Archaeologists have identified ancient Egyptian iconography on a marble lintel in a Roman-era bathhouse at Sagalassos, Turkey. The carving depicts the sphinx god Tutu, flanked by two human figures wearing the crowns of Upper and Lower Egypt, along with deities Horus and Sobek. Dating to the reign of Emperor Augustus (27 BCE–14 CE), the panel was found in the frigidarium and was sourced from marble quarried over 124 miles away in the Afyonkarahisar region.
This discovery is significant because it represents the first known instance of such Egyptian imagery being used outside Egypt purely for ornamental purposes, rather than for worship. Excavation director Peter Talloen noted that the Sagalassians did not venerate Egyptian gods but employed the iconography decoratively, offering unique insight into cross-cultural artistic exchange in the Roman Empire. The find also underscores Sagalassos’s historical importance as a major urban center in Pisidia, now on UNESCO’s tentative World Heritage list.