The present building dates back to the times of the ptolemaic dynasty and was completed by the roman emperor tiberius, but it rests on the. Dendera or tentyra was the capital of 16 th nome of upper egypt. Dendera is the site of the remarkably wellpreserved ptolemaic temple of hathor, the sole practicable reason for visiting the town get in. Within this enclosure are various structures, including the temple of the birth of isis, a roman mammisi attributed either to the reign of trajan or nero, a sanatorium, and a sacred lake. An ancient egyptian inscription in dendera temple shows that the oldest cult building on this site was constructed during the lifetime of khufu in the old kingdom kieth grenville. In 1820 it was removed from the temple ceiling by french colonizers. Pharaonic temples in upper egypt from the ptolemaic and.
As far as we know, there has been a temple dedicated to hathor at this site for over four thousand years. Khufu, builder of the giza pyramid, also built hathors dendera temple between 262494 bce. Egypt 29504 dendera temple seen from its enclosure wall. Ramses ii built a small temple, to the north of his fathers temple, but it almost ruined. Dendera this is a very ancient religious site and the seat of the worship of egyptian hathor goddess, the cowgoddess. For further location reference, the source of the nag hammadi. Dendera temple was completed by the hands of the roman emperor tiberius 1437 ad on a fountain built by pharaoh pepi i of the 6 th dynasty of the old kingdom. Durham etheses the central hall in the egyptian temples. Dendera, temple of hathor, western side door eh giving access to room. A reupload from pateron while i am away for a week.
Find all the transport options for your trip from cairo to dendera temple complex right here. All the sanctuaries were destroyed and rebuilt various times through history but the current temple dated back to the romangreco period the complex holds a mixture of different constructions such as a coptic church, mammisi a birth. A sketch was made of it during the napoleonic campaign in egypt. The temple is truly one of the finest examples of the genuine beauty of the ancient egyptian civilization. One of the inscriptions in the temple states that the original building plans were a legacy of primitive early age and were discovered in the form of antique drawings, made on animal skin in the times of the followers of horus. Egyptian priests associated dendera to a very distant past. Structures at the site hail from an assortment of different ancient egyptian eras, with monuments from the middle kingdom, the ptolemaic era, and the period of roman provincial rule. Pdf studying the orientations of luxor ancient egyptian temples. Consequently, we must agree with the egyptians that the temple of dendera was.
Dendera temple to be converted into an open museum egypt. During the new years festival the golden statue of the ba soul of hathor was brought here from a crypt below the south wall of the temple, where it was stored during the rest of the year. Digest about egypts temple of dendera, which was dedicated to. The temple of hathor at dendera contains a number of small crypts along the eastern, southern, and western sides. Great new vistas open up throughout its 365 daily lessons as gurudeva shares, in the clearest terms, deep metaphysical insights into the nature of god, soul and world, mind, emotions, ultimate realizations, chakras, purpose of life on earth and much, much more. It is well preserved except for damage to the faces of the hathor columns by early christians. In edfu the lapidaries put the last touches to the decoration of the pylon. There are many online solutions available but it is not safe to use online pdf merger tools. During the new kingdom, thutmose ii, ramses ii and ramses iii pharaohs all contributed to the building of the temple of hathor. When ptolemy xii died in 51 bc, the temple was, after four years of building activity, still in its early stages, although it did contain some underground crypts.
As a sky deity, she was the mother or consort of the sky god horus and the sun god ra, both of whom were connected with kingship, and thus she was the symbolic mother of their earthly representatives, the pharaohs. Besides, the zodiac was wrongly placed in dendera temple. Contributor names haghe, louis, 18061885, lithographer roberts, david, 17961864, artist created published published between 1846 and 1849. Hathor the cow was identified by the greeks as hera or aphrodite. The ptolemaic temple is located north of thebes on the west bank of the nile. The dendera temple complex, which contains the temple of hathor, is one of the bestpreserved temples, if not the bestpreserved one, in all of upper egypt.
The most stunning of the temples at dendera on the nile, this structure was built during the ptolemaic period and was used until the roman emperor trajan at the beginning of the second millennia. The whole complex covers some 40,000 square meters and is surrounded by a hefty mud brick wall. Dendera temple complex dendera zodiac temple of hathor. The largest and most impressive building in the denderah temple complex is the temple of hathor often referred to in older texts as the temple of tentyra which is one of the best preserved in all egypt and was one of the most important cultic sites of ancient egypt. Most of these pieces were uncovered during previous archaeological excavations in the area. The wabet in the hathor temple at dendera is a kiosk located to the west of its central shrine.
This study is part of an attempt to investigate the nature of this hall, its function in the. Strange columns found under secret part of temple of dendera help support my channel. A new interpretation of the dendera zodiac the following extract is taken from babylonian starlore, an illustrated guide to the starlore and constellations of ancient babylonia by gavin white after the death of alexander the great in 323 bce, the throne of egypt passed to one of his generals, ptolemy, who became the eponymous founder. An indication of the antiquity of the temple site is given by the astronomical alignment of the main temple. Find all the transport options for your trip from luxor to dendera temple complex right here. Where does the masculine begin and the feminine end. The area was used as the sixth nome of upper egypt, south of abydos. Impressive stone carvings and colorful hieroglyph depictions define dendera temple complex, one of the bestpreserved temples in egypt.
By combining these two complementary urban excavations and two sister sites, the ori. Rome2rio makes travelling from luxor to dendera temple complex easy. Cairo to dendera temple complex 6 ways to travel via. The dendera zodiac egypts answer to the mayan calendar. Guide catalogue to the collections from ancient egypt. Dendera temple was known before as the temple of tentyra. The sculptured dendera zodiac or denderah zodiac is a widely known relief found in a late grecoroman temple, containing images of taurus the bull and the libra the balance. The wall reliefs, however, date to a much later period. In front of the actual temple lies the rectangular basin of the sacred lake, from the bottom of which rises a grove of palms. An early winter sun rises above the grounds of the hathor temple at dendera, here seen from its enclosure wall. Magnificent dendera temple to be turned into an openair. The temple complex at dendera is quite large, boasting a basilica, two birth houses, a sacred lake, and numerous other temples and shrines within its walls.
The dendera zodiac is over 2000 years old and is a basrelief carving on the ceiling of the temple of hathor about 60 km north of luxor. If you book with tripadvisor, you can cancel up to 24 hours before your tour starts for a full refund. Temple of hathor at dendera the temple of hathor at dendera contains a number of small crypts along the eastern, southern, and western sides. The town lay on the west bank of the nile and its remains, including the important hathor temple, are to be found a few kilometres south of qena. Rome2rio is a doortodoor travel information and booking engine, helping you get to and from any location in the world.
Visit dendera temple complex on your trip to dendera or egypt. Director general of the dendera temple abdel hakim alsaghir clarified that the pieces that will be displayed on the terraces are located in the main area of the temple. These crypts are thought to have served as warehouses or treasuries for ritual. Hathor was a major goddess in ancient egyptian religion who played a wide variety of roles. Ziviecoche for providing me with a pdf file of her article. The temple of dendara is one of the bestpreserved temples in egypt. Dendera also commonly spelled denderah is an archaeological locality in egypt just outside the town of qena 62 km north of luxor in the region of middle egypt understand. Egyptology books and articles in pdf the fitzwilliam museum. Pdf ancient egyptians change the orientation of their temples from true east during the old kingdom to. It was known as the castle of the sistrum or pr hathor house of hathor. Dendera temple was able to transform the religious atmosphere of ancient egypt. The great temple at dendera denderah, previously tentyra or tintyra dates to the ptolemaic period, about 100 bc. This representation of the zodiac in circular form is unique in egyptian art.
It is built mainly of sandstone and was uncovered in the mid19th century by french egyptologist auguste mariette. Pdf gods, temples, and cultthe temples in the worldthe role of the. Rome2rio makes travelling from cairo to dendera temple complex easy. The temple of hathor was constructed over a period, we believe, of thirtyfour years, between 54 and 20 bc. On the external part of the temple, there is a carving of cleopatra vii philopator and her son, ptolemy xv fathered by julius caesar. It seems that the remainder of the temple was build during the twentyone year reign of his successor, queen cleopatra vii. The dendera zodiac a key to the past conscious reminder. An indication of the antiquity of the temple site is given by the astronomical alignment of the main temple to gamma draconis before 5000bc. It is one of the bestpreserved temple complexes in egypt.
Dendera temple complex qena 2020 all you need to know. Merging with siva, hinduisms contemporary metaphysics is a guide for one who is ready to diligently walk the spiritual path. Dendera temple was able to sustain the sands of the time and preserve the vibrant colors of its brilliant structure. We recommend booking dendera temple complex tours ahead of time to secure your spot. The dendera temple complex covers an area of 40,000 square meters sq. The second consecration of the temple was in 70 bc, but the monumental door from the cedars of lebanon was only put in place in 56 bc. View from under the portico of the temple of dendera david roberts, r. Luxor to dendera temple complex 2 ways to travel via. Inside the temple, there are some depictions of cleopatra vii that symbolize the ptolemaic egyptian art. The current temple stands at the site of earlier construction dating back at least to the middle kingdom. Dendera is situated some 5 km southwest of qena township on the opposite. Dendera is the main seat of hathor, one of the most important goddesses of ancient egypt, was her temple in dendera, the metropolis of the sixth upper egyptian nome.
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