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Temple of Horus at Edfu Egypt - Travel up the Nile to the Temple of Horus the Avenger at Edfu

The Temple of Edfu is very dramatic. It is dedicated to Horus and was built in Greco Roman times. Horus was the god of the sky whose eyes were the sun and the moon. He became equated with the king, and therefore the King was Horus manifest.

The Temple of Edfu was built on the site of a temple dating from the New Kingdom, but very little of the older temple is left. The existing temple is oriented in an entirely different direction, so that the remains of the earlier pylon are built into one of the side walls of the existing temple

The temple can give the visitor the emotional experience of visiting a active temple in ancient times because of its size and the existence of the First Pylon which dwarfs those who approach. Unfortunately, today, the visitor approaches the temple from the side, and you should be sure to walk out a good distance in front of the First Pylon to fully enjoy the experience of approaching this building.

The god Horus was worshipped at Edfu. It is an ancient cult site and believed by the Egyptians to be the site of a famous battle between Set the God of Chaos and Horus. Horus won the battle which avenged the murder of his father and his own murder by Set. In legend Set killed his brother Osirius to obtain the throne of Pharaoh, but was thwarted in his plan by Isis, who managed to conceive a son, Horus. Set then set about killing Horus. The legends get a bit confused, but in the end Horus arose from the underworld and took on Set in battle, and it was at Edfu that he defeated Set.

Edfu is located near Hierakonpolis or ancient Nekhen was a major pre-dynastic city. The Narmer Palette was found there. It has been a cult center for Horus since ancient times.

Details of the Temple of Horus the Avenger at Edfu Egypt

The pictures below are numbered to correspond to the numbered sites on the diagram.

1. Approach along the West wall of the Temple of Horus at Edfu.		4. In the First Court looking toward entrance to Hypostyle Hall of the Temple of Horus at Edfu.
2. Gods along the West wall of the Temple of Horus and Edfu..		5. Walking through Hypostyle Hall toward the sanctuary of Temple of Horus at Edfu.
3. Reliefs on the back of the first pylon of the Temple of Horus at Edfu.		6. Relief of the Sacred Barque of Horus at Temple at Edfu.

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