Why This Ancient Statue Discovered In Egypt Has Stunned Archaeologists

Since the first pharaohs ruled Egypt at the end of the 4th millennium BC the country has worshipped a wide pantheon of gods and goddesses, but it has never, as far as we're aware, embraced Buddhism. It raised a lot of eyebrows, then, when archaeologists recently unearthed a two-foot (60cm) tall Buddha statue while excavating a temple to the Egyptian goddess Isis in the ancient port city of Berenike – reportedly the first such statue ever found west of Afghanistan. Founded in the third century BC and an important Red Sea hub, Berenike became particularly prominent after the Roman invasion of Egypt in 30 BC and a steady stream of artifacts have been discovered there in recent decades.
Why This Ancient Statue Discovered In Egypt Has Stunned Archaeologists