Divinità levantine a Tell el-Maskhuta, lungo il Canale dei faraoni: un manufatto dagli scavi CNR-ISPC

Tell el-Maskhuta is a large archaeological site, approximately 1 km wide, located along one of the main routes between Egypt and the Sinai—and thus toward Palestine—at the northeastern border of Egypt, not far from the Suez Canal. The ancient city controlled the Wadi Tumilat, a wide valley running east to west. Along this same valley, the so-called Canal of the Pharaohs (or Canal of the Two Seas) was excavated; it connected the Mediterranean to the Red Sea and is attested in various ancient sources. It was commissioned by Necho II, later by Darius I, and subsequently renovated by Ptolemy II and Trajan. Recent research by the CNR-ISPC has uncovered port infrastructure on the navigable canal. In that area, a small stela was found depicting what are likely two deities with summary features; despite the uniqueness of the object, these figures seem to evoke, in certain aspects, those typical of Punic tophet stelae. The small stela of Tell el-Maskhuta represents a highly unique case: its discovery at a crossroads between Egypt and the Levant, the Mediterranean and the Red Sea, suggests forms of contact whose precise outlines remain elusive, yet it opens remarkable perspectives, especially regarding the Phoenician presence in the Red Sea, which had an important base at Tell el-Maskhuta.