The Buddha at Berenike?

SUPRISE ICONOGRAPHY: Buddha statue unearthed at temple in Egypt's Red Sea region. A newly discovered marble statue of the Buddha at a temple in Berenike on the red sea shows a connection between Egypt and India during the Roman Empire (Nevine El-Aref, Ahram online)

Berenike Trogodytika was a port on the coast of the Red Sea in Ptolemaic times. It is named after Queen Berenike I, the wife of Ptolemy I. The latter appears under the code name "king of the south" in Daniel 11:5. I have mentioned it here and links.

The site continues to produce interesting discoveries. This latest one, from the temple of Isis (a.k.a the "Great Temple"), illustrates the cross-cultural and eclectic nature of Egyptian religion in the "Roman era." (The article does not specify the date of the discovery any further.) A Sanskrit inscription dating to the mid-third century CE, some second-century CE coins, and some first-century CE jars underline the connection to India. For more on the excavation of this temple, see here and here.

Visit PaleoJudaica daily for the latest news on ancient Judaism and the biblical world.