Egypt Discovers Statue Of Ancient Queen

Cairo, Egypt (AHN) - Archaeologists in Egypt have found a giant statue of an ancient queen at the site of two already huge Colossi of Memnon in southern Egypt. Reports indicate that the statue represents Queen Tiy, the wife of 18th dynasty Pharaoh Amenhotep III.

It is approximately 12 feet tall (3.62 meters). The entire site is expected to be excavated over the next five years, archaeologists said on Saturday.

The colossi's twin statues stand at the entrance to the road that leads to Luxor's famous Valley of the Kings.

Minister of Culture Farouq Hosni told reporters that the discovery is a "formidable" enterprise and the ministry expects both statues will be erected for public viewing next year. They will be part of an "open air museum," he said.

"Once these new colossi and the other new discoveries are put in place this site will become one of the most important open air museums of the Pharaonic period," head of the archaeological team Houriq Sourouzian told reporters.

The new discovery would have been found earlier, but rising Nile water had inundated the rest of the site over the centuries.