Egyptian Cults around the Black Sea

10 February 2026 - 17 February 2026

Alexandria, Egypt

Bibliotheca Alexandrina Main Entrance, Hall of Fame

 The Antiquities Museum affiliated to the Bibliotheca Alexandrina Cultural Outreach Sector, in cooperation with the Embassy of the Republic of Bulgaria in Cairo, and the Institute of Balkan Studies and Centre of Thracology at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, organizes an exhibition entitled “Egyptian Cults around the Black Sea”. The Exhibition will be held from 10–17 February 2026, at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina Main Entrance, Hall of Fame. The event is part of the project Thrace and Egypt in the Greco–Roman World, directed by Vessela Atanassova, and is dedicated to celebrating 100 years of Bulgarian–Egyptian bilateral diplomatic relations.

The first contacts between the coastal cities of the Black Sea and Ancient Egypt were probably established at the beginning of the first millennium BCE. The large number of Egyptian or Egyptian-style amulets found in the Greek colonies, such as Chersonese Taurica, Olbia, Apollonia Pontica, Mesambria, bear witness to these early commercial and cultural relations. Following the death of Alexander the Great (323 BCE) and the rise of the Ptolemaic dynasty in Egypt, certain cults from the Nile Valley spread to the eastern Mediterranean and reached the Black Sea coast. To their Egyptian roots were soon added Alexandrian and Greek features, which facilitated their reception all around the Pont-Euxin, along the multiple routes of a very dense network of communications. The Exhibition invites you to discover these ancient links between the Black Sea and the Nile Valley.

Through a collection of curated banners, the Exhibition presents archaeological finds from various ancient cities along the Black Sea coast, including Chersonese Taurica (Crimea), Olbia (Parutino, Ukraine), Tyras (Belgorod-Dniester, Ukraine), Tomis (Constantza, Romania), Mesambria (Nessebar, Bulgaria), Odessos (Varna, Bulgaria), Byzantium (Istanbul, Turkey) and Vani (Georgia). To best illustrate the polymorphous penetration of Egyptian cults in the Black Sea region, they have been divided into seven sections: Epigraphic Monuments, Bone Objects, Terracotta, Bronzes, Marble Sculptures, Gems and Rings, and Coins.