"Egyptian gods always existed in family groups, with a mother and child," he said. "It shows how much they understood and valued the family unit."
"This find is tremendously exciting, and it shows the importance of the Temple of Mut," said Rita Freed, who is curator of Ancient Egyptian, Nubian and Near Eastern Art and joint head of the Department of Art of the Ancient World at the Museum of Fine Arts, in Boston. Mut was an ancient Egyptian mother goddess.
"The relief screams images of birth and rebirth," she said. "The lotus, for example, is a symbol of rebirth because it closes and opens."
While Freed believes the relief "doesn't directly represent anybody's family," she said Egyptian royal families were thought to be gods, so the birth house was a place where the "god and goddess would come together to produce a child."
Currently the beam is undergoing cleaning and conservation. It will eventually be displayed at the Luxor Museum of Ancient Egyptian Art.
