Egyptian archaeologists at the Old Palace site in Egypt’s Bahariya Oasis have brought to light new remains of a 26th Dynasty temple, the centerpiece of which is a hypostyle hall with 16 sandstone columns. The work, the latest season of an investigation that has been running since 2014, was carried out by an Egyptian mission from the Supreme Council of Antiquities, according to Heritage Daily. The find, the mission says, is sharpening the picture of an oasis that served for centuries as an important religious and administrative centre, per the Supreme Council of Antiquities.
The temple’s construction began in the reign of Psamtik I, the 26th Dynasty pharaoh whose reign launched the project, and continued under his successors, including Wahibre (Apries) and Ahmose II (Amasis), per the mission’s official statement. Decorated reliefs and hieroglyphic inscriptions on the walls mention deities including Amun-Ra, Amunet, and Khonsu, with Heritage Daily adding Mut to that list. The discovery also stretches the site’s sacred history back roughly 800 years, to a stone stela bearing the name of the 18th Dynasty pharaoh Amenhotep II. Per Archaeology Magazine, researchers believe an earlier cult center likely existed at the site and was later rebuilt or expanded by the Saite rulers of the 26th Dynasty.
What the Latest Season at Old Palace Exposed
The 2026 season at the Old Palace site in the village of Al-Qasr is the latest in a dig that began in 2014, Mohamed Abdel Badi, head of the Egyptian Antiquities Sector at the Supreme Council of Antiquities, said in the mission’s official statement. The team uncovered new architectural elements of the temple, including a sandstone chamber and several inscribed stone blocks bearing the names and royal titles of Psamtik I, the pharaoh who launched the project. The hypostyle hall is the season’s headline.
The temple’s construction spanned multiple reigns, with major additions and renovations continuing under Apries and Amasis, two later kings of the same dynasty, the mission’s official statement says. Per the Egyptian mission, the inscribed stone blocks recovered this season help trace the temple’s building history and provide a clearer picture of how the complex developed over time. Earlier studies had already shown the same pattern, with the temple’s development continuing into the closing decades of the 26th Dynasty. Per Archaeology Magazine, excavations between 2014 and 2026 have gradually exposed large portions of the temple.
| Pharaoh | Reign contribution to the temple |
|---|---|
| Psamtik I | Began construction; names and titles appear on the inscribed stone blocks uncovered this season |
| Wahibre (Apries) | Continued the work after Psamtik I |
| Ahmose II (Amasis) | Continued the work into the closing decades of the 26th Dynasty |
The site, the Old Palace at Al-Qasr, is considered one of the most important archaeological locations in the Bahariya Oasis, having served as the region’s capital during the Late Period. The Old Palace site is also known as Old Qasr or Al-Qasr Al-Qadim in coverage of the dig. The mission says its work has continued through the 2026 season and has revealed significant portions of a temple whose foundations date to the 26th Dynasty. Per Heritage Daily, researchers say the latest discoveries will contribute significantly to understanding the oasis’s role within ancient Egypt and its continued importance through successive historical eras. The 16-columned hypostyle hall is the season’s most visible architectural feature.
The Gods Named on the Walls
Decorated reliefs and hieroglyphic inscriptions on the temple walls mention several Egyptian deities. Per the Egyptian mission’s official statement, those named include Amun-Ra, Amunet, and Khonsu, with Heritage Daily adding Mut to the list. The inscriptions offer clues about the religious practices performed at the sanctuary and the gods worshipped there.
- Amun-Ra
- Amunet
- Khonsu
- Mut (per Heritage Daily)
Earlier seasons at the site also turned up a statue of the god Thoth, a bronze figure of Osiris, and a bronze amulet depicting Ra-Horakhty, a catalog of finds that researchers say reflects a sanctuary with broad divine reach. The collection of divine names and statuary also includes the head of a statue believed to represent a senior priest or official connected to the oasis administration. Per Archaeology Wiki, the body of finds helps reconstruct the temple’s original layout and document its evolution over time. Per the official statement, the finds add to the picture of the Old Palace site’s development through successive historical periods.
Sacred Ground 800 Years Earlier
Perhaps the most consequential find this season is a stone stela bearing the name of Amenhotep II, an 18th Dynasty pharaoh whose reign sits roughly 800 years before the Saite temple. Per Archaeology Magazine, the inscription confirms that the Bahariya Oasis already had ties to the Egyptian state as far back as the New Kingdom.
Additional fragments connected to Ramesses II add to that picture, indicating that religious and settlement activity at the site predates the construction of the 26th Dynasty temple. The finds, Archaeology Magazine reports, suggest that the site’s sacred history stretches much further back than the 26th Dynasty. Researchers believe an earlier cult center likely existed at the site and was later rebuilt or expanded by the Saite rulers of the 26th Dynasty. The 2026 season’s finds add the Amenhotep II stela and the Ramesses II fragments to a record that already extended sacred activity at Old Palace back to the New Kingdom.
- Stone stela of Amenhotep II (18th Dynasty): earliest written evidence of state-linked sacred activity at Old Palace, dating to a period roughly 800 years earlier than the 26th Dynasty temple
- Fragments associated with Ramesses II: additional New Kingdom-era material showing continued religious use at the site
- An earlier cult center, now inferred, that the Saite rulers rebuilt and expanded into the temple complex exposed in the 2026 season
The Amenhotep II stela is the most consequential of the older finds, given how far back it pushes the site’s sacred history. The Ramesses II fragments, the second piece, confirm continued religious use in a later dynasty, before the 26th Dynasty temple was built. Together with the architectural and inscriptional evidence from the 26th Dynasty, the finds point to a sacred landscape that the Saite rulers built on top of, not on empty ground. Per Archaeology Magazine, researchers believe an earlier cult center likely existed at the site and was later rebuilt or expanded by the Saite rulers of the 26th Dynasty. The picture that emerges, per the Egyptian mission’s framing, is one of a temple complex with a long pre-Saite history.
How the Site Outlasted the Pharaohs
The temple is only part of the Old Palace story. The site continued to be occupied well after the pharaonic era ended, with the archaeological mission turning up inscriptions in Coptic and Latin, along with industrial installations, storage facilities, and basins used in the production of wine and oils. Sabry Farag, Director General of Bahariya Oasis Antiquities, said the evidence shows the site remained occupied during the Greek and Roman periods and into the fourth and fifth centuries AD. The finds from those later centuries, the mission says, indicate the temple complex was repurposed as the oasis economy evolved.
The Coptic and Latin inscriptions, along with the ostraca, storage areas, and wine- and oil-making basins, give the site’s later occupation a written and material record. Per EgyptToday, the discoveries include ostraca, Coptic and Latin texts, industrial installations, and storage facilities, all pointing to continued use of the site into the 4th and 5th centuries AD. The find shows the Bahariya Oasis outlasted pharaohs, the same pattern seen across ancient Egypt’s later history, including the death of the last pharaoh of Ptolemaic Egypt.
Recovering the Lost Name of the Temple
Earlier excavation seasons at Old Palace yielded a metal seal that gave the temple back its ancient name. Kotb Fawzy, head of the Central Administration of Cairo and Giza Antiquities, said the seal produced the first-ever identification of the temple’s name, Ib-Set, translated as ‘The Seat of the Heart.’ Heritage Daily’s coverage recorded the same name as ‘Ip-Set,’ translated as ‘Headquarters of the Heart,’ a difference that reflects the transliteration choices of the two accounts. The name had been unknown before the seal surfaced, and the same earlier seasons produced the shrine of Pa-di-Iza, a local governor and priest described as one of the most significant figures associated with the administration of the oasis during the Late Period. Per Archaeology Wiki, the body of earlier finds helps reconstruct the temple’s original layout and document its evolution over time.
The Pa-di-Iza shrine is one of the most significant finds associated with the administration of the oasis during the Late Period, Kotb Fawzy said.
The catalog of earlier finds is unusually rich for a desert oasis temple. Beyond the metal seal and the Pa-di-Iza shrine, earlier seasons turned up a statue of the god Thoth, a bronze figure of Osiris, a bronze amulet of Ra-Horakhty, and the head of a statue believed to represent a senior priest or official connected to the oasis administration. Per Archaeology Wiki, these finds help reconstruct the temple’s original layout and document its evolution over time. The Supreme Council of Antiquities frames the body of finds as evidence that Old Palace served as the region’s capital during the Late Period and was a major religious and administrative centre for centuries.
- 16 sandstone columns in the main hypostyle hall
- 2014: Year excavation work at the Old Palace site began
- 2026: The most recent season of work
- 26th Dynasty: Temple’s founding period
- 4th and 5th centuries AD: Latest continuous occupation of the site
Cairo Officials Frame the Find
The find has drawn measured words from Cairo. Egypt’s Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, Sherif Fathy, said the discoveries enhance understanding of ancient Egyptian civilisation and reinforce Egypt’s status as a leading destination for cultural tourism. Dr Hisham El-Leithy, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, framed the season’s work as a step toward reconstructing the temple’s original layout and tracing its development over time.
The finds are helping researchers reconstruct the temple’s original layout and better understand its development through time. This is further evidence of the historical significance of the Old Palace site, which served as an important religious and administrative centre for centuries.
Dr Hisham El-Leithy, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, gave the statement in the mission’s official release on the 2026 season. The site, he said, has been a key piece of the Bahariya Oasis’s history, with religious and administrative life overlapping for centuries. The mission, he added, sees the latest discoveries as a step toward understanding the oasis’s role within ancient Egypt and its continued importance through successive historical eras. Per Heritage Daily, the Old Palace site is considered one of the most important archaeological locations in the Bahariya Oasis. Researchers believe the latest discoveries will contribute significantly to understanding the oasis’s role within ancient Egypt and its continued importance through successive historical eras.
Frequently Asked Questions
When was the Bahariya Oasis temple built?
Construction of the temple at the Old Palace site in Al-Qasr village began during the reign of Psamtik I, the 26th Dynasty pharaoh whose reign launched the project, and continued under his successors, including Wahibre (Apries) and Ahmose II (Amasis). All three are 26th Dynasty kings, making the Saite dynasty the temple’s founding period.
What was the temple’s ancient name?
A metal seal found in earlier excavation seasons gave the temple its ancient name, Ib-Set, translated as ‘The Seat of the Heart.’ Heritage Daily’s coverage recorded the same name as ‘Ip-Set,’ translated as ‘Headquarters of the Heart,’ a difference that reflects the transliteration choices of the two accounts.
How was the temple’s name discovered?
A metal seal recovered in an earlier excavation season at Old Palace preserved the ancient name Ib-Set, giving researchers the first-ever identification of the temple’s name. The temple’s name had been unknown before the seal surfaced.
What does the find tell us about Bahariya’s role?
The site, already known to have served as the capital of the Bahariya Oasis during the Late Period, is now understood to have been a religious and administrative center for centuries, with sacred use going back to the reign of Amenhotep II in the 18th Dynasty, roughly 800 years earlier than the 26th Dynasty temple.
Who is leading the excavation at Old Palace?
The excavation is being carried out by an Egyptian archaeological mission from the Supreme Council of Antiquities. Named leads include Dr. Hisham El-Leithy (Secretary-General of the Council), Mohamed Abdel Badi (Head of the Egyptian Antiquities Sector), Kotb Fawzy (Head of the Central Administration for Cairo and Giza Antiquities), and Sabry Farag (Director General of Bahariya Oasis Antiquities).
