Nile Cruise — Heading into the Temple of Edfu

The pylon and entrance to the Temple of Edfu

The pylon edifice as you approach the Temple of Edfu from the south is stunning in both scale and detail. This enormous structure stands 118 feet/36 meters tall and measures nearly 250 feet/76 meters in width. This temple took a phenomenal 180 years to complete, having begun in 237 BC and only finished in 57 BC. Even the Great Pyramid only took about 26 years to build! And that was started 2,300 years earlier! Step inside the pylon on your way to the courtyard and look up for this view:

While researching the Temple of Edfu for this week’s pieces, I stumbled upon a very good article: The Temple of Horus at Edfu (5 Amazing Things You Can’t Miss). On Wednesday I’ll spend more time on the courtyard between the pylon and the inner sanctuary beyond the Great and Second Hypostyle Halls.

As for today, the emphasis is on the hypostyle halls and the sanctuary, which I now present with today’s photo gallery/slide show. By the way, contrary to recent Ancient Alien Conspiracy Theory, the Egyptian king in the upper left image is not connecting to a wifi signal. That is the hieroglyphic representation of the papyrus plant. Sorry if I burst your bubble.