Esna/Luxor, Egypt - Valley of the Kings and Valley of the Queens, Colossi of Memnon
(text by Chris J., Kim G. and Chris M.)
We catch a private van to Luxor / Valley of the Kings, and grab a guide just before entering the Valley of Kings. The valley holds a majority of the king's tombs. It was intentionally built in the middle of nowhere to prevent grave robbers. The tombs have some of the best coloring we've seen, but regretfully cameras are not allowed inside the tombs. The depths of the tombs were amazing, how far in they went and how much time it must have taken to dig them into the mountain sides. In order to keep the locations secret the tomb builders had their own village and their whole life and generations thereafter did nothing but build these tombs. The tomb of Tutankhamen was here, but everything of note was moved to the Egyptian museum. Once again another tomb was found a couple of months ago by and American cleaning nearby.
*****"Updated: 2:38 p.m. ET Feb 10, 2006 CAIRO, Egypt - Through a partially opened underground door, Egyptian authorities gave a peek Friday into the first tomb uncovered in the Valley of the Kings since King Tut’s in 1922. U.S. archaeologists said they discovered the tomb by accident while working on a nearby site. Still unknown is whose mummies are in the five wooden sarcophagi with painted funeral masks, surrounded by alabaster jars inside the undecorated single-chamber tomb.
The tomb, believed to be some 3,000 years old and dating to the 18th Dynasty, does not appear to be that of a pharaoh. But it could be for members of a royal court, said Edwin Brock, co-director of the University of Memphis in Tennessee that discovered the site."
*****
Next was a visit to the tombs in the Valley of Queens, which were very similar in nature to the king's tombs. We were a little disappointed when we found out the tomb of Nefertari, favorite wife of Ramses II, was indeed open but required a special permit obtained in Cairo and only 150 people a day could visit the tomb. The guide book mentioned the tomb was closed, so it must have just recently been reopened. The tomb is the most well preserved with the most striking colors of all the tombs. We had to stick with a photo book to get an idea of what it looked like inside.
Colossi of Memnon - not a great site, two large statues in almost total disrepair. They reminded me of the rock creatures from Galaxy Quest.
"The twin statues depict Amenhotep III (fl. 14th century BC) in a seated position, his hands resting on his knees and his gaze turned eastward toward the river and the rising sun. Two shorter figures are carved into the front throne alongside his legs: these are his wife Tiy and mother Mutemwiya. The side panels depict the Nile god Hapy.
The statues are made from blocks of quartzite sandstone which was quarried at either Giza (near modern-day Cairo) or Gebel el-Silsila (60 km north of Aswan). Including the stone platforms on which they stand, they reach a towering 18 metres (approx. 60 ft) in height."
Temple of Hatshepsut:
"The masterpiece of her building projects was her mortuary temple complex at Deir el-Bahri. It was designed and implemented by Senemut on a site on the West Bank of the Nile close to the entrance to the Valley of the Kings. The focal point was the Djeser-Djeseru or "the Sublime of Sublimes", a colonnaded structure of perfect harmony nearly one thousand years before the Parthenon. Djeser-Djeseru sits atop a series of terraces that were once graced with gardens. Djeser-Djeseru is built into a cliff face that rises sharply above it. Djeser-Djeseru and the other buildings of the Deir el-Bahri complex are considered to be among the great buildings of the ancient world."
One of the more impressive sites built into the mountain side and also the discovery of many of the mummies seen in the museum. They had been moved constantly because of tomb raiders. The temple is in three massive layers with the third built into the side of the mountain.
Take a short break for a coke and a 30 pound ($6) can of Pringles... eek.
Off to Luxor.
Temple complex of Karnak in Ancient Egypt was named Ipet Sut, "the most venerated place" and it is a small...... "Al-Karnak (Arabic village in Egypt, located on the banks of the River Nile some 2.5 km north of Luxor (25°43'N 32°39'E). Visitors to the area – particularly foreign tourists – perceive no distinction between Luxor and al-Karnak, as the two are both parts of the same conurbation. The Karnak Temple is twice the size of the built-up village area, and it is the leading attraction in al-Karnak; essentially this is al-Karnak, as the term Karnak is nearly universally understood as the temple complex and not the village.
The temple area is a vast open-air museum and the largest ancient religious site in the world, and is probably the second most visited historical site in Egypt, second only to the Giza Pyramids near Cairo."
Another favorite site for us, basically a temple complex that was added on by many kings and queens (over 30). The scale was magnificent, large pillars, home to many obelisks, etc.
Next stop Luxor temple, which was basically an extension of the Karnak complex. Very detailed large obelisk out front. The site was great in that we arrived just before dusk so we got to see the temple in both the day and lit up at night. Hundreds of sphinxes once lined the road to Karnak and the government is trying to clear the ancient road.
Also the place of the great six toe joke on Chris... he might have been left counting forever.
Van ride back to the boat.
(text by Chris J., Kim G. and Chris M.)
We catch a private van to Luxor / Valley of the Kings, and grab a guide just before entering the Valley of Kings. The valley holds a majority of the king's tombs. It was intentionally built in the middle of nowhere to prevent grave robbers. The tombs have some of the best coloring we've seen, but regretfully cameras are not allowed inside the tombs. The depths of the tombs were amazing, how far in they went and how much time it must have taken to dig them into the mountain sides. In order to keep the locations secret the tomb builders had their own village and their whole life and generations thereafter did nothing but build these tombs. The tomb of Tutankhamen was here, but everything of note was moved to the Egyptian museum. Once again another tomb was found a couple of months ago by and American cleaning nearby.
*****"Updated: 2:38 p.m. ET Feb 10, 2006 CAIRO, Egypt - Through a partially opened underground door, Egyptian authorities gave a peek Friday into the first tomb uncovered in the Valley of the Kings since King Tut’s in 1922. U.S. archaeologists said they discovered the tomb by accident while working on a nearby site. Still unknown is whose mummies are in the five wooden sarcophagi with painted funeral masks, surrounded by alabaster jars inside the undecorated single-chamber tomb.
The tomb, believed to be some 3,000 years old and dating to the 18th Dynasty, does not appear to be that of a pharaoh. But it could be for members of a royal court, said Edwin Brock, co-director of the University of Memphis in Tennessee that discovered the site."
*****
Next was a visit to the tombs in the Valley of Queens, which were very similar in nature to the king's tombs. We were a little disappointed when we found out the tomb of Nefertari, favorite wife of Ramses II, was indeed open but required a special permit obtained in Cairo and only 150 people a day could visit the tomb. The guide book mentioned the tomb was closed, so it must have just recently been reopened. The tomb is the most well preserved with the most striking colors of all the tombs. We had to stick with a photo book to get an idea of what it looked like inside.
Colossi of Memnon - not a great site, two large statues in almost total disrepair. They reminded me of the rock creatures from Galaxy Quest.
"The twin statues depict Amenhotep III (fl. 14th century BC) in a seated position, his hands resting on his knees and his gaze turned eastward toward the river and the rising sun. Two shorter figures are carved into the front throne alongside his legs: these are his wife Tiy and mother Mutemwiya. The side panels depict the Nile god Hapy.
The statues are made from blocks of quartzite sandstone which was quarried at either Giza (near modern-day Cairo) or Gebel el-Silsila (60 km north of Aswan). Including the stone platforms on which they stand, they reach a towering 18 metres (approx. 60 ft) in height."
Temple of Hatshepsut:
"The masterpiece of her building projects was her mortuary temple complex at Deir el-Bahri. It was designed and implemented by Senemut on a site on the West Bank of the Nile close to the entrance to the Valley of the Kings. The focal point was the Djeser-Djeseru or "the Sublime of Sublimes", a colonnaded structure of perfect harmony nearly one thousand years before the Parthenon. Djeser-Djeseru sits atop a series of terraces that were once graced with gardens. Djeser-Djeseru is built into a cliff face that rises sharply above it. Djeser-Djeseru and the other buildings of the Deir el-Bahri complex are considered to be among the great buildings of the ancient world."
One of the more impressive sites built into the mountain side and also the discovery of many of the mummies seen in the museum. They had been moved constantly because of tomb raiders. The temple is in three massive layers with the third built into the side of the mountain.
Take a short break for a coke and a 30 pound ($6) can of Pringles... eek.
Off to Luxor.
Temple complex of Karnak in Ancient Egypt was named Ipet Sut, "the most venerated place" and it is a small...... "Al-Karnak (Arabic village in Egypt, located on the banks of the River Nile some 2.5 km north of Luxor (25°43'N 32°39'E). Visitors to the area – particularly foreign tourists – perceive no distinction between Luxor and al-Karnak, as the two are both parts of the same conurbation. The Karnak Temple is twice the size of the built-up village area, and it is the leading attraction in al-Karnak; essentially this is al-Karnak, as the term Karnak is nearly universally understood as the temple complex and not the village.
The temple area is a vast open-air museum and the largest ancient religious site in the world, and is probably the second most visited historical site in Egypt, second only to the Giza Pyramids near Cairo."
Another favorite site for us, basically a temple complex that was added on by many kings and queens (over 30). The scale was magnificent, large pillars, home to many obelisks, etc.
Next stop Luxor temple, which was basically an extension of the Karnak complex. Very detailed large obelisk out front. The site was great in that we arrived just before dusk so we got to see the temple in both the day and lit up at night. Hundreds of sphinxes once lined the road to Karnak and the government is trying to clear the ancient road.
Also the place of the great six toe joke on Chris... he might have been left counting forever.
Van ride back to the boat.
posted by Chris at 11:00 PM
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