Esna Temple
Temple of God Khnum
Esna is about 485 miles from Cairo and lies on the west bank of the Nile. The ancient city of Sinat, called Latopolis by the Greeks, was a fish town where the fish was worshiped by the perch of the Nile. Today it is very famous for it and the shower, as a result it is stopped for most cruise boats. The temple of Esna, buried under its ruins for centuries, is located in the center of the city and close to the bank on the Nile, so it is a short walk from your boat, through the local market. The entrance fee to the temple is 10 pounds. When you reach the temple you have to take a flight of steps Be careful: they are steep!
Esna Temple
The temple of Esna is one of the most important tourist attractions in the city of Esna, the only temple remaining of four temples that were located in Esna, three of them in the north west of Esna in ( Asfun - Kom El Dier - West Esna ). The fourth was located in the east of Esna (Hala)
1830 Another temple was discovered in Mokir, southwest of Esna, about 10 km away. However, these temples have disappeared since the last century, and none of them has been left untouched.
The temple is dedicated to the ram headed god Khnum, the god of creation. The foundation of the temple was put down by Thutmosis 3rd in the 18th dynasty but it was completed by Ptolemaic and Roman Emperors from 40-250AD. Their names are recorded all over the walls of the temple. The remains of the temple contain a hall of columns with 24 pillars beautifully decorated with lotus and palm capitals. The walls are covered with 4 rows of reliefs showing Ptolemaic and Roman Emperors dressed up in Pharaoh costumes, sacrificing to the god of the temple. On both sides of the temple entrance there is a chamber which was used by the priests and keepers of the temple as a store room. There you will notice the Emperor Trajan carried in a litter by six priests with jackal and hawk masks of the gods.
Description of Esna Temple
The Esna temple is a rectangular hall with a facade of architectural style for the ancient Egyptian temples in Greek and Roman times. Its roof holds 24 cylinders, 13 m high and is decorated with prominent reliefs with various floral motifs.
This hall is considered one of the most beautiful galleries in Egypt in general terms in terms of similar proportions and the manner of carving crowns columns and keep them in a good state of preservation. The facade of the temple is characterized by semicircular or satirical walls to cover the temple and preserve the secrets of the rituals that were performed inside it and divided its inner walls And foreign to records or rows of four each
An integrated landscape is recorded and represents the temple's views in general
The Ptolemaic kings in the Western Wall and the Roman emperors in Pharaonic bodies present the gifts, offerings and holy flowers of the temple goddess (Khenum-Nepte-Nebott) other gods such as Min-Sobek-Rock-Isis,
The interior of the temple is mostly related to religion and faith in that period. It consists of religious writings and texts on the creation of the world, the continuation of life, the religious supplications, the religious festivals, Khenum, astronomical scenes, temple scenes, and magical scenes of hunting and killing evil spirits and defeating enemies.
The main sights of the temple
The temple begins with a façade of contemporary architectural style known as the connected columns or the mid-walls. The southern part of the façade represents the appearance of the emperor Titus in a pharaonic form from his palace bearing the four divine symbols of the god "Khenom - Thoth - Horus - Anubis" Followed by a landscape depicting the process of cleansing the emperor by the gods Horus - the HST and signs of life in front of the god Khnum and then the view of the north and south of the emperor to the temple and the northern side representing the emperor's crowning scenes.
Interior
The temple has many views, but the most important ones:
In the western façade (the entrance to the ancient temple) we find at the top a main view representing the god Khnum Brass as a ram and the body of a man in the divine throne inside the sun disk. Mr. Esna This view means that the god Khenum is protected by the god Ra
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