The Pharaonic Rams Road is the largest international project linking the Luxor Temple with the Karnak temples at a distance of 2,700 meters, known as the ceremonial path of the kings of the Pharaohs for thousands of years. Karnak?
The Temple of Karnak, which the ancient Egyptians called Ipet Sot, meaning "the chosen spot", was the most important temple of Thebes (now Luxor). It is the temple in which the great Lord Amon, Lord of Thebes was sanctified, so the temple reached a great deal of wealth and its priests became a great political power.
Thebes was the city to which the kings who unified Egypt belonged after the First Intermediate Period, thus becoming one of the most important cities in Egypt, a position that it will remain in throughout most of ancient Egyptian history. In light of the oldest evidence of the temple starting from the reign of King Intef II (2112-2063 BC), that is, before the beginning of the Middle Kingdom (2055-1650 BC), until the Greco-Roman period (332 BC - 395 AD), This temple was built based on the royal patronage of huge construction projects and preparing ritual equipment and other necessities. Every king of the modern state (1550 - 1069 BC) left a trace of him in this temple.
The temple is located on the eastern mainland of Luxor, and like most ancient Egyptian temples, the axis of the temple was east-west, and the ancient Egyptian temples were a model of the universe, so the design of the temple reflects the path of the Lord of the Sun across the sky, and the temple is unique in having a north-south axis separate from the rest of the temples, facing There is another temple, Luxor Temple, known in the past as Amun im Opet i Amun on the horizon. The two temples were linked by a road fraught with statues in the form of the Sphinx known as the Way of the Rams. This road was used in one of the most important celebrations of the ancient Egyptian calendar, the Opet feast.
In addition to the mastery of the ancient Egyptians in the use of stone, which is evident everywhere within the temple, according to the website of the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, the Egyptians excelled in engraving the inscriptions that cover its walls, and carving the statues that adorn it. globally. The height of these huge columns is 15 meters, with the exception of the twelve middle columns, which are 21 meters high. Amenhotep III began building that hall "1390-1352 BC" of the Eighteenth Dynasty, while its decoration dates back to the reign of King Seti I. 1294-1279 BC" and Ramses II "1279-1213 BC" of the nineteenth dynasty, and near the hall stands the magnificent obelisk of Hatshepsut "about 1473-148 BC", which reaches about 30 m in height.
At the eastern end of Karnak we can see what is known as Brother Meno, a temple erected by Thutmose III (1479-1425 BC) and dedicated to the sanctification of various deities in addition to his ancestors of kings, as well as his own sanctification.
Karnak was in fact a complex of temples, which includes within its surrounding walls a whole temple to Lord Khonsu in the southwestern corner, next to the Opet temple, which was built in the Greco-Roman era for Opet the goddess represented in the form of a hippopotamus responsible for giving birth, and the beautiful sacred lake is still In which the priests used to purify themselves before performing the rituals of the temple, its splendor is still present today, and many temples and other small chapels are spread within the vicinity of Karnak, making it a real open museum.
Wed, Aug. 11, 2021
