Recent excavations at the ancient Lydian capital of Sardis in western Turkey have uncovered a 2,600-year-old temple dedicated to the Mother Goddess, Cybele. The sanctuary, located near the city’s historic gold-refining area, contains a wealth of votive offerings, including small ivory figurines and jewelry covered in fine gold leaf.
Archaeologists discovered that the temple was built directly over an earlier ritual site, suggesting a continuity of worship spanning several centuries. The find provides new evidence of the central role the Cybele cult played in the economic and spiritual life of the Lydian Empire before the Persian conquest.