1st-century Buddha statue from ancient Egypt indicates Buddhists lived there in Roman times
The joint Polish-American archaeological mission, working in the temple of the ancient city of Berenike on the coast of the Red Sea in Egypt, discovered a Buddha statue from the Roman era. Archaeologists believe that a 1,900-year-old Buddha statue that was found at the ancient Egyptian port city of Berenike on the Red Sea coast belonged to a South Asian immigrant. Siddhartha Gautama, who lived in South Asia about 2,550 years ago, is shown in the Buddha statue. The Buddha, a term borrowed from Sanskrit and meaning "the enlightened one," according to Buddhist legend, was formerly a prince who later gave up his material wealth and sought enlightenment. He started a new religion, which spread over time. According to Steven Sidebotham, a history professor at the University of Delaware and co-director of the Berenike Project, the newly discovered monument was created between the years A.D. 90 and 140. A handout picture released by the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities o...