Travel down the Nile to discover important ancient Egyptian cultural sites such as the Pyramids of Giza
Travel down the Nile to discover important ancient Egyptian cultural sites such as the Pyramids of Giza
A discussion of some of the most important sites associated with ancient Egypt.
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
Transcript
NARRATOR: This map illustrates some of the most important sites associated with ancient Egypt.
Abu Simbel was at the southern frontier of pharaonic Egypt when Ramses II ordered two temples cut from a cliffside there. Four colossal statues of Ramses himself adorn the main entrance to the Great Temple.
Philae, an island in the Nile River near Aswan, attracted temple and shrine builders due to its position above the Nile floodings. The construction of dams on the Nile River during the 20th century caused the island and its temples to become partially submerged. They sustained considerable damage, and so the decision was made to move them to higher ground.
Thebes, one of the famed cities of antiquity, was the capital of the ancient Egyptian empire at its heyday. The area around Thebes--which includes Luxor, the Valley of the Kings, and Karnak--is host to numerous tombs, temples, and shrines.
The southern part of Thebes developed around a site known today as the Temple of Luxor, commissioned in the 18th dynasty to honor Amon, king of the gods.
An avenue of sphinxes connected the temple complex at Luxor to the Great Temple of Amon at Karnak. The most striking feature of the temple is the hypostyle hall, comprised of 134 columns, which cover an area of about 54,000 square feet.
Thebes and the Valley of the Kings also served as the burial site of almost all of the pharaohs of the 18th, 19th, and 20th dynasties. Of the 62 known tombs in the Valley of the Kings, only the tomb of Tutankhamen escaped pillage.
Up the Nile from Thebes is Idfu, whose chief god in ancient times was Horus of the winged disk. The great sandstone temple built at Idfu to honor Horus serves as the classic example of an Egyptian temple, with a simple plan along one main axis. The area around the Nile delta holds several pyramids constructed during the pyramid age par excellence, which began during the 3rd dynasty and ended at roughly the 6th dynasty.
At Saqqarah the architect of King Djoser of the 3rd dynasty designed a new form of burial structure in the shape of a pyramid in six stages known as the Step Pyramid. This monument is probably the earliest stone building of importance erected in Egypt.
Further up the Nile at Dahshur stands an early 4th-dynasty attempt to build a true pyramid. The initial angle of the pyramid's slope was found to be too steep, however, and so the angle of the top portion was reduced, resulting in a pyramid with a double slope. Because of this, it is known as the Bent, Blunted, False, or Rhomboidal Pyramid.
Among the completed true pyramids constructed by the ancient Egyptians, the most famous lie at Giza. Of the three pyramids built there by kings of the 4th dynasty, the Great Pyramid is the oldest and the largest.
Just south of the Great Pyramid rests the Great Sphinx, with the facial features of a man but the body of a recumbent lion.
Abu Simbel was at the southern frontier of pharaonic Egypt when Ramses II ordered two temples cut from a cliffside there. Four colossal statues of Ramses himself adorn the main entrance to the Great Temple.
Philae, an island in the Nile River near Aswan, attracted temple and shrine builders due to its position above the Nile floodings. The construction of dams on the Nile River during the 20th century caused the island and its temples to become partially submerged. They sustained considerable damage, and so the decision was made to move them to higher ground.
Thebes, one of the famed cities of antiquity, was the capital of the ancient Egyptian empire at its heyday. The area around Thebes--which includes Luxor, the Valley of the Kings, and Karnak--is host to numerous tombs, temples, and shrines.
The southern part of Thebes developed around a site known today as the Temple of Luxor, commissioned in the 18th dynasty to honor Amon, king of the gods.
An avenue of sphinxes connected the temple complex at Luxor to the Great Temple of Amon at Karnak. The most striking feature of the temple is the hypostyle hall, comprised of 134 columns, which cover an area of about 54,000 square feet.
Thebes and the Valley of the Kings also served as the burial site of almost all of the pharaohs of the 18th, 19th, and 20th dynasties. Of the 62 known tombs in the Valley of the Kings, only the tomb of Tutankhamen escaped pillage.
Up the Nile from Thebes is Idfu, whose chief god in ancient times was Horus of the winged disk. The great sandstone temple built at Idfu to honor Horus serves as the classic example of an Egyptian temple, with a simple plan along one main axis. The area around the Nile delta holds several pyramids constructed during the pyramid age par excellence, which began during the 3rd dynasty and ended at roughly the 6th dynasty.
At Saqqarah the architect of King Djoser of the 3rd dynasty designed a new form of burial structure in the shape of a pyramid in six stages known as the Step Pyramid. This monument is probably the earliest stone building of importance erected in Egypt.
Further up the Nile at Dahshur stands an early 4th-dynasty attempt to build a true pyramid. The initial angle of the pyramid's slope was found to be too steep, however, and so the angle of the top portion was reduced, resulting in a pyramid with a double slope. Because of this, it is known as the Bent, Blunted, False, or Rhomboidal Pyramid.
Among the completed true pyramids constructed by the ancient Egyptians, the most famous lie at Giza. Of the three pyramids built there by kings of the 4th dynasty, the Great Pyramid is the oldest and the largest.
Just south of the Great Pyramid rests the Great Sphinx, with the facial features of a man but the body of a recumbent lion.