Essay on Ancient Luxor Temple: An Architectural Marvel Since 14th BC

Introduction

Before this session, I could not find myself amused by the ancient pre-historical sites because I felt as if they used old designs of architecture. However, to clear my curiosity, I came across Luxor Temple, one of the most amazing structures constructed since the 14th century BC. Apart from being on the East bank of River Nile, the architectural symbolism used makes it one of the greatest pre-historic sites that still exist. With no technology as the modern architectures have, this building appears to be more outstanding and more sophisticated than some of the structures created today. It is made of pylons made in the 19th century BC by Ramses II that contains different statutes of the greatest kings, queens, and princesses that are situated between two tall towers. It is also made of diverse colonnade styles that were completed by different Pharaohs (Shafer 335). Most interestingly, the structure has one of the largest Hypostyle halls in the world with a very sophisticated set of rooms and sanctuaries that serve as the main parts of the temple. The architectural complexity used in the construction of this building is other than being brilliant; it indicates construction intellect used by the ancient Egyptians. Although the structure has undergone through many weather conditions, and erosion of the bricks used for construction, it has stood firm for over 3500 years unlike some of the buildings made today that can hardly last for a hundred years.

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The Exterior Design

The exterior of this temple is made up of pylons, colonnade, carvings, and incredible wall decorations. At the entrance of the temple is a 65metre high pylon. The front is decorated with scenes from Ramses II's military campaigns against the Hittites. At the pylon are a 15metre high granite statue of the seated Ramses II and a 25metre monument. The wall decorations consist of carvings that are not very deep, and less advanced colors. The color is explained to have been diminished by sun and air since they do so over time. The decorations contain information on animal life, oxen sacrifice, others including sex life, for instance, the erect penis on the pylon which causes a great interest for the culture and the religion of ancient Egypt. The carving techniques used on the statutes is deeply sunk in the stones. The courtyard of Ramses II is surrounded by a double row of thick stubby columns that has papyrus capitals. The inter-columns of the yard on the south have Orisis-like structures of Ramses II. At the north side lies sacred boats built by Thutmose II as a dedication to the triad of Amon, Khonsu, and Mut (Blackman 256). The southwest has a procession of bulls being led to sacrifice. The colonnade consists of a 52- meter- long hall that has 14 big pillars arranged in parallel rows of seven.

The Floor of the Temple

The floor of the Luxor temple is set in an inclined design as one enters the temple. It is made up of bricks on the outside, and decorated tiles in the inside of the courts, hypostyle hall, and the secret rooms that were initially meant for the kings. The mosaics covering the three main shrines found in this temple are made in such a way that they ensure the preservation of God's dignity and decorations drawn on these tiles. Generally, the inclination each form of embellishments and modifications of the floor were made to depict the coronation of Amenhotep III by the gods (Keersmaecker 113).

Interior Design

The interior of Luxor Temple is made of several carvings and different decorations inside. The inside is made of the great colonnade hall, Amun's Theban complex, and Ramses Court. They are made differently and at various strategic positions to impress the viewers of the alleged open-air museum. The structures can be seen from the internal of the temple with sphinxes in one piece. More than fifty thousand stone fragments were once used to decorate the walls of the temple. Thirty-one blocks of the temple's Block Yard come from a series of shrines that are constructed on the eastern interior wall of the temple sanctuary (Thames & Hudson Publications 256). The shines interior was initially painted with gold and blue and green color, which have been recently faded due to age.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the luxury temple is an amazing ancient to have been built during the old days. It shows the genius architectural design that existed even before the discovery of technology and electricity. The interior, exterior, and the floor plan of Luxor temple is made of decoration in terms of pillars, monuments, Pylon, the courtyard, and most interestingly the Hypostyle hall which is the largest existing open hall on the world. Different functions were assigned on this temple regarding with the Pharaoh at that particular era. The initial aim of the temple was to mark the birth of Amun Re and all of the gods at the beginning of time. However, the beauty of the arranged colonnades that face each other shows the symbolism of architecture that is used by these Egyptians to demonstrate the separation between the east and western countries.

Works Cited

Blackman, A.M. 'Luxor and its Temples. New York', Routledge. (2005):256. Retrieved from: http://dlib.nyu.edu/awdl/books/luxoritstemples00blac

De, Keersmaecker R. O. 'Traveller's Graffiti from Egypt and Sudan: Xii. Antwerp: Graffito-Graffiti, (2011):113'. Retrieved from; http://www.egypt-sudan-graffiti.be/

Shafer, Byron E, and Dieter Arnold. 'Temples of Ancient Egypt'. London: I.B. Tauris, (1998):335. Print.

Thames & Hudson Publications. 'The Complete Temples of Ancient Egypt, Richard H. Wilkinson, 2000': The Complete Temples of Ancient Egypt: Volume 1 of The Complete Temples of Ancient Egypt. Bukupedia. (2000):256. Retrieved from; https://www.researchgate.net/figure/The-Egypt-obelisks_fig7_323577720