Researchers are trying to figure out how a Roman-era figurine of the Greek god Pan ended up in the ruins of one of Istanbul's oldest churches

An eight-inch-tall figurine of the Greek god Pan, a symbol of fertility believed to be around 1,700 years old, has been discovered by Turkish authorities during an excavation at the ancient Byzantine church of St. Polyeuctos in Istanbul. Dating back to the year 527, the remains of the church can be found in the Saraçhane Archaeological Park in the center of the city.

“This morning we unearthed another magnificent archaeological discovery in Istanbul, a city steeped in history,” said Mahir Polat, secretary general of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality, in a statement posted on Twitter on June 1.

In ancient Greek mythology, Pan was the god of nature, shepherds and flocks, and a companion of nymphs, depicted with the hindquarters, horns and legs of a goat. In some versions of the myth, it is Pan, rather than the satyr Marsyas, who challenges Apollo, the god of light and music, to a contest. His favored instrument, a set of pipes, appears as his attribute in the newly discovered figurine. (In either case, whether the story features Marsyas or Pan, the challenger lost to Apollo.)

A Roman era figurine of the Greek god Pan. Courtesy of Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality.

According to Christian tradition, Polyeuctus, a wealthy Roman officer, was the first martyr in Melitene, Armenia under the Roman Emperor Valerian, and was killed in the year 259. The church dedicated to him was built by Roman noblewoman Anicia Juliana as an affirmation of her own imperial lineage. Before the construction of Hagia Sophia by Emperor Justinian in 537, the church of Polyeuctos would have been the largest in the city.

It is believed that the Church of St. Polyeuctus was modeled on the proportions of Solomon’s Temple, which stood in Jerusalem. The building, however, fell into disrepair from the 11th century, was rebuilt in the Ottoman era and was rediscovered during excavations in the 1960s.

Now in the custody of the Directorate of Archaeological Museums, the statue of Pan will be examined to see if a more precise date can be attributed to it.

The discovery follows the discovery of a statue fragment of a man wrapped in a toga by about two months:

Günün in heyecan verici haberi;

Bu heykeli İstanbul’un göbeğinde, İBB Saraçhane ana binasının karşısında Polieuktos kazısında toprak altından çıkardık.

İstanbul’un toprağından tarih fışkırıyor. İBB Miras İstanbul’un tarihini ayağa kaldırmaya devam ediyor☀️ pic.twitter.com/C1dzTsgr6E

— Mahir Polat (@mhrpolat) March 31, 2023