Amheida (New Valley Governorate, Egypt), November 15, 2024.
An archaeological dig in Egypt by New York University's Institute for the Study of the Ancient World has uncovered the ruins of a mid-4th-century Roman basilica with unique burials.
The find was made in Trimitis, an ancient city in the Dakhla Oasis, located in the Libyan Desert, about 350 kilometers west of the Nile Valley. Recall that Egypt was a province of the Roman Empire, and Roman rule over Egypt (excluding the Sinai Peninsula) lasted from 30 BCE to 641 CE, including the Byzantine period.
Project director David Ratzan considers this church one of his most "remarkable" finds. He noted, that the Roman basilica plan was "innovative" for its time.
"Temples in this style ... appeared at most a few decades before the church in Trimitis, because only then did Christians feel confident enough to proudly build such public places of worship," explained D. Ratzan.
The most sensational find inside the temple was the remains of 17 people buried in crypts beneath the altar and offices. Seven of the remains belonged to women, while eight were children (including infants) and teenagers.
"Although there are strong evidence that women played an important role in the early Church, it was still surprising to find so many burials of women and children in this temple, since Egypt in the Roman period was a patriarchal society," Ratzan admitted.
Although excavations at the basilica site are complete, researchers still have questions: for example, how were the buried Christians related to the clergy or patrons of the church? The team continues to study the remains, although analyzing their DNA is not possible at this time.
"However, for us, this is a truly exciting find that we believe will have a significant impact on the discussion of some aspects of the history of early Christianity," Ratzan concluded.
