American and Polish archaeologists discovered the statue in Berenice, an ancient port city in the southeast, he said.
The 71-centimetre statuette, dating from the Roman era, depicts Buddha in a robe, stripped of his limbs on the right side, a halo surrounding his head in reference to the sun's rays, according to the photo published by the ministry.
Egypt was then "at the heart of the trade route linking the Roman Empire to many parts of the ancient world," said Mostafa Waziri, secretary-general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities.
Ships arrived from India, loaded with spices, jewelry, textiles or ivory.
Egypt regularly announces archaeological discoveries, with some experts often seeing them more as a tool for promoting tourism than as a historical interest.
The country is trying to turn around its crucial tourism sector, which has largely suffered from political instability after the 2011 revolution, then the Covid-19 health crisis and finally the war between Ukraine and Russia, two countries that provide tourists to Egypt.
© 2023 AFP