Khan Yunes
“Goddess of love, beauty and war”: A Gaza farmer finds a 4,500-year-old statue
A more than 4,500-year-old statue with the face of an ancient goddess has been discovered in southern Gaza.
A farmer has discovered a 4,500-year-old statue head in southern Gaza. The head embodies the goddess “Anath” – goddess of love, beauty and war, a representative of the Ministry of Tourism in Gaza confirmed on Wednesday.
Restricted tourism in Gaza
The Canaanite statue is said to have a head without a body and wearing a crown of serpents. She is made of limestone and 22 centimeters tall. The snake crown was a symbol of strength and invincibility. The discovery site is an important trade link between different civilizations. The farmer who tills his fields in Khan Yunes discovered the statue head last week while cultivating his land.
In February, construction workers in the north of the Gaza Strip had already found 31 tombs from Roman times. In March, a 5th-century Byzantine church was reopened by Hamas. The years of restoration work had been supported by foreign donors.
Border crossing opportunities severely restricted
Around two million inhabitants live under very poor conditions in the coastal strip on the Mediterranean Sea. Tourist visits to ancient sites in the Gaza Strip are restricted by the Israeli blockade. Israel and Egypt, which also borders the Gaza Strip, have severely restricted border crossings.
The Islamist Palestinian organization Hamas seized power by force in 2007. Israel then tightened a blockade of the area, supported by Egypt. Both countries justify the measure with security interests. Israel, the EU and the US classify Hamas as a terrorist organization.