jump to navigation

Egypt Temple of Karnak April 17, 2008

Posted by dodo in : Air Tickets, Cairo, Credit Card, Egypt , trackback

In fact, Karnak is not a temple; it is a complex of temples. Today’s visitor arrives there easily from Luxor, only a couple of miles away. We have already referred to Luxor as the modern town that grew up where Thebes was; in reality the true ancient center, the heart of the New Kingdom’s political and religious life, must have been Karnak. The first impression one has when crossing the threshold of the first pylon (there are many pylons at Karnak), and finding himself amid the ruins of what was the greatest ancient Egyptian sanctuary, is that he will not be able to make any sense out of it. Even the Giza pyramids, although mysterious looking, have an internal logic; they are closed up in themselves and one intuitively experiences them, even when we don’t understand them. Karnak does not offer this possibility. Walking along the courtyards, rooms, columns, obelisks, statues, and miles of hieroglyphic inscriptions, the visitor soon loses any capacity to link one element or monument with another. Therefore one must return to Karnak again and again. Even then, as we have warned, he must avoid searching among the monuments with aesthetic or rational criteria — in short, modern, Western standards. And we have also said that the true temple of Amon was always the sanctuary that formed the central nucleus. All the various additions made over the course of centuries have their own value per se; they are separate nuclei whose presence is independently justified by ceremonial needs, by new ideological lines, or by new links between the various divinities.

Travel GuidebookWe know from an inscription that at the beginning of the Middle Kingdom there was already a temple of Amon at Thebes. Nothing remains of it now, as there are few Eleventh Dynasty ruins. What we can say for certain is that the original nucleus of the temple, as we know it today, dates back to the Twelfth Dynasty, when national importance was given to the Amon cult. From what we have been able to reconstruct, the Twelfth Dynasty temple must have included three areas (oriented east-west) aligned on the principal axis and preceded by a hall (perhaps with columns) wider than it was long, which an Eighteenth Dynasty text called the “festival hall.” This is all that is left of this part of Karnak.

As expected, there was a resumption of building activity at Karnak in the first part of the Eighteenth Dynasty. During the entire preceding period, the temple must have remained basically as it was during the Twelfth Dynasty. The first rulers of the Eighteenth Dynasty contented themselves with erecting small chapels, which apparently served as “stations” during the long processions of Amon’s sacred boat. Tuthmosis I’s additions were more important; he had a wall built round the Middle Kingdom temple; according to some scholars, this was flanked by columns that formed a sort of arcade. It is known for certain that Tuthmosis I left the sanctuary proper intact and that, with the same wall, delineated a vast rectangular space, perhaps a courtyard, in front of the sanctuary entrance. Finally, access to the new edifice was gained through a pylon (today known as the fifth pylon).

The construction ordered by Queen Hatshepsut marked a real turning-point for the temple of Karnak. If Tuthmosis I’s work was basically a completion of already existing structures, Hatshepsut made some substantial changes. In the space enclosed by Tuthmosis’s wall, the queen had a new sanctuary built, aligned with the older one, but independent from it and surrounded by a series of areas and rooms (probably used as storerooms). Then she had two granite obelisks constructed in front of Tuthmosis I’s pylon.

Other important changes were effected by Tuthmosis III. It would be much too complicated and of no great use to describe them in detail. Essentially, that great pharaoh substituted a sanctuary made of sandstone for Hatshepsut’s quartz-rock structure; he had a new pylon built (the sixth) between the sanctuary and the fifth pylon ; and he transformed considerably the courtyards between the fourth and fifth pylons and then those between the fifth and the sanctuary. The courtyard between the fourth and fifth pylons was changed into a colonnaded room, where presumably the coronation of the king took place before he passed on to the purification ceremony and then into the sanctuary.

Except for a bit of retouching, that part of the temple of Amon between the fourth pylon and the Middle Kingdom sanctuary did not undergo any further transformations. From now on, any changes took place outside Tuthmosis I’s wall. The transition point between these two phases of the life of the temple was marked by the additions of Tuthmosis III himself. Along the outer face of the northern part of Tuthmosis I’s wall, Tuthmosis III had a series of chambers built, perhaps chapels or storerooms. They were then enclosed by a new wall, parallel to the preceding one, which went all around the sanctuary up to the southern end of the fourth pylon. The wall is quite a distance from the part of Tuthmosis I’s wall that enclosed the sanctuary on the east; in the space created behind the sanctuary, Tuthmosis III had his so-called “festival hall.”

More about: Egypt Temple of Karnak

Comments»

1. Great Temple - July 8, 2008

If an item is returned without a Return Authorization Number, we will not be able to process the return, and a credit will not be issued. … Great Temple

2. THEBAN TEMPLES - July 8, 2008

In Luxor on the East Bank, one of the first stops must be the Temple of Luxor built by Amenophis III. … THEBAN TEMPLES

3. Spain Vacation - July 9, 2008

Its brand new lounge concept restaurant and the modern LM Caff&#232, will treat you to refined Mediterranean cuisine. … Spain Vacation

4. Photo Greeting Cards - July 9, 2008

The BASF Corporation of Bedford, Massachusetts has introduced a new line of video greeting cards called VideOccasions. … Photo Greeting Cards

5. Credit Card - July 9, 2008

If there is any damage to the rental vehicle, their card is charged and they claim for reimbursement on their policy. … Credit Card


Alexa CounterFeedBurner Counter