From Cairo our small group flew to Luxor to explore the wonders of the ancient, monumental Egyptian city of Thebes (now encompassed by the modern city of Luxor) – Karnak Temple and Luxor Temple, and the following day we visited the nearby Valley of the Kings and Valley of the Queens with their vast, highly decorated tombs, including the tomb of King Tut (Tutankhamun).

The Karnak Temple Complex, or Karnak Temple, today contains the ruins of multiple Egyptian temples built from the Middle kingdom during the reign of Senusret I (1971-1926 BC) to the Ptolemaic Kingdom (305-30 BC).  Karnak Temple is the largest religious building ever constructed.  The Temple was known as Ipet-isu—or “most select of places” — by the ancient Egyptians.  The main temple was dedicated to Amun-ra (or Amun-Re, the Egyptian sun god and king of the gods), his consort Mut and son Khonsu (or, Khons).  Amun-Re was sometimes represented in human form, with a ram’s head, or as a ram.  The Temple of Amun-Re is most famous for the vast Hypostyle Hall constructed during the reign of Seti I.  The area of the sacred enclosure of just the Temple of Amun is sixty-one acres [24.7 hectares] and could hold ten average European cathedrals!

“The most striking feature of the temple at Karnak is the hypostyle hall, which occupies the space between the third and second pylons.  The area of this vast hall, one of the wonders of antiquity, is about 54,000 square feet (5,000 square metres).  It was decorated by Seti I (reigned 1290–1279 BC) and Ramses II (reigned 1279–1213 BC), to whom much of the construction must be due.  Twelve enormous columns, nearly 80 feet (24 metres) high, supported the roofing slabs of the central nave above the level of the rest so that light and air could enter through a clerestory.  Seven lateral aisles on either side brought the number of pillars to 134.  Historical reliefs on the outer walls show the victories of Seti in Palestine and Ramses II defeating the Hittites at the Battle of Kadesh.” — www.britannica.com/place/Karnak

“Hatshepsut’s standing obelisk, erected in the sixteenth vear a reign, was made of a single block of pink granite and rises to a height of twenty-nine and a half metres [96.8 feet].  It is one of the two tallest standing obelisks (the other is in Rome outside St John Lateran).  The inscription records that it was quarried from Aswan, transported and erected in seven months; a considerable feat in view of the fact that it weighed some 323 tons.  The base of the second obelisk is still in situ; the upper part is near the Sacred Lake [see our photograph, below] and fragments have been taken to the museums of Boston, Liverpool. Glasgow and Sidney.” — www.journeytoegypt.com/en/discover-egypt/karnak-temple

At the Karnak Temple Complex there is a large “sacred lake – 423 feet by 252 feet (129 by 77 meters).  The sacred barges of the Theban Triad once floated on the lake during the annual Opet festival.  The lake was surrounded by storerooms and living quarters for the priests, along with an aviary for aquatic birds.

“The Egyptians believed that towards the end of annual agricultural cycle the gods and the earth became exhausted and required a fresh input of energy from the chaotic energy of the cosmos.

“To accomplish this magical regeneration the Opet festival was held yearly at Karnak [Temple] and [the nearby] Luxor [Temple, linked by an ancient road].  [The festival] lasted for twenty-seven days and was also a celebration of the link between pharaoh and the god Amun.  The procession began at Karnak [Temple] and ended at Luxor Temple, one-and-a-half miles (2.4 kilometres) to the south.

“The statue of the god Amun was bathed with holy water, dressed in fine linen, and adorned in gold and silver jewelry.  The priests then placed the god in a shrine and onto the ceremonial barque supported by poles for carrying.  Pharaoh emerged from the temple, his priests carrying the barque on their shoulders, and together they moved into the crowded streets.  A troop of Nubian soldiers serving as guards beat their drums, and musicians accompanied the priests in song as incense filled the air.

“At Luxor [Temple] Pharaoh and his priests entered the temple and ceremonies were performed to regenerate Amun, recreate the cosmos and transfer Amun’s power to Pharaoh.  When he finally emerged from the temple sanctuary, the vast crowds cheered him and celebrated the guaranteed fertility of the earth and the expectation of abundant harvests.

“During the festival the people were given over 11,000 loaves of bread and more than 385 jars of beer, and some were allowed into the temple to ask questions of the god.  The priests spoke the answers through a concealed window high up in the wall, or from inside hollow statues.” — https://discoveringegypt.com/karnak-temple/

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