A sphinx-like statue was discovered in southern Egypt recently.

The artwork found in Dendera Temple is thought to reflect Roman Emperor Claudius’s influence.

Archaeologists in Egypt’s Qena province, approximately 280 miles south of Cairo, unearthed a sphinx-like statue and the remnants of a shrine in an ancient temple, as disclosed by the country’s antiquities ministry. The statue, with a cheerful expression, is speculated to depict the Roman emperor Claudius, who governed North Africa from AD41 to AD54, according to the ministry’s statement.

Alongside the sphinx-like statue and shrine, the archaeological team found a Roman-era stone slab bearing inscriptions in demotic and hieroglyphic scripts. The limestone shrine, featuring a two-layer platform and a mud-brick basin, traces its origins back to the Byzantine era, as detailed in the ministry’s announcement.

Further examinations of the inscriptions on the stone slab are planned to unveil additional insights into the statue’s identity and the temple’s historical context. The recently discovered statue, in contrast to the colossal 20-meter sphinx at the Pyramids of Giza complex, is notably smaller.

The Egyptian government frequently highlights such discoveries to boost tourism, a vital source of foreign currency for the economically challenged nation.