On Wednesday, 24 September 2025, the Egyptian archaeological mission affiliated to the Supreme Council of Antiquities discovered a stone tablet representing a new copy of the famous Canopus Decree, issued by King Ptolemy III in 283 BC. This is the largest discovery of its kind in more than 150 years, as no complete copy of the decree has been found since that time.

This copy adds to six previously known copies, some of them are complete, while others are not. They were discovered at sites such as Kom el-Hisn, San el-Hagar, and Tel Basta.

The discovered tablet is engraved entirely in hieroglyphics, unlike the other copies, which were trilingual, written in hieroglyphics, Demotic, and Greek. This discovery opens up new horizons for understanding the ancient Egyptian language and provides additional information about Ptolemaic decrees and royal and religious ceremonial systems.

The discovered tablet is made of sandstone, with an arched top, measuring 127.5 cm long, 83 cm wide and about 48 cm thick. It is topped by a winged sun disc from which two royal cobras with white and red crowns are hanged. The middle section contains 30 lines of hieroglyphic writing, executed with moderate sculptural quality.

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The engraved texts include detailed information about the deeds of King Ptolemy III and his wife Berenice (the benevolent gods), including gifts to Egyptian temples, maintaining internal peace, reducing taxes during periods of low Nile water levels, and more. The decree also stipulates that these tablets be copied in hieroglyphics, Demotic, and Greek and placed in the most important major temples.