Abusir: The Temple of Isis and Funerary Monument near Alexandria
Site at a Glance
- Rating
- 5
- Popularity
- Very Low
- Country
- Egypt
- Primary era
- Classical
- Eras represented
- Classical
- Civilizations
- Ptolemaic
- Site type
- Burial
- Remains
- Tomb
On this page8 sections
History
Abusir is an archaeological site on the shore of Lake Mariout in Egypt, between the lake and the Mediterranean Sea, about 48 kilometres southwest of Alexandria. Anciently known as Taposiris Magna, a name associated with Osiris, the site includes a Temple of Isis and a funerary monument dated to the reign of Ptolemy II, who ruled the Ptolemaic dynasty, the Greek royal house that governed Egypt after Alexander the Great.
The Ptolemaic Sanctuary
The remains at Abusir include an ancient temple dedicated to Isis, a major Egyptian goddess associated with motherhood, protection, and funerary beliefs. The sanctuary stands among tombs on a coastal ridge between Lake Mariout and the sea, forming the principal archaeological focus of modern investigation.
The Proposed Royal Burial
Since 2006, Zahi Hawass and Kathleen Martinez have investigated the area around the Temple of Isis. Since 2009, they have proposed that the site may contain the burial place of Cleopatra VII and Mark Antony. Cleopatra was the last active ruler of the Ptolemaic kingdom of Egypt, while Mark Antony was a Roman triumvir and military commander allied with her.
The proposed identification drew on the excavated material and on the account of Plutarch, a Greek biographer and essayist whose surviving work includes a narrative of Cleopatra and Mark Antony. Hawass and Martinez considered a burial beneath the Temple of Isis the most likely possibility, although the finds supported the proposal without establishing it.
Remains
The surviving remains occupy a stony kurkar ridge, a coastal formation of consolidated sandstone or calcareous sandstone, between Lake Mariout and the Mediterranean Sea. The archaeological area contains a series of tombs and the remains of the Temple of Isis.
Temple and Funerary Structures
Temple of Isis
The Temple of Isis is the central religious structure associated with the site. The excavated area around it has produced material connected with the proposed royal burial, while the temple itself forms part of the larger group of remains on the ridge.
Pharos of Abusir
One well-preserved tomb is a three-storey tower approximately 20 metres high. Its square base supports a hexagonal middle section and a cylindrical upper section. Commonly called the Pharos of Abusir, the Abusir funerary monument, or Burg al-Arab, it is thought to be a reduced-scale model of the Lighthouse of Alexandria, the ancient lighthouse built on the island of Pharos. The tomb is dated to the reign of Ptolemy II, approximately 285–246 BC, and may have been built around the same period as the lighthouse.
Excavated Finds
Excavations near the Temple of Isis recovered a carved male head, a partial mask with a cleft chin reminiscent of Mark Antony, and coins bearing the image of Cleopatra VII. These objects contributed to the proposed identification of Abusir as a possible burial place for the two figures.
