If you visit or have visited Egypt, surely one of the things that will impress you most or have impressed you are the temples. The Egyptian temples they were built to officiate the cult of the gods and also to commemorate the pharaohs. They built them both in their country and in those regions that were under their control and somehow considered the houses of those gods or pharaohs. Join us to know 15 impressive Egyptian Temples. Do not miss them!
In the temples there were many rituals that were directed by the priests who represented the Pharaoh shift. The people came to pray, consult the oracles and make offerings. The most important part of Egyptian temples It was the sanctuary, where there used to be an image of the god or pharaoh to whom it was dedicated.
15 impressive Egyptian Temples
1. Great Temple of Abu Simbel
This great temple, which was moved from its original location in 1968 so that it would not be submerged after the construction of the Aswan dam, was built in 1265 a.C. Its promoter was Ramses II and it took 20 years to lift it. It is dedicated to the gods Amun, Ra-Horajti and Ptah and Ramses II himself. It is one of the most beautiful and monumental of all Egypt. The 4 four seated statues of Ramses II who preside over the entrance are especially impressive.
2. Temple of the goddess Hathor in Abu Simbel
The minor temple of Abu Simbel is that of the goddess Hathor. It is dedicated to the favorite wife of Ramses II, Nefertari. One of the curiosities is that the six images of the façade, representing Pharaoh and Nefertari, are of equal size, something completely unusual.
3. Temple of Luxor
It is on the banks of the Nile, in the center of what was the ancient city of Thebes. The construction was ordered by Amenhotep III, in the fifteenth century BC. and it is dedicated to Amun-Ra. It is considered the southern complement of the Karnak Temple.
4. Temple of Karnak
Between the Egyptian temples It is considered the largest, since in reality it is a set of temples. Its construction was begun in the sixteenth century BC and about 30 pharaohs participated in it. Currently, you can only visit the main temple.
5. Kom Ombo Temple
The curiosity of this temple erected during the Ptolemaic dynasty is its double design. All rooms are duplicated as it is dedicated to two different deities Sobek and Haroeris.
6. Temple of Hatshepsut
The Temple of Hatsepsut is located in Deir el Bahari, near the Valley of the Kings. It is a funerary temple and was built in honor of Amón-Ra. The magnificent reliefs of this place, considered one of the best Egyptian temples , recounts the divine birth of the queen-pharaoh Hatshepsut and also the trip he organized to Punt, which we saw in Supercurioso in the article: The mysterious Land of Punt to which the Egyptians traveled | Where is?
7. Philae Temple
The island of Philae, File or Filé had a set of temples from the Ptolemaic and Roman times. Before it was under water, when building the Aswan dam, they were moved and rebuilt in Agilkia, a nearby island.
8. Temple of Edfu
It is located in the city of Edfu, on the western side of the Nile. It is dedicated to the gods Horus and Hathor. Its construction began in 237 a.C. Edfu is the best preserved of the Egyptian temples and it's almost intact.
9. Maharraqa Temple
It's one of the Egyptian temples that had to be moved. It dates from the Greco-Roman era and its particularity is that it is the only temple that contains a spiral staircase inside. It is dedicated to Serapis and is currently about 50 km away. from the shore of Lake Nasser.
10. Temple of Kalabasha
Also known as "Temple of Mandulis" was originally in Bab al-Kalabsha. Its construction began around 30 a.C. It's one of the Egyptian temples called "Nubians" and was dedicated to the Nubian god Mandulis, god of the Sun of that region.
11. Ptah Temple in Memphis
The Ptah Temple It is located in Memphis and is the main one dedicated to Ptah. This temple was lost when the city was destroyed in the thirteenth century and today you can only see vestiges of its hypostyle hall and its tower.
4 Temples outside of Egypt
12. Templo de Debod in Madrid
The Temple of Debod It is located west of the Plaza de España in Madrid. It was a gift from Egypt to Spain in 1968 for its collaboration in the rescue of the temples of Nubia (Abu Simbel). It is about 2,200 years old and was dedicated to Amun and Isis. Its name is due to the Egyptian people next to which it was originally located.
13. Temple of Ellesiya in the Egyptian Museum of Turin
Built in the fifteenth century a. C. by Pharaoh Tutmosis III was dedicated to the gods Horus, Amón and Satis. For the same reason as that of Debod, it was donated to Italy in 1965 and after being restored, it can be visited in the Egyptian Museum of the city of Turin.
14. Dendur Temple in the MET of New York
Dedicated to the goddess Isis, it is another of the Egyptian temples They left the country as thanks. It is dated in the year 15 a.C. You can see it if you go to New York at the MET. He arrived in the USA in 1965.
15. Temple of Taffa in the National Museum of Antiquities of the city of Leiden
In 1971 it was donated to the Netherlands as thanks for the rescue work carried out by the Egyptologist Adolf Klasens. As it was from Leiden, the temple of Taffa is in the National Museum of Antiquities of this city. It was built between 25 a.C. and 14 d.C. during the government of Augustus. It was part of a Roman fortress and became a Christian temple at one time.
We hope you have been impressed as much as we are 15 Egyptian temples . Have you visited them? Share with us your experience! If you want to know more about the culture of Ancient Egypt, we invite you to read the following articles:
- Technology of Ancient Egypt | 15 Fascinating curiosities
- 10 Wonderful Ancient Egyptian Cities | Discover them!
- How was education in Ancient Egypt | 10 Curiosities