Temple of Amun-Re (Karnak)

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Model of the temple precinct
Floor plan of the temple

The Temple of Amun-Re is the central part of the Amun district in Karnak , which in turn forms the center of a larger complex of cult buildings, the Karnak Temple . Since the 18th dynasty , the pharaohs have been continually adding and remodeling, trying to outdo each other.

The temple

West side of the temple

With a total of ten pylons , the largest about 113 meters wide and about 15 meters thick with a planned height of about 45 meters, and a total area of ​​about 30 hectares (530, 515, 530 and 610 meters side length) is the Temple of Amun-Re the largest temple in Egypt. In addition to the Temple of Amun-Re, it also contained the Temple of Chons , the Temple of Opet, the Temple of Ptah, the Temple of Amenhotep II and various station chapels for the divine barque , such as the White Chapel and the Red Chapel .

In ancient times, an avenue , which was lined with 365 sphinxes on both sides , connected the Temple of Amun with the Temple of Luxor, about 2.5 km away . This road ended at the 10th pylon of the temple.

Former port facility

Another avenue of sphinxes with two rows of 66 sphinxes connects the Amun temple with the Mut district . On the northwest side there is a Nile harbor, with which the statue of God could visit the west bank. Behind the entrance pylon, the temple opens into a large courtyard. Behind it is the hall of columns ( hypostyle ). Continuing the axis one comes to the holy of holies . These areas were covered. The temple was also constructed with the floor sloping towards the sanctuary and the roof sloping. The column hall behind the courtyard is one of the most important structures that have survived from Egyptian times.

Many parts have been destroyed by time or by the pharaohs themselves as part of a damnatio memoriae ("damnation of memory"). Even today, with its faded ruins, the Karnak Temple is an overwhelming sight.

II. Pylon

2. Pylon (west side)

The 2nd pylon, built by Haremhab , formed the entrance front of the temple from the end of the 18th dynasty to the time of Nectanebo I. Since the beginning of the 18th dynasty there was a harbor basin serving as a landing stage , which Haremhab had filled in and rebuilt further west. The two pylon towers that were once 14 meters thick and 35 meters high have only been preserved up to half their height. Blocks from the demolished Aton temple by Pharaoh Akhenaten (e.g. Gem-pa-Aton ) were used as filling material for the construction.

Statue of Ramses II usurped by Pinudjem I. with his daughter Meritamun

In front of the entrance area were two monumental granite statues , of which only the southern one has been completely preserved. It shows the king with the double crown in a walking pose. Of the other, only the base with the feet exists. Inside the gate were two statues of gods. In 1954, while cleaning up the collapsed north wing, Henri Chevrier discovered all the fragments of a colossal statue made of rose granite . The 13 meter high statue was erected again and probably shows Ramses II , between whose legs his daughter wife Meritamun is standing.

IV. And V. pylon

The general view of the temple was radically changed for the first time after the Middle Kingdom by the Thutmosids. In order to create a new entrance situation, Thutmose I had the IV and V pylons built in the OW axis. In between there was a hypostyle, which was supported by a wooden ceiling supported by papyrus bundle columns (which were covered with electrons). This construction was canceled by his daughter Hatshepsut when she had her two obelisks erected between the IV and V pylons and had to break through the wooden ceiling. They are the largest obelisks ever erected in Egypt (H: 32 m) and they had tips that were provided with electrons (according to ancient sources they were completely covered with electrons). But only one of them is still in situ, while the other has broken into several pieces (the rest can be seen today near the Holy Lake).

VII. Pylon

Thutmose III. decided to turn the processional axis to the south and had the VII. pylon built in the direction of the courage sanctuary. It consisted of an approx. 13 m high granite portal in front of which colossal figures of the king were placed on both sides, with the names of defeated peoples (in the east: Asians, in the west: Africans) on the pedestals. In front of it, 2 large obelisks were erected, of which only one base is visible on site, as the other was transported to Constantinople by Emperor Constantine II in AD 357 . Even the earth dam that was built for removal is still visible today. It could also be determined that the design of the VII. Pylon is a copy of the IV. Pylon, so that the same representations were found in the main and secondary axes (as well as in the gateways → Jubilee of the King).

VIII. Pylon

8. Pylon

The eighth pylon had already been erected under Hatshepsut and it probably replaced an older building made of Nile mud bricks (possibly Amenhotep I). In the lower area it was surrounded by a low limestone wall.
Relief decoration:
Inner facade (east side): Thutmose I thanks Amun for enthroning his daughter Hatshepsut (inscriptions are hacked out, name of Hatshepsut replaced by Thutmose II ) Outer
facade: Amenhotep II when "slaying the enemy" in front of Amun, Hatshepsut inscription largely destroyed

Plastic jewelry in front of the pylon
It can be assumed that there were originally six seated figures in front of the pylon, of which only the bases of two have survived (Thutmose II., Restored by Thutmose III.). While nothing of the two other figures in front of the east wing has been preserved, there is a seated statue of Amenhotep i in front of the west wing. (restored by Thutmose III.) and a fragmentary one by Amenhotep II (restored by Thutmose IV.). It was planned that this pylon would be the actual entrance to the temple from the south, as the inscriptions in the niches of the flagpoles of Amenhotep II prove.

Purpose of the temple complex

After Amun-Res of Thebes was elevated to the status of a local god and later an imperial god, the rulers of the early Middle Kingdom began building a temple, which was expanded over millennia to become today's temple complex, where the Amun priesthood performed daily temple service. Temples were also built for Amun's wife, the goddess Mut , and their son, Chons , and together they formed the triad of Thebes.

Building history

Middle realm

Columns of the great hypostyle hall

The oldest component found so far in the Amun district of Karnak is an octagonal column of Antef II with the naming of the god Amun-Re.

Sesostris I built the first larger temple out of limestone . He measured 37.4 x 39.6 m and was of a perimeter wall surrounding brick. At the front there were statue pillars, the front part of the temple was surrounded by porticos. According to Arnold , there was likely a sacred garden there. In the back there were three cult rooms, one behind the other. There were several station chapels within the perimeter wall, including the Chapelle blanche (White Chapel).

New kingdom

18th dynasty

At the beginning of the 18th dynasty, the cult center of Amun was greatly expanded, starting with Amenhotep I. Thutmose I added pylons 4 and 5, a bowl-shaped surrounding wall and a 21.8 m high pair of obelisks. Thutmose II built the so-called Festhof to the west of it. There were major construction measures again under Hatshepsut and Thutmose III. :

  • A larger brick wall fortified with towers.
  • A pre-temple with a barque January, the so-called Red Chapel ( Chapelle rouge ), which was reconstructed at the beginning of the 21st century, as well as the Annals Hall .
  • A 30.43 m high pair of obelisks between the 4th and 5th pylon. Thutmose III. As part of his Damnatio memoriae, had the obelisks sheathed so that they were no longer visible. Paradoxically, this helped preserve it.
  • A 6th was added between the Red Chapel and the 5th pylon.
  • A holy lake was created or an existing lake was enlarged.
  • The giant pylons 7 and 8 were erected on the south axis, in the direction of the Mut district . On the 7th pylon, Hatshepsut is represented by four colossal statues , on the 8th pylon there are two seated images and a pair of obelisks by Thutmose.
  • Thutmose built the Achmenu east of the Sesostris building .
  • Six station chapels were built on the processional route to Luxor.

Amenhotep III extended the temple axis to the west and south. He destroyed numerous smaller chapels and monuments of the 12th Dynasty and early 18th Dynasty that were on this axis, and built them into the foundation. He added the third pylon with eight flagpoles about forty meters high. On the southern axis, it ended with the 10th pylon, in front of which two colossal statues of the Pharaoh made of quartzite stood. As part of this huge building program, the processional road to the Temple of Mut and Luxor was probably renewed and provided with 60 sphinxes .

During the Amarna period , continuous development was interrupted. At the beginning of his reign, Amenhotep IV (Akhenaten) built an Aton sanctuary ( Gem-pa-Aton (Karnak) ) south of the Amun district , but it was destroyed under Haremhab and used as filling material.

Haremhab built the 9th and 10th pylons on the south axis. He added the 2nd pylon in the west to the Amun temple, which was 35 m high and 98 m wide and used stones from the destroyed Aton shrine.

19th dynasty

A columned hall (hypostyle) , often referred to as a colonnade , was started by Seti I between the 2nd and 3rd pylon and completed under Ramses II .

20th dynasty

Ramses III. built a station temple in front of the 2nd pylon and also restored the Chons temple in the Amun district .

Chapel of Taharqa and Schepenupet II.

Third intermediate time

22nd dynasty

Scheschonq I. rebuilt the square in front of the 2nd pylon into a closed colonnaded courtyard with gates in the north, south and probably also west.

25th Dynasty

Forecourt (Ethiopian court)

In the closed pillared courtyard of Scheschonq I, the Kushite king ( Pharaoh ) Taharqa built the famous pillar kiosk . This consisted of a double row of five 21 meter high papyrus columns .

Late period

30th dynasty

The most important buildings erected under Nektanebo I in the Amun district were the 21 meter high enclosing walls, which were provided with monumental gates in the east, north and in front of the Chons temple. However, these gates were only opened under the Ptolemies Ptolemy III. Euergetes I and Ptolemy IV. Philopator I inscribed and decorated.

literature

  • Dieter Arnold : Lexicon of Egyptian architecture. Patmos, Düsseldorf / Zurich 2000, ISBN 3-491-96001-0 .
  • Dieter Arnold: The temples of Egypt. Apartments for gods, monuments, places of worship. Bechtermünz, Augsburg 1996, ISBN 3-86047-215-1 .
  • Ludwig Borchardt : On the building history of the Temple of Amon from Karnak . Reprographic reprint of the Leipzig 1905 edition (= studies on the history and antiquity of Egypt. Volume 5, part 1). Olms, Hildesheim 1964.
  • Sergio Donadoni: Thebes, Holy City of the Pharaohs. Hirmer, Munich 2000, ISBN 3-7774-8550-0 .
  • Beatrix Gessler-Löhr: The sacred lakes of Egyptian temples - a contribution to the interpretation of sacred architecture in ancient Egypt (= Hildesheimer Egyptological contributions. Volume 21). Gerstenberg, Hildesheim 1983, ISBN 3-8067-8080-3 ; At the same time: Munich, Univ., Dissertation, 1975.
  • Jean-Claude Golvin : Karnak, temple of Amen-Re. In: Kathryn A. Bard (Ed.): Encyclopedia of the Archeology of Ancient Egypt. Routledge, London 1999, ISBN 0-415-18589-0 , pp. 400-04.
  • Wolfgang Helck : Small Lexicon of Egyptology. Harrassowitz, Wiesbaden 1999, ISBN 3-447-04027-0 .
  • Thomas Kühn: The house of Amun in Karnak . In: Gabriele Höber-Kamel (Ed.): Karnak - Home of the Gods (= Kemet. Issue 1/2001), Kemet-Verlag, Berlin 2001, ISSN  0943-5972 , pp. 9-22.
  • Auguste Mariette : Karnak, étude topographique et archéologique, avec un appendice comprenant les principaux textes hiéroglyphiques découverts ou recueillis pendant les fouilles exécutées à Karnak. Paris 1875; Heinrichs, Leipzig 1875; Reprint of the Leipzig 1875 edition: LTR-Verlag, Wiesbaden 1982, ISBN 3-88706-095-4 .
  • Eberhard Otto : Osiris and Amun: cult and holy places. Hirmer, Munich 1966.
  • RA Schwaller de Lubicz: Temple of Karnak. Thames & Hudson, London 1999, ISBN 0-500-01923-1 .
  • Alberto Siliotti: Luxor, Karnak and the Theban Temples. American University in Cairo Press, Cairo / New York 2002, ISBN 977-424-641-1 .
  • Richard H. Wilkinson : The world of temples in ancient Egypt. Scientific Book Society, Darmstadt 2005, ISBN 3-534-18652-4 .

Web links

Commons : Temple of Amun-Re  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Remarks

  1. ↑ Dieter Arnold: The temples of Egypt. Apartments for gods, monuments, places of worship. Augsburg 1996, p. 111.
  2. ↑ a b Calculated by F. Traunecker; see Dieter Arnold: The temples of Egypt. Apartments for gods, monuments, places of worship. Augsburg 1996, pp. 114-115.
  3. ↑ a b Thomas Kühn: The house of Amun in Karnak. 2001, pp. 12-13.
  4. ↑ documents IV, 1331.12.
  5. ↑ Sergio Donadoni: Thebes, Holy City of the Pharaohs. Munich 2000, p. 22.
  6. ↑ Michel Azim: La fouille de la cour du VIII Pylône. In: Cahiers de Karnak 6, 1980. pp. 91–127, ( PDF file )
  7. ↑ Luc Gabold: La 'cour de fêtes' du Thoutmosis II à Karnak. In: Cahiers de Karnak. 9, 1993. p. 15.
  8. ↑ G. Björkman: Kings at Karnak: a study of the treatment of the monuments of Royal predecessors in the Early New Kingdom (= Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis. Boreas. Vol. 2; also inaugural dissertation, Universitet Uppsala). Almqvist & Wiksell, Stockholm 1971, p. 90.
  9. ↑ The pylons are counted in the order in which they stood, not in how they were built. So you can't necessarily draw conclusions about the year of construction, but about the location.

Coordinates: 25 ° 43 ′ 6.1 ″  N , 32 ° 39 ′ 30 ″  E