Archaeologists in Egypt have discovered an ancient hidden tunnel beneath a temple that they hope leads to the long-lost tomb of Queen Cleopatra.
The mᴀssive tunnel was discovered by an Egyptian-Dominican archaeological research team from the University of Santo Domingo in the area of the Temple of Tapozeris Magna, just west of Alexandria, Egypt’s Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities announced last week.
Located about 40 feet below ground, the tunnel is about 6.5 feet high from ceiling to floor and runs for nearly a mile long at 4,281 feet, according to Dr. Mustafa Waziri, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council for Archaeology.
A preliminary study of the tunnel suggests that it’s similar in construction to the Jubilinos tunnel in Greece, but longer.
Previous excavations at the temple site led to the discovery of coins bearing the names of both Queen Cleopatra and Alexander the Great as well as statues of the Egyptian goddess Isis, according to the ministry’s post.
Some believe that the tunnel could lead to the undiscovered tomb of Cleopatra, who lived between 69 B.C. and 30 B.C. and was the final ruler of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt before the Roman Empire took over.
“Searches for her burial place over time have largely rested upon accounts in Classical sources, e.g. Plutarch, Cᴀssius Dio, Claire Gilmour, a Ph.D. candidate in anthropology and archaeology at the University of Bristol, told Newsweek.
“And modern investigations have mostly veered between Alexandria as the capital at the time of Cleopatra VII (including underwater surveys as some of the city has become submerged) and Taposiris Magna, which could have been chosen for its links with the goddess Isis, with whom Cleopatra closely ᴀssociated herself,” said Gilmour.
Cleopatra is perhaps best known for her ill-fated romance with Roman politician and general Mark Antony, the inspiration for William Shakespeare’s tragedy “Antony and Cleopatra.”
She is infamously believed to have committed suicide in Alexandria to avoid being paraded through Rome as a war prize.
