The temple of Luxor is one of the best-preserved of all of the ancient monuments containing large amounts of structure, statuary and relief carvings that are still intact to this day, making it one of the most impressive places to visit in the Luxor area and all of Egypt. It has some great historic monuments. Luxor does not boast the same depth that Karnak does; Karnak is significantly older and was impacted by many pharaohs, whereas Luxor reflects just a few of Ancient Egypt’s leaders. [4] For example, to the Egyptian, a sanctuary shaped like an Anubis jackal was really Anubis. Maspero received from the Egyptian minister of public works the authorization needed to obtain funds in order to negotiate compensation for the pieces of land covered by the houses and dependencies. Instead, it may have been where many of the kings of ancient Egypt were crowned. The temple is one of the best preserved of all of the ancient monuments with large amounts of the structure, statuary and relief carvings still intact.. [1] Due to the Luxor's past city population building on top of and around the Luxor temple, centuries of rubble had accumulated, to the point where there was an artificial hill some 14.5 to 15 metres (48– 50 ft) in height. The court is composed of a colonnade including a number of colossal statues of Amenhotep III which were usurped by Ramesses II. Book your tickets online for Luxor Temple, Luxor: See 4,336 reviews, articles, and 5,960 photos of Luxor Temple, ranked No.5 on Tripadvisor among 77 attractions in Luxor. Nectanebo I lined this processional road with human headed sphinx but this was a rather late addition to the site (dynasty 30) and it is thought that he merely built over an existing processional way. The active Abu Haggag Mosque (Arabic: مسجد أبو الحجاج بالأقصر) is located within the temple, standing on the ancient columns themselves. The Purpose of Building Luxor Temple. Luxor Temple is a large Ancient Egyptian temple complex located on the east bank of the Nile River in the city today known as Luxor (ancient Thebes) and was constructed approximately 1400 BCE.. The original design consists of an imposing open court with colonnades of graceful lotus columns, a smaller offering hall, a shrine for the ceremonial boat of the god, an inner sanctuary for the cult image,… The Temple of Luxor was the center of the most important one, the festival of Opet. [3] It was used for the construction for monuments in Upper Egypt as well as in the course of past and current restoration works. To the rear of the temple are chapels built by Amenhotep III of the 18th Dynasty, and Alexander. The last section of the Temple of Luxor dedicated to the god Amun, Mut, and Khonsu that was built by Amenhotep III. During the Roman period a chapel inside the Luxor Temple originally dedicated to the goddess Mut was transformed into a Tetrarchy cult chapel and later into a church. The top things to do in Luxor: 7 must-visit temples and tombs #1 The temples of Karnak. From medieval times, the Muslim population of Luxor had settled in and around the temple, at the southward end of the mount. Almost thousands of tourists visit the site every year and contribute a lot to the economy of the town. 6 (1885): 370. Luxor is a little over a mile from the temple complex of Karnak. Six barque shrines, serving as way stations for the barques of the gods during festival processions, were set up on the avenue between the Karnak and Luxor Temple. [6] Each station had a purpose, for example the fourth station was the station of Kamare, which cooled the oar of Amun. The ancient Egyptians are well known for their many different ceremonies, but it should be said that those held at Luxor Temple were not only incredibly important, but also very complex in terms of religious symbolism. Later pharaohs (most notably the Nubian kings of dynasty twenty-five) added scenes recording their own military triumphs to the first pylon. Beyond the first pylon Ramesses II built a peristyle courtyard (replacing an earlier court thought to have been constructed by Amenhotep III) which was set at an angle to the rest of the temple in order to preserve three pre-existing barque shrines constructed by Hatshepsut (with later additions) which stand in the northwest corner. By the entrance to the colonnade there are two statues representing Tutankhamun, but on each his name has been replaced by that of Ramesses II. The focus of the annual Opet Festival, in which a cult statue of Amun was paraded down the Nile from nearby Karnak Temple (ipet-sut) to stay there for a while with his consort Mut, was to promote the fertility of Amun-Re and the Pharaoh. [6] The Fifth station of Kamare was the station which received the beauty of Amun. Amenhotep III began construction on the Temple of Luxor, and Tutankhamen, Horemheb, and Ramses II all contributed to it development. During this festival the cult statues of Amun, Mut and Khonsu would travel from Karnak to Luxor. This was essentially a symbol that was representative of the legitimacy of a pharaoh’s power, and as such, it was not restricted to any one indivi… [6] Along the avenue the stations were set up for ceremonies such as the Feast of Opet which held significance to temple. It was the capital of Egypt from the twelfth dynasty on (1991 BC) and reached its zenith during the New Kingdom. These days this special temple complex is an enormous open-air museum of hieroglyphs, pillars and gates. [5] Examples of the cult of the Royal Ka can be seen with the colossal seated figures of the deified Ramesses II before the Pylon and at the entrance to the Grand colonnade are clearly Ka-statues, cult statues of the king as embodiment of the royal Ka. [2], The Luxor Temple was built with sandstone from the Gebel el-Silsila area, which is located in South-Western Egypt. The main purpose of the Luxor Temple was to witness the transformation of the pharaoh into a divine being. This section hosted the statue of Amun that was visited annually by the representation of Amun of the Karnak … The four sacred baboons who greet the morning sun are carved on the pedestal and the names and epitaphs of Ramesses appear on each side of the obelisk. Luxor Temple is located in the modern city of Luxor, which is built on the site of the ancient Egyptian capital of Thebes. Download this Premium Photo about Africa, egypt, luxor, karnak temple, and discover more than 7 Million Professional Stock Photos on Freepik The temple is dedicated to Amun, Mut, and Khonsu and was the focus of one of the most important religious festivals in ancient Egypt – the annual Opet Festival. The festival itself was to reconcile the human aspect of the ruler with the divine office. It is also proposed by some that the temple of Luxor was in fact dedicated to the royal ka, which was symbolically joined to the living king during the Opet festival. [3] This sandstone is referred to as Nubian sandstone. Like the rest of the ancient sites in Egypt, Luxor Temple is pure magic, and you don’t have to be a history buff to enjoy it. Find the perfect Luxor Temple stock photos and editorial news pictures from Getty Images. De Luxortempel is een van de belangrijkste tempels uit het Oude Egypte en staat in Luxor of het vroegere Thebe.De tempel was opgedragen aan de triade van Thebe: Amon, Moet en Chonsoe.De tempel is ongeveer 242 meter lang en is daarmee een van de grootste van Egypte. [6] The avenue which went in a straight line between the Luxor Temple and the Karnak area was lined with human-headed sphinxes; in ancient times it is probable that these replaced earlier sphinxes which may have had different heads. The temple of Luxor fulfills the purpose for suitable set of rituals and festivals. In the Egyptian language it is known as ipet resyt, "the southern sanctuary". Around 1,350 sphinx statues are thought to have lined this road together with barque chapels stocked with offerings. The left-hand obelisk remains in its location in Egypt, but the right-hand stone, 23 metres high, is now at the centre of the Place de la Concorde in Paris, France. 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