October
06
/ 2025
A remarkable archaeological discovery at the ancient Turkish city of Sagalassos has revealed the first known example of Egyptian religious iconography used purely for decorative purposes outside of Egypt. The intricately carved marble relief, featuring the sphinx-god Tutu alongside other Egyptian deities, was discovered not in a temple but in the cold room of a Roman bathhouse, challenging our understanding of how ancient cultures adapted foreign religious imagery for aesthetic rather than devotional purposes. The extraordinary relief panels were first uncovered in 2004 during excavations in the northern frigidarium of the Bath-Gymnasion complex at Sagalassos. Recent re-examination by an international team led by Professor Dr. Peter Talloen of Bilkent University has confirmed that these Afyon marble carvings represent a unique
