CAIRO, April 11 (Xinhua) -- Egyptian archeologists discovered on Monday the remains of a large pottery workshop dating back to the Roman era in Alexandria Governorate, north of the capital Cairo.

       In a statement, the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities said an Egyptian archaeological mission working at the Tabet Matrouh site, west of Alexandria, has succeeded in excavating a pottery workshop dating back to the beginning of the Roman era.

       Mustafa Waziri, secretary general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities in Egypt, said the workshop consists of a group of kilns, two of which were carved in the rocky walls.

       One of the two kilns was in a good state of preservation with a vaulted entrance on the western side, he added.

       The mission also uncovered another building located to the south of the two kilns, probably used to store tools for daily use, as lots of cooking utensils and tableware were found inside, said Ayman Ashmawy, head of the Egyptian Antiquities Sector at the Supreme Council of Antiquities.

       Meanwhile, a large collection of coins bearing the portraits of Alexander the Great, the god Zeus, and Queen Cleopatra were unearthed, most of which date back to the Ptolemaic era, said Ibrahim Mustafa, head of the archaeological mission.

       Mustafa added that the discoveries also include parts of terracotta statues of deities and women as well as remains of fishing hooks and an anchor of a boat.