Luxor Temple

TheLuxor Temple(Arabic:معبد الأقصر) is a largeAncient Egyptian templecomplex located on the east bank of theNile Riverin the city today known asLuxor(ancientThebes) and was constructed approximately 1400 BCE. In theEgyptian languageit was known asipet resyt,"the southern sanctuary". It was one of the two primary temples on the east bank, the other beingKarnak.Unlike the other temples in Thebes, Luxor temple is not dedicated to a cult god or a deified version of the pharaoh in death. Instead, Luxor temple is dedicated to the rejuvenation of kingship; it may have been where many of the pharaohs of Egypt were crowned in reality or conceptually (as in the case ofAlexander the Great,who claimed he was crowned at Luxor but may never have traveled south ofMemphis,near modern Cairo).

Ancient Luxor Temple

Entrance of the temple (first pylon)
Shown within Egypt
Location	Luxor,Luxor Governorate,Egypt
Region	Upper Egypt
Coordinates	25°42′0″N32°38′21″E
Type	Sanctuary
Part of	Thebes
History
Founded	1400 BCE
Site notes
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Official name	Temple of Luxor
Part of	Ancient Thebes with its Necropolis
Criteria	Cultural: (i), (iii), (vi)
Reference	87-002
Inscription	1979 (3rdSession)
Area	7,390.16 ha (28.5336 sq mi)
Buffer zone	443.55 ha (1.7126 sq mi)

To the rear of the temple are chapels built byAmenhotep IIIof the18th Dynasty,and Alexander. Other parts of the temple were built byTutankhamunand Ramesses II. During theRoman era,the temple and its surroundings were a legionary fortress and the home of the Roman government in the area. During the Roman period a chapel inside the Luxor Temple originally dedicated to the goddessMutwas transformed into a Tetrarchy cult chapel and later into a church.

Along with the other archeological sites in Thebes, the Luxor Temple was inscribed on theUNESCOWorld Heritage Listin 1979.

Construction

The originaltwo obelisks,as seen in 1832. The one on the right is now in Paris, known as theLuxor Obelisk.

The Luxor Temple was built with sandstone from theGebel el-Silsilaarea, which is located in South-Western Egypt.This sandstone is referred to as Nubian sandstone.It was used for the construction of monuments inUpper Egyptas well as in the course of past and current restoration works.

Like other Egyptian structures, a common technique used was symbolism, or illusionism.For example, to the Egyptian, a sanctuary shaped like an Anubis jackal was reallyAnubis.At the Luxor Temple, thetwo obelisks(the smaller one closer to the west is now at thePlace de la Concordein Paris) flanking the entrance were not the same height, but they created the illusion that they were.With the layout of the temple they appear to be of equal height, but using illusionism, it enhances the relative distances hence making them look the same size to the wall behind it. Symbolically, it is a visual and spatial effect to emphasize the heights and distance from the wall, enhancing the already existing pathway.

Excavation

From theMiddle Ages,the population ofLuxorhad settled in and around the temple, at the southward end of the mount.Due to this, centuries of rubble had accumulated, to the point where there was an artificial hill some 14.5 to 15 metres (48 to 49 ft) in height.The Luxor Temple had begun to be excavated by ProfessorGaston Masperoafter 1884, once he had been given permission to commence operations.The excavations were sporadic until 1960. Over time, accumulated rubbish of the ages had buried three quarters of the temple which contained the courts and colonnades which formed the nucleus of the Arab half of the modern village. Maspero had taken an interest earlier, and he had obtained the post of Mariette Pasha to complete the job in 1881. Not only was there rubbish, but there were also barracks, stores, houses, huts, pigeon towers, which needed to be removed in order to excavate the site. (There still exists a working mosque within the temple which was never removed.) 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.

Festivals

Statues of Ramesses II at the entrance through the first Pylon of Luxor Temple

The Luxor Temple was built during theNew Kingdomand dedicated to theTheban Triadconsisted ofAmun,his consortMut,and their sonKhonsu.The focus of the annualOpet Festival,in which a cult statue of Amun was paraded down the Nile from nearbyKarnak Temple(ipet-sut) to stay there for a while with his consort Mut, was to promote the fertility of Amun-Re and the Pharaoh. However, other studies at the temple by the Epigraphic Survey team present a completely new interpretation of Luxor and its great annual festival (the Feast of Opet).They have concluded that Luxor is the temple dedicated to the divine Egyptian ruler or, more precisely, to the cult of the Royal Ka.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.

Avenue of Sphinxes and Shrine stations

Main article:Avenue of Sphinxes

Luxor's Avenue of Sphinxes, an avenue of human headed sphinxes which once connected the temples of Karnak and Luxor.

The avenue (known aswi.t ntr"path of god";طريق الكباش)which went in a straight line for about 2,700 metres (8,900 ft)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.Sixbarque shrines,serving as way stations for the barques of the gods during festival processions, were set up on the avenue between theKarnakand Luxor Temple.Along the avenue the stations were set up for ceremonies such as the Feast of Opet which held significance to the temple.Each station had a purpose, for example the fourth station was the station of Kamare, which cooled the oar of Amun.The Fifth station of Kamare was the station which received the beauty of Amun.Lastly the Sixth Station of Kamare was a shrine for Amun, Holy of Steps.

A small mudbrick shrine was built in the courtyard ofNectanebo Iin early second century (126 CE) and was dedicated toSerapisandIsis;it was presented to Roman EmperorHadrianon his birthday.

Abu Haggag Mosque

The Abu Haggag Mosque seen from the east

The activeAbu Haggag Mosque(مسجد أبو الحجاج بالأقصر) is located within the temple, standing on the ancient columns themselves. That part of the Luxor Temple was converted to a church by the Romans in 395 AD, and then to a mosque around 1,200, which is more than 4,000 years of continuous religious worship.

Defacement

Main article:Ding Jinhao engraving scandal

In 2013, a Chinese student posted a picture of engraved writing that read "Ding Jinhao was here" (Chinese:Đinh cẩm hạo đến đây một du) inChineseon a sculpture. This discovery spurred debate about increased tourism after the media confirmed a Chinese student caused this and other defacements. The graffiti has since been partially cleared.

Gallery

• 
  Sanctuary of Luxor Temple
• 
  Sun court of Amenhotep III
• 
  The Avenue of Sphinxes at night
• 
  Pylon and Obelisk of Ramses II
• 
  The Grand colonnade
• 
  Barque Shrine of Theban Triad
• 
  First pylon at night

See also

• Temple of Khonsu
• Luxor Museum