It was found by a farmer cultivating his land
A 4,500-year-old stone statuette depicting the face of an ancient goddess has been discovered in southern Gaza, archaeologists in the Palestinian enclave say.
Made of limestone and 22 centimeters long, the statue from 2500 BC was found by a farmer cultivating his land in Khan Younis.
“The statue represents the Canaanite goddess Anat,” said Jamal Abu Reda, in charge of antiquities at the tourism ministry.
Anat, one of the most famous Canaanite deities, is the goddess of love and war. The find was made in an area that is an important “land trade route for several civilizations” that lived in what is now the Gaza Strip, according to Abu Reda.
The find is the latest in Gaza, where tourism at archeological sites is limited due to an Israeli blockade imposed after the Hamas militant group took power in the enclave in 2007.
In February, workers at a construction site in northern Gaza discovered 31 Roman-era tombs dating back to the first century AD.
