Archaeologists discovered a number of fragments of terracotta statues at the site in Alexandria. (Image credit: Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities)

Archaeologists in Egypt have discovered an ancient pottery workshop — with the remains of rounded vessels, coins, figurines and even a 'ritual room' — dating to the beginning of the Roman period in Tabba Matouh, west Alexandria. 

Ancient workers primarily used the site for crafting amphorae —  two-handed vessels with a neck narrower than the main body that were used for the storage and transportation of goods such as oil and grain, according to the University of Oxford's Classical Art Research Center. 

Archaeologists with the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities discovered a number of buildings at the site, including a workshop containing a group of kilns. Two of these were carved into the rock and one remains in excellent condition, the ministry announced in a translated statement. 

During the Byzantine era (A.D. 330 to 1453), long after ceramic production ended at the site, the buildings were likely used for another purpose: lime production, Mustafa Waziri, secretary-general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, said in the statement. The archaeologists also uncovered graves, with burial holes dug into rock, suggesting the site was later used as a cemetery during the medieval period. One of the graves held the remains of a pregnant woman.

The archaeologists also discovered a storage room, which contained cooking utensils and tableware. A number of limestone buildings were most likely used as temporary residences for workers at the site. One room was discovered with a raised platform and the remains of terracotta statues, suggesting it was likely used for rituals. Some of these statues represent the god Harpocrates, the juvenile form of the falcon-headed god Horus. Another room that had stoves and the remains of amphorae containing preserved fish bones was most likely used for cooking and selling food, according to the statement.