Month: April 2022

We still don’t know how many tombs, both royal and otherwise, were dug into the hills west of Luxor (Thebes) across the Nile. For an aerial view, you might look back at our ballooning adventure. The Valley of the Kings and the Valley of the Queens are, as is true for much of Egypt, active archeological sites.

Tutankhamen

Ramses III

Ramses IX

Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut

Throughout the thousands of years of Pharaonic rule in Egypt, we know of only a handful of female pharaohs. Hatshepsut is prominent among them. Her mortuary temple is directly across the river from Karnak Temple. As might be expected, subsequent rulers (including her direct successor) made great efforts to erase her from the historical record, so we are fortunate that so much has survived in comparatively good condition from the 15th Century B.C. Her coffin, by the way, can be seen at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.

Valley of the Queens

After visiting the Valley of the Kings & the Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut on the side of the hills facing the Nile opposite Luxor (Thebes), we went over to the other side of the hills to visit the visually stunning Tomb of Nefertari Meritmut (“beautiful companion, beloved of Mut”), first among the Great Royal Wives of Ramses II, Ramses the Great. This, from the 13th Century B.C.

Construction in the Greek (Ptolemaic) and Roman periods introduced solid walls in between the columns of temples to provide more space for communication, for performance, for what the state had to say, as this was religious and political information and it was religion that provided legitimacy to the crown and confirmed the status of the Pharaoh as a god incarnate. As rulers coming from foreign lands, the Greeks and Romans needed plenty of room to create their spin on things. Although the Dendera complex had its beginnings in the Middle Kingdom, what has survived is overwhelmingly from Greek and Roman times.

The principle surviving part of the complex is the Temple of Hathor (above). The goddess Hathor, taking the form of a cow, was both the nursemaid and the wife of Horus (the god who looks like a falcon). Horus is the son of Isis and Osiris and his story is central to Egyptian religion, as his task is to avenge the death of his father Osiris at the hands of his uncle Seth. As you may recall (🤔), Isis searched the world for the dismembered body of her husband, reassembled him (adding a critically missing member by fashioning it out of gold), and conceived Horus before Osiris took his place as the god of the underworld. Horus was then entrusted to Hathor to succor and raise. She then became his wife. Phew.

Her temple is remarkably well preserved although, in fairness, it’s only two millennia old . . .

and has benefited from a recent thorough cleaning.

Every available surface is densely covered with magnificent engravings, paintings and hieroglyphics, including an incredibly high ceiling. (Photos courtesy of a high powered zoom lens.)

Secret passageways and chambers abound, facilitating the movement of priests throughout the complex.

Exterior surfaces are also intricately covered with images and text, but in greater relief.

In addition to being a god of music and laughter, Bes was a household protector, especially of pregnant women (and childbirth) and of children. A jolly old fellow was he.

We left our ship at 4:30 a.m. to take a small motor launch across the Nile to the west bank and a fleet of vans to ferry us to a large field filled with balloons and bustling ground crews readying them for flight.

Karnak Temple

Karnak Temple is the #2 tourist destination in Egypt, after the pyramids at Giza.

Roughly 30 Pharaohs contributed to the overwhelming nature of Karnak Temple, an immense complex of buildings and themes constructed from the Middle Kingdom (2000-1700 BC) through to the Ptolemaic Age (305-30 BC, put to a close with the fall of Cleopatra).

Karnak is connected to the other major temple complex in Luxor (Luxor Temple) by a mile and a half long causeway lined with sphinxes. Every year a procession would alternately go from one to the other so that the resident gods could visit.

134 massive columns carved in place, 12 nearly 70 feet tall with a diameter of 10 feet, the remainder half that height and not just carved, but elaborately, densely, intricately carved with the stories of gods and men told with both images and a rich language we’ve been able to unravel thanks to that Ptolemaic Age when Greek came to Egypt. The hieroglyphic writing system, by the way, can be read left to right, right to left, or top to bottom, depending on the overall design of the message (the esthetics being important, thank you). The ovals that have a line at one end always enclose a royal name and are called a cartouche.

The ancient Egyptians were manipulators of light, creating openings to shine light on specific ornamentations at specific times. The color you see in the ornamentation, by the way, is all original from the time it was created. Obviously, it has persisted better when protected from the light.

When Emperor Constantine adopted Christianity as the state religion, “pagan” temples were ordered closed and Christian churches were established in some of them, including here at Karnak.

Luxor Temple

Yes, down at the other end of that long sphinx-lined causeway, is Luxor Temple. Equally imposing, if a little smaller in overall footprint to the enormous Karnak Temple complex. It was started around 1400 BC and was dedicated to Egyptian kingship. This is where Pharaohs liked to be crowned. The missing obelisk (alas, destroying the symmetry) is in Paris and those statutes in pink and black granite are all Ramses II, the Ramses.

In 395 the Romans established a church here in Luxor Temple. Upon the Arab conquest, the church was converted to a still-active Mosque in 640, so that the building has been in continuous use as a place of worship for 3400 years.

The climate of Egypt has changed from that of a desert cleaved by a narrow band of green to become significantly more humid with increasingly high ground water. This is due to the damming of the Nile at Aswan with the Aswan High Dam and the magnitude of Lake Nasser behind it. This is wreaking havoc on the ornamentation of the ancient Egyptian monuments which is increasingly sloughing off due to the dampness creeping into the stone on which it is affixed. One initiative to try to help is by the University of Chicago which has focused its researchers on tracing the outlines of images which are disappearing.

More than just awe inspiring structures set on a desolate plain, Egyptian pyramids are deeply religious statements about death and a belief in resurrection and an afterlife. Tombs were always on the west bank of the Nile because that’s where the afterworld could be found and entrances always faced north so that their owners’ Ka (spirit) could more easily find their physical remains and the grave goods left to support and sustain them. But, enough of that for now.

Saqqara

The first true pyramid was designed by one of the geniuses of the ancient world, Imhotep, in the 27th century BC. (He was the chief minister of King Djoser, as well as an architect, physician, judge, and high priest of Ra (the Sun God), and was ultimately deified as a god of medicine and healing 2,000 years after his death.)

Imhotep introduced the construction of tombs out of stone, rather than organic materials such as reed, wood and mud brick. He then fashioned the stone to mimic some of these materials. But, his biggest claim to fame was successfully building the first true pyramid.

Some pyramids haven’t held up as well as others, given compromises that were sometimes made in their construction. However, their subterranean parts may have fared better.

Our university trained Egyptologist was not permitted to guide in the tomb of Unas beneath his pyramid because of concerns about moisture and light adversely affecting the preservation of the tomb writings. However, as was often the case, a local with a flashlight stationed himself within the inner chamber and provided his own version of history in the hope of receiving tips.

The interior of the mastaba of Princess Idut was somewhat better controlled, although it was shoulder to shoulder in narrow passageways. When she went before him into death, her bereaved father (King Teti(?)) had her tomb decorated with what she enjoyed most in life, including a good haunch of meat.

Giza Plateau

It’s a big place, Giza, and it’s almost impossible to convey just how massive the great pyramids actually are since we experience them from the respectful distance of a photograph that’s able to contain them. But, do try to imagine them still clad as they were in gleaming white stone (before all the pillaging over thousands of years for construction materials).

Giza is a large and complicated city for the dead, far more than simply three big pyramids looming over the scene. Each of the pyramids has a whole complex associated with it, including a causeway and a harbor to receive materials and, of course, the deceased Pharoah from a canal paralleling the Nile. A very important part of that complex is the mortuary temple where the body of the deceased was prepared. In addition to the big three, there are other smaller pyramids at Giza. There are also many many mastabas, some very substantial, in crowded rows all around the plateau under which those close to the Pharoahs were interred with the same care for the proper handling of the body, proper furnishing with what will be needed for the afterlife, and proper tributes and guidance adorning every available surface.

Not to be outdone by the greater size of his father’s pyramid, Khafre added the now familiar great sphinx in front of his own complex by having a very large rock carved to his specifications. Khufu, of course, built the first and largest of the three large pyramids, having watched his own father (Sneferu) build three “normal” sized ones. Menkaure was the grandson of Khufu. The Pharoahs then seem to have gotten pyramid building out of their systems.

Egyptians refer to their capital as the Mother of the World and, with a population of over 20 million people, Greater Cairo is the largest urban area in both the Arab world and Africa. Since its founding in the 10th century by the Fatimid Dynasty it has been enormously influential in Islamic thought and culture and today remains a major force, including as the base for the dominant film and music industries of the Arab world.

Saladin Citadel

The Citadel boasts fortifications built by Saladin in the 12th century on Mokattam Hill in central Cairo overlooking both the modern city and the area from which the ancient Egyptians quarried stone for the pyramids and other building projects in pre-Cairo days, as Giza is not far away. Egypt was ruled from the Citadel for 700 years.

Muhammad Ali was an Albanian Ottoman and the founder of modern Egypt. After he helped expel the French from Egypt in the beginning of the 19th century, the Sultan made him Viceroy of Egypt. Through a series of brilliant military and diplomatic moves, he succeeded in establishing himself as the founder of a hereditary dynasty that ruled Egypt until 1952 and the rebellion against monarchic rule that brought Gamal Abdel Nasser to power (following the brief Naguib Presidency, providing the first Egyptian rulers of Egypt in 2,000 years). To free Egypt from Ottoman rule, Ali destroyed the Mamluks, remade Egyptian society, created new revenue streams for the state, and created a professional bureaucracy and a modern army. He also built this beautiful mosque.

The Coptic Quarter

Before the founding of the city, before the Arab invasion and conquest of the 7th century, there were sizable settlements in what is now known as Cairo. Among them, a city significant enough for its Bishop Cyrus to participate in the Second Council of Ephesus in 449. Christians were well established in Egypt, thanks only in part to the sponsorship of Rome, and continue today to comprise about 10% of the population.

There is a cave underneath Abu Serga, one of the oldest churches in Egypt (4th century), that is said to have sheltered the Holy Family when they fled to Egypt with the midwife who witnessed the birth, tracing a legendary path through ancient Heliopolis. All this being new to us, we were reminded of our Jerusalem guide’s reminder that it’s important to honor both fact and faith.

With its beginnings in the 3rd century, the Hanging Church is also one of the oldest in Egypt. The existing structure likely dates from the late 7th century and was built over a gatehouse of the Babylon Fortress whose origins are variously dated to either the 19th or 16th century BC. The Church became the seat of the Patriarchate when it moved from Alexandria in the 11th century, so it is the residence of the Coptic Pope.

On the left, above, you can see walls of the Babylon Fortress gatehouse over which the Church was built, as well as the considerable height at which it is perched. The photo on the right shows a portion of the ceiling in the Church that is designed as the interior of Noah’s Ark.

The Coptic Museum houses the world’s largest collection of Coptic art and artifacts, the holdings of the Egyptian Museum having been transferred to it upon it becoming a state museum in 1931. Mashrabiyas, a classic feature of grand old houses in Cairo, began as a feature of Coptic churches. They allow for the passive cooling of air and also provide privacy from the street, allowing you to observe the world unobserved.

We were unable to visit Ben Ezra Synagogue (from the 9th century) because the congregation has closed it for repairs. Once the home to a large Jewish community, most have left Egypt for Israel or the United States.

Food!

With very little “free time” from our touring, we took advantage of the opportunity to strike out on our own and find a restaurant recommended by our guide (Le Pasha 1901). It’s on an island in the Nile – Zamalek – and was within walking distance of our hotel. So, we set out to master wading through Cairo traffic while crossing the street. We paid someone $1 to get us from one side of the road going over a bridge to the other and from that gained the confidence to just stick out our arms and move through it all (it was money well spent). We thoroughly enjoyed the restaurant and the food and were befriended by an Egyptian-American with helpful menu recommendations.

The Egyptian Museum

Bulging with artifacts, the Egyptian Museum is reason enough to go to Egypt. Although many masterpieces of the ancient world are housed in western museums, there’s a staggering amount right here in Cairo. Plus, the Egyptian Museum has what the west doesn’t have in its collections – cabinets full of the items of day to day life from thousands of years ago.

The world’s first historical document, the museum has located a reproduction of the Narmer Palette near the original so that blind people may experience it. Happily, that also makes it a lot easier to share with you in a photograph because it’s not under glass. From the 31st century BC, the palette (a ceremonial object for grinding the cosmetics used to freshen up statues of deities, maybe in the area formed by the entwined necks) commemorates the unification of Lower (Northern) and Upper (Southern) Egypt and the power and prestige of King Narmer. This is a very early example of the conventions of Egyptian art having developed and contains some of the earliest known hieroglyphic inscriptions. And, yes, the original is in remarkably good condition, especially for an object that’s 5,000 years old.

The cycles of life and death, facing final judgment after death, and the promise of resurrection were of tremendous concern to the ancient Egyptians. Here, the heart of the deceased is weighed against a feather.

The inventor of monotheism, Akhenaton was obsessed with the oneness of creation and of being, making this gender-fluid likeness of himself which he commissioned intriguing as a possible attempt to portray himself as an embodiment of the oneness of male and female. He was, of course, intensely unpopular with the priestly class and his successors and his innovations did not outlive him.

The written record from ancient Egypt is extensive and not all of it is on the walls and ceilings of temples and tombs or on papyrus scrolls left for the edification of the deceased. People would also write on random bits of pottery or stone and write of their day to day lives and what was important to them. This extensive written record is what has brought ancient Egypt to life, while other civilizations have been left unable to speak to us.

It all goes back to Abraham, the Patriarch common to all “Peoples of the Book,” revered in Judaism, Islam, and Christianity, all of which lay claim to Jerusalem as the geographic heart and soul of their faith and over which they have fought each other for millenia.

The “Rock” of the Dome of the Rock is the one upon which Abraham was prepared to sacrifice Isaac, where God created the world and formed Adam, and Mohammed began his Night Journey and ascended to heaven.

Across the breadth of the photo, above, from the southeastern corner of the city walls on the left across to where there are some arches to the right of the Dome of the Rock and including the buildings at the southwestern corner, lies Temple Mount where Solomon built the Jewish First Temple which was destroyed by the Babylonians, rebuilt by Herod the Great, then destroyed again in 70 AD. Caliph Abd el-Malik built the Dome of the Rock shrine in 691.

Debris from the destruction of the Second Temple remains along the base of a portion of the Western Wall (essentially a retaining wall for the Temple Mount), left above. Praying along the northern portion of the Western Wall is the closest observant Jews can get to the Holy of Holies, the spiritual junction of Heaven and Earth by the Foundation Stone (aka, the Rock at the heart of the Dome of the Rock), and the most sacred spot in Judaism coincident with a profoundly sacred spot for Muslims, as well as Christians.

The oldest extant gate of Jerusalem, the Eastern Gate was sealed by Suleiman the Magnificent in 1541 in order to prevent the Jewish Messiah from entering Jerusalem (according to some sources). The Muslim cemetery directly in front of the gate is also reported to have been located there to thwart the same entry. The Jewish cemetery facing the gate from the slopes of the Mount of Olives is enormous, with over 70,000 souls interred there over several thousand years. Islamic belief follows that of Christianity concerning a Day of Judgment when all will be judged and consigned to their eternal fate, following a Day of Resurrection (in fact, its one of their six articles of faith). This is generally not a part of Jewish belief.

One of the most important sites in Christianity is, of course, Bethlehem, as the birthplace of Jesus. Getting there from Jerusalem involves a non-border border crossing into territory seized by Israel, but which is still contained by a formidable border wall. Our Israeli guide lamented that even though these territories were within Israel’s “international borders,” he could not freely go there. We were met by a Palestinian Christian guide for this leg of the journey.

Since at least the Second century, a specific site has been associated with the birth of Jesus. It is one of the many caves beneath the town. Justinian erected the Church of the Nativity over it in the Sixth Century over the remains of a church erected by Constantine in the Fourth Century. It was then renovated by the Crusaders in the Eleventh Century. A star marks where tradition has it that the birth of Jesus occurred and the location of the manger is mere steps away. The Church has been controlled by the Greek Orthodox, Roman Catholic and Armenian Apostolic churches for 250 years under the terms of an agreement to keep peace among the Christians, called the Status Quo.

Known as the Door of Humility, the main entrance of the Church of the Nativity was reduced in size to preclude those overeager Crusaders from entering the church on horseback.

There are truly ancient olive trees growing in the Garden of Gethsemane, some nearly a thousand years old, making plausible the claim that their ancestors provided shelter for Jesus in his time of doubt and torment.

As is true throughout Jerusalem, rival denominations have erected rival churches each putting forth competing narratives of the Christian story as matters of faith. There are four different locations claimed as the place where Jesus prayed on the night he was betrayed. As our guide put it, these are not matters of fact, but of faith.

Administered by the White Fathers (Missionaries of Africa), the Church of St. Anne and the site of the Pools of Bethesda were presented by Sultan Abdulmecid I to Napoleon III in 1856. When we visited, a group of American tourists were standing in a circle singing hymns in the church. (Remember, any photo can be enlarged by clicking on it.)

There are 14 Stations of the Cross along the Via Dolorosa, the last five of which are inside the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. It’s not a street, but a route through the Muslim Quarter and ending in the Christian Quarter. An effort to follow the last steps of Jesus began in the Byzantine era and had many different interpretations which began to take clearer shape in the fourteenth century when the Pope put the Franciscans in charge of the Holy Land. Even though the most recent archeological evidence points to a different route, the current route is now well established.

When Constantine converted to Christianity, he dispatched his mother Helena to Jerusalem to find Christ’s tomb. She was led to the site of a Temple to Jupiter/Venus which had been erected over a cave that had been filled in to create a level area on which to build. Constantine ordered the Temple demolished and the church to be built in 326 and it was consecrated in 335. Since that time, the church has gone through long and complicated series of destruction/protection by Muslim rulers, rebuilding by Christian rulers, contests for primacy, Crusades, and the Status Quo. The property is shared by the Roman Catholics, Greek Orthodox, Armenian Apostolic, Coptic Orthodox, Syriac Orthodox, and Ethiopian Orthodox. It is regarded as the site of both the site of Jesus’ tomb and of Golgotha, the site of crucifixion, and contains the final Stations of the Cross on the Via Dolorosa.

A last minute change to the itinerary brought us to Tel Aviv and a welcome respite in the city’s relatively relaxed and cosmopolitan atmosphere, making us realize that Embassy staff must have been quite disappointed when the US moved our Embassy to Jerusalem.