An Egyptian-German archaeological team has unearthed six statues of the ancient Egyptian war goddess Sekhmet in the southern tourist city of Luxor, Egyptian Culture Minister Farouq Abdel-Aziz Hosni said on Monday.

The statues of the goddess, who has the head of a lioness and the body of a woman, were found at the temple of Amenhotep III of the 18th dynasty (1580-1314 BC) on the west bank of the Nile, Hosni said in a statement.

The black granite statues showed that Sekhmet was sitting on a throne and holding the key of life in her left hand.

Three of the statues are entire, said Hourig Sourouzian, head of the archaeological team, adding that the other three statues are only partly conserved.

The goddess Sekhmet, associated with war and retribution, represented the destructive force of the sun, according to ancient Egyptian mythology.

Source: Xinhua