even take a picture of the oracle at Siwa (temple of Ammon). But it did tell me where Alexander's tomb is!