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Egyptian Traditional Temples in the Graeco-Roman Period

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Egyptian Traditional Temples in the Graeco-Roman Period • جامعة املنيا- لكية الس ياحة والفنادق • قسم ا إلرشاد الس يايح- الفرقة الثالثة • مقرر: آ اثر مرص القدمية 5 )اجلزء اليوانين والروماين( • عنوان احملارضة: معبد الكبشة • آس تاذ املادة: د/ يرسي النشار •الربيد الالكرتوين لﻻس تفسارات: [email protected] The Temple of Kalabsha Location The ancient Egyptian temple of Kalabsha is the largest free-standing temple of Lower Egyptian Nubia located about 50 km south of Aswan and built of sandstone masonry. Date of construction While the temple was constructed in Augustus’s reign, it was never finished. The temple dates back to the Roman Emperor Augustus, 30 BC, but the colony of Talmis evidently dates back to at least the reign of Amenhotep II in 1427 - 1400 BC. Deity It was originally constructed over an earlier sanctuary of Amenhotep II. The temple was dedicated to the Nubian fertility and solar deity known as Mandulis. Mandulis was originally a Nubia deity also worshipped in Egypt. The name Mandulis is the Greek form of Merul or Melul, a non-Egyptian name. The centre of his cult was the temple of Kalabsha at Talmis. The worship of Mandulis was unknown in Egypt under the native Pharaohs. Architecture The design of the temple is classical for the Ptolemaic period, with pylon, courtyard, hypostyle hall and a three-room sanctuary. On the edge of the river is a cult terrace or quay, from which a paved causeway leads to the 34 m broad pylon, which is slightly at an angle to the axis of the temple. The pylon gateway gives entrance to an open court, which is surrounded by colonnades along three of its sides. Beyond this court lies the pronaos, in which eight columns are placed. Behind the pronaos follows the naos, consisting of the Hall of the Ennead, the Offering Hall and the Sanctuary. Plan of the temple of Kalabsha Pylon and Courtyard The pylon is offset, which creates a trapezoid in the courtyard beyond. The original overall height of the pylon was probably 16.25m. The courtyard just inside the pylon once had columns on three sides. At either end is a staircase that leads to the upper stories of the pylon. The gateway of the temple is 9.70 meters high, on top of which there are inscriptions of the disk of the sun as well as scenes of the king giving sacrifices and praying. The small rooms in the surrounding wall were used for storage. There is also a nilometer, which was used to collect sacred water for the gods. At the South West angle of this latter enclosure is the Mammisi where the sacred birth of the Pharaoh is venerated. Finally, one complete element of the earlier temple is preserved, the so-called Ptolemaic Chapel. At Several historical records were inscribed on the temple walls of Kalabsha such as a long inscription carved by the Roman Governor Aurelius Besarion in AD 250, forbidding pigs in the temple as well as an inscription of the Nubian king Silko, carved during the 5th century AD and recording his victory over the Blemmyes and a picture of him dressed as a Roman soldier on horseback. Silko was the Christian king of the Nubian kingdom of Nobatia. When Christianity was introduced to Egypt, the temple was finally used as a church. Thank you! Any questions? .
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