During excavations of the Colossi of Memnon area on the West Bank of Luxor, Egypt, archaeologists uncovered 27 statues of the ancient Egyptian lioness goddess Sekhmet.

The excavations are being conducted by an Egyptian-European archaeological mission as part of King Amenhotep III Temple Conservation Project. The statues are said to be carved in black granite with maximum height of around 2 metres. According to Mostafa Waziri, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, some of the statues depict the goddess Sekhmet sitting on the throne, holding the symbol of life in her left hand, or standing and holding a papyrus sceptre in front of her chest. The head is crowned with a sun disk and the Uraeus adorns her forehead.

(after Egypt Independent)