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Abu Simbel :
is a set of two temples near the border of Egypt with
Sudan. It was constructed for the pharaoh Ramesses II
who reigned for 67 years during the 13th century BC (19th
Dynasty).
The temples were cut from the rock and shifted to higher
ground in the 1960s as the waters of Lake Nasser began
to rise following completion of the Aswan High Dam.
The Great Temple is dedicated to Ramesses II and a statue
of him is seated with three other gods within the innermost
part of the rock-cut temple (the sanctuary). The temple's
facade is dominated by four enormous seated statues of
the Pharaoh (each over 20 metres or 67 feet high), although
one has been damaged since ancient times.
The Small Temple was probably completed ahead of the Great
Temple and is dedicated to Ramesses' favourite wife, Nefertari.
At the entrance stand six 10-metre-high (33 feet) rock-cut
statues - two of Ramesses and one of Nefertari on either
side of the doorway.
The temples can be reached by road, air or boat. Arrival
by boat is achieved by cruising from the Aswan High Dam
on a 3-day journey. The author first made the trip on
the "Eugenie" in January 1995 with the vessel
stopping at various relocated temples along the way. In
early 1998, the journey was repeated on the "Nubian
Sea", but the number of tourists reaching Abu Simbel
in this way remains relatively small.
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- Aswan :
While Aswan was always of strategic importance to Egypt,
the town only became a city in the 1960s when great forces
of workers constructing the High Dam were housed there.
The High Dam itself is over two miles long and 360ft high
and affords views over Lake Nasser. The lake is, at its
fullest, 310 miles long, 6 miles wide and on average 600ft
deep. As well as being a beautiful resort, Aswan has a
huge array of temples, monuments and sights.
The Ptolemaic Temple of Philae was, like Abu Simbel, transported
from its flooded site to a new position above the water
and completely rebuilt stone by stone. The beautiful Kiosk
of Trajan stands close by on the same island. Kitchener
Island and its botanical gardens are reached by felucca
before continuing to Elephantine Island (although not
desembarking) which has an ancient Nilometer built into
its eastern side and numerous rock reliefs, inscriptions
and traces of Pharaonic temples.
The granite mausoleum of the late Aga Khan commands a
splendid view of Aswan and the Nile Valley beyond which
the desert stretches as far as the eye can see. In the
ancient granite quarry of the Pharaohs, an unfinished
obelisk lies cracked and damaged, but clearly demonstrates
the method
used to cut these vast pieces of stone.
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3
- Edfu :
The Temple of Horus at Edfu has a massive entrance pylon
covered with sunk relief carvings. This Ptolemaic temple
was constructed between 237 and 57 B.C.E.
Once a year for the "Feast of the Beautiful Meeting,"
Hathor traveled from Dendera to Edfu to visit her husband/consort,
Horus. Her arrival was scheduled for the afternoon of
the new moon. The statues of the deities remained in the
mammisi or birth house (not pictured) until the end of
the festival at the full moon. The result of their union
was their son Ihy or Horus-Sematawy.
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- Esna
Esna & West Bank
Downstream from Aswan lies Esna, a large village on the
west bank f the Nile. It was here that the cult of Khnum
was celebrated, the ram-headed god who fashioned man from
a potter's wheel. The Temple of Khnum is now ostensibly
the hypostyle hall built by Claudius as the majority of
the 18th dynasty buildings of Psammetichus and Ptolemy
VI have vanished.
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The
Temple of Karnak :
The great Temple of Amun at Karnak was once the religious
centre of Thebes and Upper Egypt. Karnak was linked to
Luxor by a sphinx-lined avenue, and the whole complex
of temples was in turn linked to the Nile via a canal
through which moved the sacred boats of the god Amun.
Passing through a smaller avenue of ram-headed sphinxes,
erected by Ramesses II, we come to the massive pylon entrance
of the 30th dynasty. Inside the great Courtyard, which
dates from the 22nd dynasty, are three chapels dedicated
to the gods Amun, Khous and Mut by Seth II. The impressive
Hypostyle Hall has 134 soaring columns; each column is
carved with scenes of gods and pharaohs; the inscriptions
on the walls tell their stories of war and peace.
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The
Valley of the Kings :
Situated in a secluded area of the west bank, the Valley
of the Kings contains 62 excavated tombs, mostly royal
but some belonging to members of the nobility. There are
differences in style, colour and content in each of the
tombs; the earliest have staircases, corridors and right-angled
bends while the later ones are more simplified, being
little more than huge sloping corridors. The walls and
ceilings were painted with scenes and inscriptions designed
to assist the King in his journey through the underworld.
A visit to the Valley of the Kings usually takes in two
or three of the tombs, dependent on the number of visitors
in the Valley and which tombs are open. Other main tombs
include those of Amenophis II (one of the best preserved),
Ramesses IX (never completed), Ramesses VI and Seti I
(largest and most elaborate).
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The
Valley of the Queens :
Also situated on the west bank, the Valley of the Queens
is smaller than the Valley of the Kings but is ringed
by impressive cliffs. The tombs belong to lesser important
personages (Queens and Princes) but have many interesting
facets. The main tombs are those of Queen Titi (an otherwise
unknown royal lady), Prince Khaemwaset (Ramesses III's
eldest son) and Prince Amenhirkhepeshef (notable for its
vivid colouring). The finest tomb, is tomb of Queen Nefertari.
Recent excavations have unearthed previously unknown tombs,
although most are damaged or undecorated.
The Mortuary Temple of Queen Hatshepsut
The Temple of Hatshepsut at Deir el-Bahari, unlike any
other temple in Egypt, is composed of three widely-spaced
terraces with ramps leading from one to the next. It is
said that the Queen intended it as a pleasure
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The
Mortuary Temple of Queen Hatshepsut :
The Temple of Hatshepsut at Deir el-Bahari, unlike any
other temple in Egypt, is composed of three widely-spaced
terraces with ramps leading from one to the next. It is
said that the Queen intended it as a pleasure garden for
the god Amun, to whom the temple is dedicated. There are
chapels dedicated to the gods Anubis and Hathor, the tutelary
goddess of the Theban necropolis. The first terrace is
virtually destroyed; approaching the second visitors climb
the ramp to see some excellent bas-reliefs of the Queen
with her nephew and co-regent Tuthmosis III. Particularly
interesting are friezes depicting the Queen's expedition
to the land of Punt.
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5
- Kom Ombo
Kom Ombo lies 26 miles downstream from Aswan and is the
site of a Ptolemaic temple that dates from the 2nd century.
Exceptionally, it is dedicated to two gods: Haroeris,
a form of Horus, and the crocodile-headed god Sobek, each
with its own chapel.
There are some excellent wall paintings and are at their
best in the outermost of the two corridors that run around
the temple. EdfuThe Temple of Edfu, dating from the Ptolemies,
is dedicated to the sun god Horus and is one of the most
perfectly preserved temples in Egypt.
A vast pylon gateway leads into a courtyard where two
figures of Horus guard the entrance to the vestibule,
ante-chamber, hypostyle hall and finally the inner sanctum.
It is in Edfu that one gets the strongest impression of
the cults and worship of ancient Egypt
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- Luxor
Luxor and its Monuments
The town of Luxor, Homer's 'Hundred-gated Thebes', is
the site and the gateway to the largest surviving concentration
of ancient monuments in the Nile Valley. The Theban necropolis
lies on the west bank while the east bank, close to the
town itself, are the temples of Luxor and Karnak.
The Temple of Luxor
The Temple of Luxor was built by Amenophis III on the
site of an earlier temple and enlarged and beautified
by Ramesses II. In front of the great pylon entrance
originally stood two obelisks and six colossal statues,
all erected by Ramesses II. One obelisk is now in Paris.
The statues, now much damaged, all represent Ramesses
himself. The colonnaded forecourt is also Ramesses'
work. But perhaps the most beautiful parts of the temple
are the Colonnade and Court of Amenophis, its columns
crowned with lotus bud capitals.
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The
Colossi of Memnon :
These two massive statues both portraying King Amenhotep
II once flanked the entrance to his massive funerary temple.
The temple has all but disappeared but the statues, although
weather-beaten, have survived. Carved from a single block
of sandstone they stand over 50 ft high on a base of 8
ft and look imperiously over the barren landscape. The
two colossi enjoyed fame even in the ancient world and
it was the Greeks who identified them with Memnon, son
of Titon and Dawn.
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7-
Philae
South of the city of Aswan lies the beautiful temple complex
of Philae (pronounced "feel-i"). Its main temple
was dedicated to the goddess Isis and its construction
was undertaken during the third century B.C. Philae was
the last bastion of ancient Egyptian religion and hieroglyphic
usage. It is also a superb example of threatened cultural
heritage being saved in the face of modern civilization's
march to change the environment.
The island of Philae and its temples came under threat
at the turn of the century when the British erected the
Aswan Dam at the First Cataract. Philae began to spend
some of its time beneath the backed-up flood waters of
the Nile. The Dam was progressively raised in the following
decades, but the final nail in the coffin for the island
of Philae came with the construction of the Aswan High
Dam in the 1960s. The temples were destined to disappear
forever beneath the river's waters.
Fortunately, Philae was saved from drowning. In 1977,
a coffer dam was constructed around the temples and the
water was pumped out. Then the temples were carefully
dismantled with every block assigned a number and its
position noted. A nearby higher island called Agilkai
was modified to resemble Philae and the temples were resembled.
In 1980, Philae was once again opened to the public.
Today, Philae is one of the highlights of any visit to
Aswan. To reach it, one can take an organised excursion
booked through a travel agent or hotel. Alternatively,
take a taxi to the boat landing at Shellal on the east
side of the old Aswan Dam. From there, a short boat trip
can be arranged to the island.
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