New Delhi, Dec 3: Archaeologists have discovered the remains of an ancient dam, dating back to some 4,000 years, in Upper Egypt, proving theories that ancient Egyptians were master dam builders.

Discovered by an Egyptian-French archaeological team, which has been working in Luxor since March, the ancient dam was found a few meters away from the Karnak Temple in the city, some 500 km south of Cairo.

"The 230-meter long dam was built during the age of the Middle Kingdom (of ancient Egypt) to protect the temple from the Nile flood," Xinhua quoted Zahi Hawass, Secretary-General of the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities, as saying.

According to Hawass, the finding is of grave importance as it proved that the ancient Egyptians were good at building dams.

The discovery will also revive interest in the ancient Egyptian city, where, it was believed by some archaeologists, that nothing of great importance would be found again.

"The team had also unearthed the relics of a Roman bath built in the first century AD and a clay jar containing 316 coins from different historical periods," said Hawass. (ANI)