Colossi of Memnon: Difference between revisions

(Created page with "The Colossi of Memnon (Arabic: el-Colossat or es-Salamat) are two massive stone statues of the Pharaoh Amenhotep III, which stand at the front of the ruined Mortuary Temple of Amenhotep III, the largest temple in the Theban Necropolis. They have stood since 1350 BC, and were well known to ancient Greeks and Romans, as well as early modern travelers and Egyptologists. The statues contain 107 Roman-era inscriptions in Greek and Latin, dated to between AD 20 and 250; ma...")
 
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==Description==
==Description==
[[File:Lepsius-Projekt tw 1-2-091.jpg|thumb|Thinkers from Egypt and Ethiopia based on the drawings of the scientific expedition sent to these countries by His Majesty the King of Prussia, Friedrich Wilhelm IV, and carried out in the years 1842-1845 at the order of His Majesty. Karl Richard Lepsius (1810–1884) <ref>[https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lepsius-Projekt_tw_1-2-091.jpg} </ref>
The twin statues depict Amenhotep III (fl. 14th century BC) in a seated position, his hands resting on his knees and his gaze facing eastwards (actually ESE in modern bearings) towards the river. Two shorter figures are carved into the front throne alongside his legs: these are his wife Tiye and mother Mutemwiya. The side panels depict the Nile god Hapi.
The twin statues depict Amenhotep III (fl. 14th century BC) in a seated position, his hands resting on his knees and his gaze facing eastwards (actually ESE in modern bearings) towards the river. Two shorter figures are carved into the front throne alongside his legs: these are his wife Tiye and mother Mutemwiya. The side panels depict the Nile god Hapi.


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With the exception of the Colossi, however, very little remains today of Amenhotep's temple. It stood on the edge of the Nile floodplain, and successive annual inundations gnawed away at its foundations – a 1840s lithograph by David Roberts shows the Colossi surrounded by water – and it was not unknown for later rulers to dismantle, purloin, and reuse portions of their predecessors' monuments. <ref>[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colossi_of_Memnon Memnon wiki]</ref>
With the exception of the Colossi, however, very little remains today of Amenhotep's temple. It stood on the edge of the Nile floodplain, and successive annual inundations gnawed away at its foundations – a 1840s lithograph by David Roberts shows the Colossi surrounded by water – and it was not unknown for later rulers to dismantle, purloin, and reuse portions of their predecessors' monuments. <ref>[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colossi_of_Memnon Memnon wiki]</ref>


==References==  
==References==