Karnak

The temples of Karnak represent the largest temple complex in the ancient world. Amazingly, it represents the achievement of many generations of ancient builders and pharaohs. Its old name is Ipet-isut, meaning “the most sacred of places.” The building of this complex temple has lasted more than two thousand years. It comprises three main temples, smaller enclosed temples, and several outer temples on 247 acres. The great “Hypostyle Hall” is an incredible forest of giant pillars.

The Karnak Temple Complex, commonly referred to as Karnak, is a sprawling collection of temples, chapels, pylons, and other structures located near Luxor, Egypt. The complex was initiated during the reign of Senusret I in the Middle Kingdom and was constructed over several centuries, continuing until the Ptolemaic Kingdom. Although most of the standing buildings were erected during the New Kingdom, the area surrounding Karnak was the primary place of worship for the 18th Dynastic Theban Triad, with the god Amun presiding.

This location, known as Ipet-isut, was considered “The Most Selected of Places” in ancient Egyptian culture. Karnak is an integral part of the grand city of Thebes and was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979, along with the rest of the town. The modern village of El-Karnak, situated 2.5 kilometres north of Luxor, takes its name from the nearby complex.

Overview

The complex is a vast open site, including the Karnak Open Air Museum. It is believed to be the second[citation needed] most visited historical site in Egypt; only the Giza pyramid complex near Cairo receives more visits. It consists of four main parts, of which only the largest is open to the public. Karnak is often understood as the Precinct of Amun-Re only because this is the only part most visitors see. The three other parts, the Precinct of Mut, the Precinct of Montu, and the dismantled Temple of Amenhotep IV, are closed to the public.

A few smaller temples and sanctuaries also connect the Precinct of Mut, the Precinct of Amun-Re, and the Luxor Temple. The Precinct of Mut is very ancient, dedicated to an Earth and creation deity, but not yet restored. Hatshepsut destroyed and partially restored the original temple, although another pharaoh built it around it to change the focus or orientation of the sacred area. Many portions of it may have been carried away for use in other buildings.

The Main Aspect of Karnak

The key difference between Karnak and most of the other temples and sites in Egypt is the length of time over which it was developed and used. Construction of temples started in the Middle Kingdom and continued into Ptolemaic times. Approximately thirty pharaohs contributed to the buildings, enabling them to reach a size, complexity, and diversity unseen elsewhere. Few of the individual features of Karnak are unique, but the size and number of features are vast.

The deities represented range from some of the earliest worshipped to those worshipped much later in the history of the Ancient Egyptian culture. Although destroyed, it also contained an early temple built by Amenhotep IV (Akhenaten), the pharaoh who later would celebrate a nearly monotheistic religion he established that prompted him to move his court and religious centre away from Thebes. It also contains evidence of adaptations, where later cultures used the buildings of the ancient Egyptians for their religious purposes.

The Karnak complex is a vast open site that includes the Karnak Open Air Museum. It is considered the second most visited historical site in Egypt, with only the Giza pyramid complex near Cairo receiving more visits. The complex comprises four main parts, but only the largest is open to the public. Karnak is often considered the Precinct of Amun-Re only since this is the only part most visitors see. The other three parts, the Precinct of Mut, the Precinct of Montu, and the dismantled Temple of Amenhotep IV, are closed to the public. A few smaller temples and sanctuaries also connect the Precinct of Mut, the Precinct of Amun-Re, and the Luxor Temple.

The Precinct of Mut is very ancient and dedicated to an Earth and creation deity, but it has not yet been restored. Hatshepsut destroyed and partially restored the original temple, although another pharaoh built it around it to change the focus or orientation of the sacred area. Many portions of it may have been carried away for use in other buildings.

Hypostyle Hall

The Karnak Temple Complex, located in Luxor, Egypt, is considered one of ancient Egypt’s most significant religious sites. The Great Hypostyle Hall, a part of the complex, is a massive hall featuring 134 columns arranged in 16 rows. Of these columns, 122 measure 10 metres (33 ft) in height, with the remaining 12 columns standing at 21 metres (69 ft) tall and having a diameter of over 3 metres (9.8 ft). The architraves atop these columns are estimated to weigh a staggering 70 tons.

Experts have proposed several theories regarding how the architraves were lifted to these heights. One theory posits that levers were used, although this method would have been time-consuming and required exceptional balance. Another standard theory suggests that large ramps constructed of sand, mud, brick, or stone were used, and the stones were then towed up the ramps. If stone were used for the ramps, they would have been able to use much less material. The top of the ramps would presumably have employed wooden tracks or cobblestones to tow the megaliths.

An unfinished pillar in an out-of-the-way location provides valuable insights into how it would have been finished. The final carving was executed after the drums were put in place so that it would not be damaged during placement. Several experiments were conducted at other locations to move megaliths using ancient technology, some of which are among the world’s most giant monoliths.

Notably, the sun god’s shrine in the Karnak Temple Complex was built so that light is focused upon it during the winter solstice. In 2009, the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) launched a website dedicated to virtual reality digital reconstructions of the Karnak complex and other resources.

The Great Hypostyle Hall’s central columns feature open papyrus umbel capitals and architraves. The sheer size and scale of this monumental structure continue to awe and inspire visitors worldwide.

Location of Temples of Karnak

The vast iconic Complex of Karnak is an ancient Egyptian temple precinct on the east bank of the Nile River in Thebes. It stands at El-Karnak, Luxor Governorate– Egypt.

Name

The temple was initially named Nesut-Towi, meaning “Throne of the Two Lands”. It was also referred to as Ipet-Iset, or “The Finest of Seats”, Ipt-Swt, which means “Selected Spot”, and Ipetsut, meaning “The Most Select of Places”.

Some suggest that the current name of Karnak comes from the Arabic term خورنق Khurnaq, which means “fortified village”. However, there is no historical evidence to support this theory.

History of the Temples of Karnak

The significance of the Karnak complex is closely tied to the history of Thebes and its evolving cultural influence. Religious centres were regionally specific and gained prominence by establishing a new capital for the unified culture. Before the Eleventh Dynasty, Thebes wasn’t of great importance, and early temple structures were limited in size, with shrines dedicated to Mut and Montu, the early deities of the area. Invaders destroyed these. The earliest known artefact found in the temple area is an eight-sided column from the Eleventh Dynasty that references Amun-Re. Amun, the local tutelary deity of Thebes, was identified with the ram and the goose. The name Amun means “hidden” or the “hidden god.”

During the Eighteenth Dynasty, Thebes became the capital of Ancient Egypt, and significant construction was carried out in the Precinct of Amun-Re. Almost every pharaoh of that dynasty added to the temple site, including Thutmose I, who erected an enclosure wall connecting the Fourth and Fifth pylons. Hatshepsut restored the original Precinct of Mut and erected twin obelisks, one of which still stands today. Another project of hers was the Red Chapel, intended as a barque shrine, which may have originally stood between the two obelisks. She also ordered the construction of two more obelisks to celebrate her sixteenth year as pharaoh.

The Great Hypostyle Hall’s construction may have begun during the Eighteenth Dynasty, but most of the new building was undertaken under Seti I and Ramesses II in the Nineteenth. Merneptah commemorated his victories over the Sea Peoples on the walls of the Cachette Court, which was the start of the processional route to the Luxor Temple. The last significant addition to the Precinct of Amun-Re’s layout was the First Pylon and the massive enclosure walls constructed by Nectanebo I of the Thirtieth Dynasty.

By 323 AD, Constantine the Great recognised Christianity, and in 356, Constantius II ordered the closing of pagan temples throughout the Roman Empire, which included Egypt. Karnak was mostly abandoned by this time, and Christian churches were founded among the ruins. Thutmose III’s central hall was repurposed as a Festival Hall, where painted decorations of saints and Coptic inscriptions can still be seen.

European knowledge of Karnak

The exact location of Thebes in medieval Europe was unknown. However, both Herodotus and Strabo provide precise details regarding its location and the distance one must travel up the Nile to reach it. Maps of Egypt based on the work of Claudius Ptolemaeus’ Geographia, which dates back to the 2nd century, had been circulating in Europe since the late 14th century, all of which indicated the location of Thebes (Diospolis). Despite this, several European authors who visited only Lower Egypt and published their travel accounts, such as Joos van Ghistele and André Thévet, placed Thebes in or near Memphis during the 15th and 16th centuries.

The first known European mention of a range of monuments in Upper Egypt and Nubia, including Karnak, Luxor temple, the Colossi of Memnon, Esna, Edfu, Kom Ombo, Philae, and others, came from an unknown Venetian in 1589. However, his account does not provide a name for the complex. This account is housed in the Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale di Firenze.

The name “Karnak” as a village and the complex were first attested in 1668 when two capuchin missionary brothers, Protais and Charles François d’Orléans, travelled through the area. Protais’ writing about their travel was published by Melchisédech Thévenot (Relations de divers voyages curieux, 1670s–1696 editions) and Johann Michael Vansleb (The Present State of Egypt, 1678).

The first drawing of Karnak was found in Paul Lucas’ travel account of 1704 (Voyage du Sieur Paul Lucas au Levant). Although it is somewhat inaccurate and can be confusing to modern readers, it is based on a complex confined by the three substantial Ptolemaic gateways of Ptolemy III Euergetes / Ptolemy IV Philopator and the massive 113 m long, 43 m high, and 15 m thick, First Pylon of the Precinct of Amun-Re. Lucas travelled in Egypt during 1699–1703.

Karnak was successively visited and described by Claude Sicard and his travel companion Pierre Laurent Pincia (1718 and 1720–21), Granger (1731), Frederick Louis Norden (1737–38), Richard Pococke (1738), James Bruce (1769), Charles-Nicolas-Sigisbert Sonnini de Manoncourt (1777), William George Browne (1792–93), and finally by several scientists of the Napoleon expedition, including Vivant Denon, during 1798–1799. Claude-Étienne Savary describes the complex in great detail in his work of 1785, mainly because it is a fictional account of a pretend journey to Upper Egypt, composed of information from other travellers. Savary did visit Lower Egypt in 1777–78 and published a work about it as well.

Main Parts

Avenue of Sphinxes

The first thing you can see once you enter the complex of Karnak is a colossal avenue of sphinxes. This avenue leads to the first tower of the Great Temple of Amon-Re. On both sides, we can see the sphinxes of the god Amon-Re. These sphinxes are ram-headed, symbolising the god Amon-Re. On the sphinxes’ paws stands a small effigy of Ramesses II in the form of Osiris.

Precinct of Amun-Re

The temple complex at Karnak is a significant historical site and a testament to ancient Egypt’s architectural and artistic achievements. One of its most important structures is the Great Hypostyle Hall, which features a forest of towering columns and intricate reliefs depicting the glory of the pharaohs. Another notable feature is the Precinct of Amun-Re, a vast courtyard surrounded by imposing walls and adorned with numerous shrines and sanctuaries.

The temple is dedicated to Amun-Re, the primary deity of the Theban Triad. It contains several colossal statues, including the awe-inspiring figure of Pinedjem I, which measures an astounding 10.5 meters in height. The sandstone used to construct the temple, including all of its columns, was quarried from Gebel Silsila, a location some 100 miles to the south of the temple, and transported along the Nile River. Additionally, the temple boasts one of the most enormous obelisks in the world, weighing an impressive 328 tons and standing 29 meters tall.

Karnak Temple First Pylon

The final pylon at Karnak, serving as the primary entrance to the temple today, was the last structure to be constructed. Though incomplete and lacking decoration, the remnants of the mud brick ramps used in its construction are still visible within the Great Court. The north tower stands at approximately 71 feet (21.70m), while the south tower is 103 feet (31.65m). Had the structure been completed, it would likely have reached a height between 124 feet (38m) and 131 feet (40m). Nectanebo I (380-362 BC), the builder of the massive enclosure wall surrounding Karnak, is credited with constructing this pylon. Some scholars suggest that an earlier pylon may have occupied the exact location.

Approaching the pylon, an avenue of sphinxes featuring ram-headed statues representing the god Amun leads the way. These sphinxes stand in front of a small Osiris-shaped effigy of Ramesses II, situated between their front paws.

Precinct of Mut

The precinct dedicated to the mother goddess, Mut, lies south of the newer Amen-Re complex and features various smaller temples and a crescent-shaped sacred lake. It was in the Eighteenth Dynasty Theban Triad that Mut became identified as the wife of Amun-Re. Unfortunately, the temple has been damaged over time, with many parts being repurposed for other structures. However, the Precinct of Mut has been opened to the public following the restoration and excavation works carried out by the Johns Hopkins University team led by Betsy Bryan. Notably, the courtyard of Mut’s temple yielded six hundred black granite statues. This may be the oldest part of the site.

In 2006, Bryan presented her findings on a festival that involved a deliberate overindulgence in alcohol. The priestesses and the population participated in this event, which historical records indicate tens of thousands attended. The festival took place in the temple of Mut, as she had absorbed the warrior goddesses Sekhmet and Bast among her aspects when Thebes gained greater prominence. Mut’s assimilation of other goddesses led to her name changing over the years, with the final iteration being Mut-Nekhbet.

During her twenty-year reign, Luxor temple excavations revealed a “porch of drunkenness” that Pharaoh Hatshepsut built onto the temple. A later myth surrounding the annual drunken Sekhmet festival claims that Ra, the sun god of Upper Egypt, created Sekhmet from a fiery eye he gained from his mother to destroy the mortals who conspired against him (Lower Egypt). Despite her blood-lust not being quelled after the battle, Ra tricked Sekhmet by turning the Nile red, which made Sekhmet drunk on beer mixed with pomegranate juice, causing her to give up slaughter and become an aspect of the gentle Hathor. The complex interweaving of deities in Egyptian culture occurred over thousands of years.

The Kiosk of Tahraqa

Taharqa, the fourth monarch of the Twenty-fifth Dynasty, held the position of king in his native land of Kush, located in Northern Sudan. The remains of an immense kiosk, erected by the pharaoh as mentioned above, Taharqa (690-664 B.C.), featured ten twenty-one meter high papyrus columns that were once linked by a low screening wall. Today, only a single, great column remains standing. While it is believed that the structure served as a barque chapel (or Station), some Egyptologists have suggested that the site may have been utilised in ritual activities to join with the s.

Statue of Ramesses II

Certain Egyptologists have posited that the ancient artefact known as the “t.nsk it” may have been utilised in ceremonial activities to facilitate spiritual communion with the divine. Of note, the Statue of Ramesses II (1070-1032) serves as an exemplary depiction of the ancient Egyptian monarch, with the king adorned in the traditional nemes headdress and replete with the Upper and Lower Egypt double crown. Additionally, the king’s arms are crossed, clasping the crook and flail in a symbolically potent gesture of royal authority. At the statue’s base, Princess Bent’anta is depicted, garbed in a Uraeus crown of rearing cobras and holding a flower. Bent’anta (alternatively rendered as Bintanath, Bint-Anath, or Bintanat) is of Syrian origin, translating to “Daughter of Anath,” a reference to the Canaanite goddess Anath. Notably, Bent’anta’s mother remains unnamed in historical records.

Statue of Princess Bent’anta

The statue of Princess Bent’anta is a notable historical artefact of Syrian origin. Bent’anta, which means “Daughter of Anath,” references the Canaanite goddess Anath. It is noteworthy that the mother of Princess Bent’anta remains unnamed in historical records. The statue depicts the Princess in a Uraeus crown of rearing cobras while holding a flower.

Precinct of Montu

The Temple of Montu, situated north of the Amun-Re complex, is dedicated to worshipping the war-god Montu. Despite being smaller, it is not accessible to the general public. Another temple, the Temple of Amenhotep IV, was intentionally dismantled and can be found towards the east.

Temple of Amenhotep IV

The Temple of Amenhotep IV, situated east of the main complex and outside the walls of the Amun-Re precinct, was deliberately dismantled after its builder’s death. The temple was constructed to overcome the powerful priesthood that had gained control over Egypt before his reign. Unfortunately, the temple was destroyed so thoroughly that its extent and layout remain unknown. The priesthood of that temple once again regained its powerful position soon after Akhenaten’s death.

3. The Great Court

This spacious court has the Kiosk of Tahraqa in the middle of it. On its sides, it has the Shrine of Seti I to the left and the temple of Ramses III to the right. To its end is the Ramesses II statue and the Second Pylon.

4. The Kiosk of Tahraqa

Pharaoh Taharaqa built a kiosk in the middle of the Great Court. It is the 25th dynasty pharaoh who ruled from 690-664 BC. This giant kiosk originally consisted of ten twenty-one-meter-high columns. The Ancient Egyptian builders erected these papyrus-like columns and linked them by a low screening wall. Visitors to the temple of Karnak can notice only one great column still standing at its full height, while the others have lost their upper parts.

5. Barque Chapel of Ramses III

The first court is lined with eight columns on both sides. Osiride statues of the king are attached to these columns. The west side statues show the king wearing the red crown of the south, while those on the east side show Ramses III wearing the White Crown of the north.

Beyond the court is a vestibule with four Osiride pillars. In turn, this court leads into a small hypostyle hall, which, in turn, leads to three chapels for the barques of Karnak.

6. Statues of Ramses II

These colossal red granite statues stand before the second tower in the Great Court of the temple. Gloriously, these statues show Ramses II wearing the Nemes headdress with the double crown of Upper and Lower Egypt. It is an Osiride statue with the king’s arms resting on his chest, holding a crook and flail, symbols of kingship. Princess Bent’anta (Bint-Anath) has a flower and wears a Uraeus crown of rearing cobras at his feet. Her name Bent’anta is Syrian, meaning Daughter of Anath, referring to the Canaanite goddess Anath. Her mother was Isetnofret, one of Ramses’ most beloved wives.

7. The Second Pylon of the Temples of Karnak

The second tower was built by Horemheb (1323-1295 BC), who filled the tower’s interior with thousands of stone blocks from demolished monuments built by King Akhenaton. This building was not finished and partly decorated before Horemheb’s death. His successor, Ramses I, completed the tower decoration during his brief reign of fewer than two years. Ramses I replaced all of Horemheb’s cartouches with his own. Ramses I also built two small shrines that abutted the tower’s east wall on either side of the central passageway. Again, during his rule of Egypt, Ramses II usurped these royal cartouches.

8. Great Hypostyle Hall

The Great Hypostyle Hall is the most fantastic building in the temples of Karnak. It occupies 16,459 meters and features 134 columns. The giant twelve columns are 21 meters high and support the central part of the structure. The other 122 columns are about 12 meters tall. Indeed, it is still the largest room of any religious building globally. Seti I – a pharaoh who ruled from 1290 to 1279 BC, built this amazing place.

Scenes show Seti I and his successor, Ramses II, smiting enemies from Libya, Syria, and the Levant on the outside walls.

9. Sacred Lake

Tuthmosis III (1473-1458 BC) dug the Sacred Lake at the Temple of Karnak. It is the largest of its kind, measuring 120m by 77m. This Sacred Lake has a stone wall line and stairways descending into the water.

The priests used this lake for rituals. They also considered it as a home to the Sacred Geese of Amun. Those priests had their storerooms and living quarters around them. In addition, there was an aviary for aquatic birds near the lake.

Discover

• Karnak Tours
• Precinct of Mut
• Temple of Khonsu
• Gebel el Silsila