The Khonsu & Opet Temples, Karnack.
Posted: Sun Dec 07, 2014 5:35 pm
Over a few years now, I have been giving up-dates on here of the restoration work carried out by a joint Egyptian-American team, who for the past seven years have been working on the Khonsu and Opet Temples, within the Karnack complex.
I an pleased to say their work is now complete, and what a marvel. Although I could give detailed information here, there is much written up these days on both these places for your enjoyment on the internet. However for your immediate interest, as you enter through the southern main pylon of the Khonsu Temple, to the left you see the carefully restored wall and ceiling work carried out by the same Egyptian team that brought us the magnificent ceiling restoration at both Dendera and Essna.
The most important areas of this temple are two rooms on the right hand side at its northern extreme. One room has been beautifully cleaned and restored, and is of equal delight of many that are seen at Abydos. Perspex screens have been fitted throughout this room, for future protection. The other room has been 'restored' by a certain Italian lady in Luxor, the results are what I would call as a system of 'painting by numbers'. This room should certainly entertain any children you care to bring with you, if no one else. On leaving this temple note a wall frieze on the left hand side near the exit of the temple, showing the ancient restoration of an existing pylon at Karnack.
Entrance to the Opet Temple is from the west door, up a quite steep ramp. This is perhaps the strangest temple I have seen in Egypt. It celebrates birth-life-death-afterlife all within and under the roof of this quite small temple. The restoration work, now complete, is of the finest quality, and although I have observed many quality sites throughout Egypt, I find it difficult to think of better, and I include Abydos. For sure this area will in the future become a separate ticket event, so see it for free while you can.
Throughout the seven year of work at the site, this team has always invited interested and inquisitive people to view their work while in progress, yet we look at such sites as A-3 on the WB, where after all these years, they will not allow any one to look at any of their finds, in fact they go to most elaborate lengths to cover almost every thing, further more, they think they have the authority to prevent any one taking a photograph, even from the road side. It would not do them any harm to put on a small exhibition on site, during season to show some of their most recent finds.
I have been privileged throughout my time in Egypt to have seen many sites that are now closed, and will remain so, but if we are to encourage the young archaeologist of the future, the such present practises, as at A-3, must come to an end.
I an pleased to say their work is now complete, and what a marvel. Although I could give detailed information here, there is much written up these days on both these places for your enjoyment on the internet. However for your immediate interest, as you enter through the southern main pylon of the Khonsu Temple, to the left you see the carefully restored wall and ceiling work carried out by the same Egyptian team that brought us the magnificent ceiling restoration at both Dendera and Essna.
The most important areas of this temple are two rooms on the right hand side at its northern extreme. One room has been beautifully cleaned and restored, and is of equal delight of many that are seen at Abydos. Perspex screens have been fitted throughout this room, for future protection. The other room has been 'restored' by a certain Italian lady in Luxor, the results are what I would call as a system of 'painting by numbers'. This room should certainly entertain any children you care to bring with you, if no one else. On leaving this temple note a wall frieze on the left hand side near the exit of the temple, showing the ancient restoration of an existing pylon at Karnack.
Entrance to the Opet Temple is from the west door, up a quite steep ramp. This is perhaps the strangest temple I have seen in Egypt. It celebrates birth-life-death-afterlife all within and under the roof of this quite small temple. The restoration work, now complete, is of the finest quality, and although I have observed many quality sites throughout Egypt, I find it difficult to think of better, and I include Abydos. For sure this area will in the future become a separate ticket event, so see it for free while you can.
Throughout the seven year of work at the site, this team has always invited interested and inquisitive people to view their work while in progress, yet we look at such sites as A-3 on the WB, where after all these years, they will not allow any one to look at any of their finds, in fact they go to most elaborate lengths to cover almost every thing, further more, they think they have the authority to prevent any one taking a photograph, even from the road side. It would not do them any harm to put on a small exhibition on site, during season to show some of their most recent finds.
I have been privileged throughout my time in Egypt to have seen many sites that are now closed, and will remain so, but if we are to encourage the young archaeologist of the future, the such present practises, as at A-3, must come to an end.
