Temples On Top of Temples - Touring the East Bank of Luxor

During the night, our boat had sailed to its final destination of Luxor.  At 8:30 the next morning, we disembarked for the 10 minute drive to Karnak Temple.  While the complex actually consists of four separate areas, the Temple of Amun-Re is the only one open to the public.  Construction for these monuments lasted over 2000 years with contributions by 30 pharaohs.  But the greatest expansion occurred during the New Kingdom period when Luxor was transformed into the religious capital of ancient Egypt.  The 18th Dynasty pharaohs (Amenohotep I, Hatshepsut, Tuthmosis I and III, etc.) added successive walls and gates (pylons) and obelisks around the original temple.  The 19th Dynasty pharaohs (Seti I and Ramses II) built the massive Great Hypostyle Hall.  The final major addition was a shrine by Alexander the Great's half-brother around 320's B.C.  However, the complex remained important to the Egyptians until 356 A.D. when the Christian Emperor Constantine closed all pagan temples.

A miniature model of the Temple of Amun-Re
as it would have looked in its prime.

The area between the Nile River and Karnak Temple.  Shops
and houses were forcibly relocated to create this unused space.

So far, Karnak has been the most crowded monument we have visited on this trip.  Despite the overall decrease in tourists to Egypt, people still take day trips here from the Red Sea beach resorts.

The unfinished first pylon (the outermost wall) was built by 30th Dynasty pharaohs.

Ramses II built a corridor of cryosphinxes which
were later removed to construct the first pylon.

The "rogue" pharaoh Akhenaten turned several aspects of ancient Egyptian society upside down.  Masonry was no exception.  Unlike his predecessors, his monuments were constructed with scaffolding and smaller bricks.  When Akhenaten's buildings were torn down after his death, the bricks were then reused to build new temples.

Within Karnak Temple, there are several unfinished areas which have helped archaeologists understand how the ancient Egyptians built their monuments.

The remnants of a mud brick ramp lies adjacent to the unfinished outer wall.  The ramp was built upwards
as the walls were constructed higher.  When the zenith was reached, artists would start carving in the
features.  As they made progress from the top going down, the mud ramp would gradually be removed.

This hole cut out from one of the large stones
on the temple wall shows that the smaller
bricks from Akhenaten's buildings were
used inside for support.

Unlike the current teams who have been working
to preserve the temple, the ancient Egyptians
did not have the advantages of scaffolding.

The unfinished column on the far right shows that the pillars were first assembled using raw, uneven 
blocks.  Afterwards, the excess stone was then trimmed off to smooth the surface.  Eventually. it 
would resemble the two columns on the left. 

This statue was built by an unknown pharaoh. Like many other
monuments throughout Egypt, Ramses II usurped it by carving
his name into it and claiming it as his own.

An entire wall lists all of the tribes subdued by the pharaoh's armies.

One of the most remarkable parts of the temple during antiquity would have been the Great Hypostyle Hall.  It was initially designed during the reign of Hatshepsut, one of the few female pharaohs. The Great Hypostyle Hall was eventually completed by Seti I and decorated by Ramses II.  It would have covered 50,000 sq feet and contain 134 pillars.  Windows allowed light to illuminate the middle of the roofed building.  The two middle rows of columns were wider and taller than the outer ones.   Mahmoud explained that these columns represented palm trees.  The Hall would be flooded by the Nile during the inundation.  The combination of light and water on the center-most "palm trees" would have made them grow taller than the ones on the sides.

An artist's rendition of how the Great Hypostyle Hall would have looked long ago.

While color still remains in some areas, the roof is no more.

Light would have shined in at an angle through
windows above the row of smaller columns.

The walls and columns were decorated with religious and military scenes.

Although Hatshepsut was an integral contributor to Karnak Temple, her successor Tuthmosis III tried to erase all evidence of her legacy.  Perhaps it was because she was female or she had prevented him from taking his rightful place on the throne for several years.

This image of Hatshepsut was scratched out while those of the gods were left alone.

Hatshepsut's cartouche was also defaced.  However, the name of the god Amun was kept intact.

In order to prevent it from being seen, Tuthmosis III walled up
Hatshepsut's obelisk.  This preserved it from the ravages of time.

One of her remaining cartouches that Tuthmosis could not destroy

As we walked farther into the temple, we entered the Festival Hall of Tuthmosis III.  This hall was built for the Heb-Sed celebration which celebrated the continued rule of a pharaoh once he had been in power for 30 years.  During the Christian period, the Festival Hall was converted into a church.  Traces of Coptic influences still remain.

The temple was built to resemble a large tent
with the columns representing tent poles.

A statue was altered to appear like Jesus on the cross.

Jesus' face was carved onto a column.

A faded image of The Virgin Mary is also depicted on a pillar.

Past the Festival Hall is the Botanical garden of Tuthmosis III.  During his military conquests in foreign lands, the Egyptian army encountered new flora and fauna.  Artists depicted these findings on bas relief carvings.

These columns were decorated
to resemble bundles of papyrus.

Even in ancient time, cotton was king.

Priests purified themselves in the Sacred Lake prior to performing rituals.
Most archaeologists agree that the crane was not originally part of the temple.

The view of the Temple of Amun-Re from the "rear" view.

After leaving Karnak Temple, we drove to the other east bank attraction, Luxor Temple.  Mahmoud told us that these two temples were initially connected by a 3 km avenue lined with statues of sphinxes.  The Egyptian government has plans to return this procession to its original state.  They hope that visitors would walk this path just like the ancient Egyptians had thousands of years ago.  Several locals are not too happy because this would mean tearing down many houses, two churches, and a mosque which are all in the way.

I don't foresee too many tourists walking this potential gauntlet of street vendors in 100 F heat.

The small Temple of Isis is also located at the end of the Avenue of Sphinxes

Luxor temple was started by Amenhotep III, but construction was temporarily abandoned by his son Akhenaten.  After his death, Tutenkhamen resumed the building process.  Subsequent pharaohs such as Alexander the Great also added their personal touch as well.  The monument was built to celebrate the Opet Festival, a renewing of the bond between the gods and the Egyptian people.  During the ceremony, processions would be made starting from Karnak and finishing at Luxor Temple.  Throughout history, it was subsequently occupued by Romans and Muslims.  Two obelisk used to flank the entrance, but one was given to the French as a gift by Mohammed Ali.

Mahmoud poses in front of two large statues...

...of Ramses II that guard the temple entrance.

The god Hapi (the personification of the inundation of the Nile River) symbolically
ties together Upper and Lower Egypt, represented by the lotus and papyrus plants.

The statue of Tutenkhamen and his wife and half-sister Akhesenaten is unlike most other statues of
 pharaohs and their wives.  A show of affection is depicted here with her arm gently caressing his shoulders.

Within Luxor Temple are carvings covering a wide variety of topics.

Depiction of a horse-drawn chariot. 

 Sadly, this horse is not hung like...well, a horse.

Limbo?

Touchdown!

This illustration shows how bulls were slaughtered.  Three of their legs were bound,
and the artery on the fourth was cut.  The bull would then exsanguinate.

After the demise of the Egyptian pharaohs, Luxor Temple became altered by foreign influences and religions. The temple gradually became buried by the sands.  During the Middle Ages, the Abu Haggag Mosque was built upon the ruins of the temple.

Alexander the Great is shown making offerings to the Egyptian gods.

Alexander's cartouche

Christians during the Roman occupation plastered over the walls and painted colorful murals.  
This one was just uncovered during recent restorations.

Locals have successfully resisted efforts of archaeologists
from removing the Abu Haggag Mosque.

After leaving Luxor Temple, we headed back to the boat for lunch.  Most of the passengers on the boat were visiting the west bank of Luxor in the afternoon.  We instead were going to do it on another day.  It would turn out to be the hottest day of our entire trip.  I felt bad (for all of two seconds) for those fellow passengers as I joyfully cooled off by the pool.  Madeline, who was in the group that visited the west bank of Luxor that afternoon later told us the best words she heard all day were "This is the last tomb of the day".

We had the somewhat more formal farewell dinner that night.

Avocado salad

Cappuccino of mushroom cream soup

Fried fish fingers

Grilled beef tenderloin

It's not a cruise without a baked Alaska!

Pan-seared salmon with cilantro mashed potatoes

Afterwards, entertainment included a Sufi-style dancer who whirled around for a good 10 minutes.  A few turns of 'dizzy-bat' are enough to make me want to puke, so kudos to that guy.  A belly dancer then performed a few PG-rated routines.  Mahmoud remarked, "She's very, um...old," understating her general unattractiveness.  The Wife noticed that the lady had had a baby recently (she still had a linea nigra--the vertical line that runs below the belly button during pregnancy).  It just reminded me of the one and last time that I had gone to a Hooters.  My waitress was about nine months pregnant and still wore the skimpy uniform.  I STILL have trouble eating hot wings to this day.

Seth On the Nile - Visiting the Temples of Kom Ombo and Edfu

Since the 19th century, the fashionable way to see Egypt has been on a Nile River cruise.  In the past, ships could make the journey all the way from Cairo to Abu Simbel.  Since the 1990's, the starting point was changed to Luxor.  We had wanted to book the Sun Boat IV, one of the top river cruise boats in the world according to Travel+Leisure magazine, but they weren't running on the days we had available.  Instead, we secured passage on its sister ship, the Sanctuary Nile Adventurer which is also run by Abercrombie and Kent.  The ship did not disappoint.  The amenities were luxurious considering the confined spaces of a boat.  There were five decks, the top containing a small wading pool to cool off and lounge chairs and canopied beds.  There was also a dining room, bar area, outdoor patio, small office, and smaller gift shop.  We were upgraded to a cabin on the main deck.

Our home for the next three days.

Our cabin was comfortable and cozy.

The bathroom was expectantly tight.

One of several indoor lounges

The bar area

Outdoor lounge

The outdoor dining area

On the top deck, there were several comfortable chairs and canopied beds for guests to relax on.

There was also a small puddle
pool on the upper deck.

The boat has 32 cabins, but I don't think we even had 32 passengers.  With the decrease in tourism, Mahmoud said that only 20 boats were sailing (compared to as many as 300 during the high season), and most were not full.  We probably had almost as many crew members as passengers, so the service was impeccable.

There was a hodgepodge of characters on the boat--the wealthy baroness and her new husband, his angry ex-fiancé, the trashy romance novelist, the young socialist, the embezzling American lawyer, the famous Belgian detective...wait.  Wrong boat.

No, our boat was basically divided into two groups--the English speakers (Brits and Americans) and the Italian speakers.  We conversed mainly with a delightful septuagenarian couple from England named Colin and Madeline.  She had lived in Egypt as a child when it was still a British protectorate, but it was his first time in country.  They were very spry for their ages, skiing and traveling to remote vacation spots (Conversely, many of my 70-something year-old patients need to use walkers or motorized chairs).  There was also a family from New York City who were the only other Americans onboard.  We were pleased that the guides also stayed with us on the boats.

 Mahmoud occupied the cabin adjacent to us and enjoyed the same meals that we did.  However, he was seated with the other guides during the meals and tended to avoid some of the onboard activities since he has seen them hundreds of times already.  In the end, it was still a job--one that keeps him away from his family for several days.  As for the quality of the boat, Mahmoud joked, "It is one of the better jails that I have been on."

Today would be a relaxing day.  We took a late breakfast before the ship docked at Kom Ombo at 10 AM.

The Temple of Kom Ombo is so close to the water that cruise boats can dock right next to it.

The temple was first constructed during the Greek occupation of Egypt (Ptolemaic Dynasty).  It is divided into two symmetrical halves and dedicated to the falcon god Horus on the west and Sobek, the crocodile-headed deity, to the east.

Kom Ombo Temple

While some depictions of Sobek are favorable, he does have a close association with the "evil" god Seth.  In fact, during one of the mythical battles for supremacy between Horus and Seth, the evil one escapes by transforming himself into a crocodile.   So why was Sobek, a god associated with an ill disposition, worshiped so highly at this temple?  During ancient times, this area was wrought with crocodiles.  The people of this area relied on fishing and farming near the Nile bringing them in close proximity to these aggressive reptiles.   Therefore, they believed that by appeasing Sobek with offerings, he would protect them from attacks.  Furthermore, the crocodiles were also useful for farming.  Roman historians reported that these reptiles would lay their eggs in the sand just beyond the level where the banks of the flooded Nile would reach.  This would help the locals predict the extent of inundation each year.

Hathor, Sobek, and their son

Sobek depicted in full animal form

A lion chomps on the hand of an enemy of Egypt.

Wooden dowels were used to keep the temple stones together.

The Eye of Horus conveys protective and healing powers.

In ancient times, understanding the time of year was crucial for farmers.  The Egyptians actually developed an early version of the calendar that we use today.

Mahmoud tried to explain to us how to read this calendar, but I'm a slow learner.

The temple of Kom Ombo was also known for its surgical and obstetric care.

Hieroglyphs of early surgical instruments

Pregnant women sitting on birthing chairs.  No epidurals for them!

A lady giving birth...OR crapping out a human-shaped dookey.

Wet nursing or motor boating?

This hieroglyph translates
into "ugly, bald guy."

Fruits and vegetables are depicted in this engraving.

In this relief, two goddesses crown Ptolemy XXII as Sobek looks on.

In this secret alcove, priests could hide from
worshipers and listen to their prayers. Their
disembodied voice would be mistaken by
pilgrims as the voice of the Oracle.

This prisoner actually seems to be grinning.

Most of the columns at Kom Ombo have been destroyed by earthquakes.

The columns that do remain exhibit their intricate engravings...

...and sometimes small amounts
of their residual paint. 

This colorful lintel depicting vultures against the backdrop of a blue sky, has retained more
of its original paint mainly because it has been shaded from centuries of harsh sunlight.

In ancient times, the Egyptians kept 'tame' crocodiles in a pit near the temple.  When they died they were mummified and buried nearby.

The remains of crocodiles (not humans)...

...filled these coffins.

A large cache of mummified reptiles now sit at the adjacent Crocodile Museum that opened this past year.

These crocodile mummies were wrapped and preserved just like their human counterparts.

Mummified crocodile eggs and fetuses have also been found in Kom Ombo.

Crocodile figurines were also buried within the temple.

We spent most of the late morning and early afternoon lounging by the pool.  This section of the Nile seemed sparsely inhabited.  Herds of cattle grazed on green fields along the banks of the river.  We would occasionally see men in small boats fishing with only lines--no poles or nets.  We passed only a few other cruise ships and their decks often looked fairly empty of passengers.

We saw a lot more cows than people along the banks of the Nile.

Not only were the cruise ships empty, but even the barges weren't full!

The only interruption to our stupor was a 'BBQ' lunch out on the deck below.

At 4 PM we docked at Edfu.  Included in the cruise itinerary is a 10 minute carriage ride through the city to get to the temple.

Included is a 10 minute carriage ride to get to the temple.

The route traveled through poor areas with rubble-strewn streets.

Edfu has the second largest and best preserved temple in Egypt.  The current monument sits upon the ruins of a much older New Kingdom structure.  The temple was completed by Ptolemy XII almost 200 years after construction was begun.  Edfu Temple is dedicated to the god Horus.  Its sister structure for his goddess-wife Hathor is located down river in Dendera.

The temple's outer wall shows an athletic Ptolemy XII smiting his
enemies.  In truth, he was actually a corpulent and unpopular
pharaoh who's only talent was playing the flute.

The temple doors are flanked by large statues of a falcon
(representing Horus) wearing the double crown
of Upper and Lower Egypt.

Columns topped with floral patterns and eroded statues of the god Bes

The view of the temple from the entrance

In ancient times, Edfu was considered the site of the mythical battle between Horus and his evil uncle Seth for control of Egypt.  The treacherous Seth had already killed Horus' father Osiris and challenged him for rulership of the world.  Sequential carvings tell the story of Horus victory over his uncle.

The evil Seth, in the form of a hippopotamus, is subdued by Horus' spears.

An elaborate mural in the entryway

The sanctuary room where the statue of the god was stored in a granite 
altar.  The divine boat is in the foreground, resting on a pedestal.

The top of this column is decorated with leaves as if it were a palm tree.

A depiction of the pharaoh erecting two obelisks.
In reality, I'm sure he had others helping him.

Dance like an Egyptian.

Hieroglyph for "Lego block"

The symbol for iPod

Since it was galebeya night on the boat, I purchased one from a vendor near the docks.   The wife got hers on the boat, which was of better quality.  Mahmoud told us that the local men generally use a few colors--white for the hot daytime, dark grey or brown for the evenings, and a baby blue often worn by farmers.  The women tend to wear suffocating black galebeyas.  The 'bedazzled' ones with all the flair are marketed mainly at tourists.  Mahmoud was a killjoy and didn't wear a galebeya.  He gave a lame excuse that wearing westernized clothing was "dressing up" for him.

No respectful Egyptian would be caught dead in these silly costumes.

I'm pretty sure that Colin's "galabeya" was
actually a left-over from a hippie commune.

Back on the boat, the chef had a 30 minute cooking demonstration.  He showed us how to make three dishes--baba ganoush, okra tagine, and um ali (a bread pudding-like dessert).  That guy loved his salt and sugar which was off-putting for some of the passengers but welcomed by me.  For the theme dinner, there was buffet of Egyptian foods.  Overall, they were very good.  However, the spices were a little watered down to accommodate the blander palates of the North American and European passengers.  Dinner was followed by dancing afterwards.  The passengers (egged on by the staff) really enjoyed the popular folk songs and contemporary Nubian music.  Then the music switched to YMCA and then the Macarena.  The placed cleared out before they got to the Electric Slide.

The passengers and crew gyrate unrhythmically like a bunch of epileptics.