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Visit Highlights |
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Luxor
The city of Luxor -Homer's 'hundred-gated Thebes'- is located about 500 km, or
300 miles to the south of Cairo. The town is the site and the gateway to the
largest surviving concentration of ancient monuments in the Nile Valley. Luxor
is home to: the famous temples of Karnak and Luxor, the Valley of the Kings,
(where the tomb of Tutankhamun is to be found), the Valley of the Queens, and
other awe-inspiring monuments, tombs, and colossal statues. Luxor has its own
museum with relics from the Theban temples and Necropolis.
The city features traditional souks and bazaars, selling a wide range of goods,
from spices to clothes.
Felucca boats line the Nile, and offer short trips and sunset cruises.
The Monuments of Luxor
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 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.
The Temple of Karnak
The great Temple of Amun at Karnak was once the religious centre of Thebes and
Upper Egypt. The Temple covers an immense 100 acres, and was once linked to
Luxor by a sphinx-lined avenue. 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.
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, color 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).
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 coloring). The finest tomb is the 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 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.
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.
Aswan
Aswan is a beautiful winter resort, and is the southernmost city in Egypt. This
peaceful city, with influences of Nubian culture, is home to a huge array of
temples and monuments. It is also famous for its High Dam, one of the three
largest dams in the world. The Ptolemaic temple of Philae was threatened by the
flooding caused by the opening of the Dam, but was saved by being transported
from its original site.
Much of the film "Death on the Nile', was filmed at the Old Cataract Hotel
in Aswan. The town is very picturesque, being located on the riverside, and
offers lots of attractive walks.
The Monuments and Attractions of Aswan
The High Dam and Lake Nasser
The Dam, completed in the 1960s, is over two miles long and 360ft high and
affords views over Lake Nasser. The lake is named after the late Gamal Abdel
Nasser, who was president of Egypt from 1956 to 1970. The reservoir is used for
hydroelectricity production, fishing, and irrigation. Before Lake Nasser was
formed, the area was the site of the temples of Abu Simbel, which were built by
Egyptian pharaoh Ramses II in the 1200s BC. During the construction of the
Aswan High Dam in the 1960s these temples were moved, but many other historic
monuments were submerged.
Also submerged is a portion of the historic lands of the Nubians, who lived
along the Nile between Aswan and Khartoum, Sudan, for thousands of years.
The Ptolemaic Temple of Philae on the Island of Philae
This temple was saved from threat of flooding by UNESCO. It was moved
painstakingly, stone by stone, and transported from its flooded site to a new
position at a higher point on the island. It was then completely rebuilt.
The Island of Plants
Also known as Kitchener Island, this was presented to Lord Horatio Kitchener in
the 1890s in recognition of his military services. He created a beautiful
botanic garden, with rare and wonderful plants and flowers imported from
countries such as India. The garden is open to the public, and is reached by
felucca.
Elephantine Island
This island is also reached by felucca, and features a Nilometre, which dates
back to Pharaonic times, and was used to measure the height of the Nile.
The Aga Khan Mausoleum
The domed granite and sandstone 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.
Abu Simbel
The Temple of Abu Simbel
The Temple of Abu Simbel consists of a Great and Small Temple, and is situated
near the border of Egypt with Sudan.
The Temple, which was constructed for the Pharaoh Ramses II, was saved from
threat of flooding by the High Dam. In the 1960s, under the auspices of UNESCO,
the temples were cut from the rock and shifted to higher ground.
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 m or 67 ft 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' favorite wife, Nefertari. At the entrance stand six 10 m
high (33 ft) rock-cut statues - two of Ramesses and one of Nefertari on either
side of the doorway.
Edfu
The Temple of Edfu
The 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. This is
probably due to the fact that, for a very long period, it was buried beneath
the desert sands. In 1860, work began to free it. It emerged virtually intact.
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.
Esna
Esna and the West Bank
Located 58 km to the south of Luxor, Esna is a large village on the west bank
of 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 Esna is dedicated to
this divinity. The temple was discovered by Champollion in 1828 and was
actually a reconstruction from the reign of Ptolemy VI in the 1st century AD,
of a building from the 18th Dynasty. All that remains is a large hypostyle hall
with 24 columns.
Kom Ombo
The Temple of 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 these are at their best in the
outermost of the two corridors that run around the temple.
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