Edfu city is found between Luxor and you may Aswan regarding southern area of Egypt. The metropolis, which is on the west bank of the Nile, is actually world famous for its temple, that was depending for the Ptolemaic months. Brand new Temple away from Edfu , intent on this new jesus Horus, is the 2nd biggest temple inside the Egypt. Following Roman period, the newest temple is actually slowly buried of the wilderness mud, and you may silt from the Nile. As a result, the fresh temple is actually lost, and you will was only rediscovered within the 19 th century. Aside from the size and you will state out of maintenance, the Forehead off Edfu is also prominent for the large number regarding inscriptions, together known as the Edfu Messages, which seem to safeguards most of the available surface.
Temple from Edfu In the Dated, Center and you may The new Kingdom Attacks
The city regarding Edfu is known and by several other names. The fresh ancient Egyptians, as an example, realized the city due to the fact Behdet, while the Greeks and you may Romans named it Apollonopolis. Which second title is a reference to the city’s chief goodness, Horus, which brand new Greeks understood through its individual god Apollo. Though Edfu try most famous for its Ptolemaic temple , the new city’s record extends far subsequent back in time.
Including, archaeological excavations on west and northern components of the metropolis possess uncovered question about earlier attacks of one’s town’s field. These are typically mastaba tombs regarding Dated Kingdom , and you may burials dating towards Center Empire . It has in addition been discovered you to definitely for the The fresh new Kingdom quarries are made towards Mount Silsilah (towards the south of Edfu urban area). Sandstone are acquired from the quarries and transmitted everywhere Egypt having design performs.
Within the Brand new Empire, a temple to Horus is actually situated within Edfu. Which temple is smaller compared to the present day structure, and you will longer can be obtained. The only real ability one to stays of the The fresh new Empire temple is the pylon (an effective Greek term toward monumental gateway regarding a keen Egyptian forehead), that is located to your eastern of your brand new forehead, and you may confronts the new landing stage to the Nile. For the reason that the fact that the fresh Ptolemies established a good new forehead on the website of your elderly you to.
Brand new pharaoh who first started the building of the Temple regarding Edfu is actually Ptolemy III Euergetes, the next ruler of Ptolemaic Empire . Throughout the their reign, and that endured regarding 246 to help you 222/step one BC, Ptolemy was able to get back Egypt and you can Cyrenaica, and you will triumphed over the Seleucids when you look at the 3rd Syrian Combat. Egypt’s indigenous temples benefitted considerably out-of Ptolemy III’s rule. Apart from unveiling the structure the new Temple of Edfu, Ptolemy III and produced donations some other temples, and restored brand new divine statues plundered on the temples from the Persians. By-the-way, their epithet, ‘Euergetes’, function ‘Benefactor’.
Whilst design of Forehead out-of Edfu first started from inside the 237 BC, it wasn’t accomplished once regarding Ptolemy III’s dying. Still, the structure of your forehead proceeded. It had been fundamentally completed in 57 BC, during the rule out-of Ptolemy XII Auletes. The construction of your own forehead got way too long to over as a result of the of many nationalistic uprisings inside the Top Egypt while in the the period and this disturbed the building process.
Decrypting new Forehead of Edfu together with Edfu Texts
The fresh new Ptolemies just weren’t just against inner problems, however, external of them as well. By the point off Ptolemy XII, this new luck regarding Ptolemaic Empire had waned, therefore are don’t the mighty and prosperous state they was previously. In fact, brand new Ptolemies was in fact to the verge out-of shedding its kingdom, because Egypt are immersed of the Rome in 31 BC, adopting the last Ptolemaic leader, Cleopatra VII Philopator , is deposed https://lovingwomen.org/no/blog/gifte-seg-med-noen-fra-et-annet-land/ by Octavian (the future Emperor Augustus).
