Copyright Men's Journal
Archaeologists have made a number of historic discoveries while excavating the ancient Greek City of Laodicea, which housed a church mentioned in the Bible. Among the most notable discoveries was a 2,100-year-old statue head. Celal Simsek, a professor of Archaeology, announced the discovery on X, sharing photos that showed a well-preserved state head. “Goddess Hygieia meeting the sun and us after 2100 years in Laodicea,” he wrote, according to a translation. On October 18, Simsek shared additional photos showing excavations at Laodecia, sometimes called Laodikeia. “Restoration work is being carried out in the ancient city of Laodikeia, based on international principles of restoration at an institutional level, highlighting the original state of the work,” he wrote. According to a November 1 article by Popular Mechanics, the statue head belonged to the goddess Hygieia, who was “revered as the goddess of health and cleanliness.” According to Popular Mechanics, the finding “further cements” the area’s importance as a “prominent cultural center in the first century B.C.” It was pulled from an amphitheater’s ruins. The ancient Greek city is located in present-day Turkey, according to Popular Mechanics. The Goddess Head Is Just Part of a Major Excavation in the Ancient Location The statue was discovered in May 2024, according to Simsek’s post. According to Hurriyet Daily News, “Unearthing of the head of the Hygieia statue after 2,100 years caused great excitement in the excavation site, while efforts to unearth its body continue.” The ancient Greek city housed one of seven churches mentioned in the Bible, that site reported. The professor has made a number of posts sharing details on the ongoing excavations at Laodicea. The archaeologists also found a statue of Asclepius. “Both statues were made in the late Hellenistic-early Augustus Period in the classical style,” he told Hurriyet Daily News. He added to that site: “The statues of the god and goddess of health reveal the presence of the Herophileion medical school in the ancient city of Laodicea and the ancient writer Strabo, one of the important doctors trained there. All statues have very fine workmanship and are of high artistic quality.”” “Laodikeia’da sabah/Morning in Laodikeia,” he wrote with another post on October 12. “Restoration work continues at the stage building of the Western Theater in Laodikeia under the Legacy to the Future Project; we have completed the vault,” he wrote in August. The professor told the site Arkeolojihaber: “We already know it was an administrative center overseeing 7-10 cities. When we began excavating the council building, we observed that its surrounding walls formed a pentagonal shape, and including the front, it had a hexagonal structure. This is the first time we’ve encountered such an architectural style.” He added, “After Laodikeia became the capital of the Phrygian region, it also functioned as a judicial center.” Another statue depicts “an administrator, chief judge, and manager from that era,” the site reported, quoting the professor as saying, “This statue dates to the 2nd century CE. However, the head placed on top of it that we found is dated to the 400s. This suggests that as the judicial system continued, the person seated here served as chief judge, and over time, portraits of changing presidents and judges were recreated and installed here. In this respect, this site is the first and only one of its kind.”
