DISCOVERING AKHENATEN AT LUXOR MUSEUM

LUXOR MUSEUM - DISCOVERING AKHENATEN



Having  spent the morning at the mummification museum I decided to use the evening to go in search of  Akhenaten, this can be rather difficult as his works were systematically destroyed after his death, no statues of this heretic pharaoh can be found in any temples in Luxor, although the tomb of Ramose offers a glimpse of Armarna art with the king practicing his vision of one god the Aten before he left Weset (luxor) to create his new Kingdom in a completely barren and deserted place that he named Akhetaten, the horizon of the Aten, now known as Armarna, this was also raised to the ground after his death, so unless you are an archaeologist there is only one definite place to find Akhenaten whilst on holiday and that is at Luxor Museum. Akhenaton had been a pharaoh like no other, his whole concept of life and spirituality was on a completely different level from any king that has ever ruled Ancient Egypt, he believed in one god two thousand years before the birth of Jesus Christ, and so I wanted to look on the form of Egypt’s most unusual and revolutionary pharaoh, to achieve this I knew there was only one place that I would be able to gaze on this metamorphous of a mortal,  so I jumped in one of the many caliches that were parked up at the back of Luxor temple and asked the driver to take me to Luxor Museum.

On arrival I headed towards the highest level of Luxor Museum to see Akhenaten. I wondered who was this king that had created so much turmoil within a society that had been dominated by their beliefs of many gods and the Priests of Amun for thousands of years?

Akhenaten was one of the sons of Amenhotep III, the pharaoh who had created the largest festival hall at Luxor Temple and whose colossal statues are known as the Colossi of Memnon, they sit alone abandoned at the side of the fields of the western shore, now only the foundations of Amenophis’ mortuary temple remain behind the lonely statues, and in the desert the scattered remnants of his palace can still be found, this huge palace was possibly where Akhenaten grew up. The palace area today is known to the local s as Malquata, which means the ‘place of debris’, Amenophis had named it ‘The Palace of the Dazzling Aten’, he created a harbor in front of the palace that from its place in the desert it still gave access to river Nile, so that he could sail straight from the palace in his golden Barque that was called ‘Aten Sparkles, obviously during the reign of Amenophis the Aten was beginning to rise in importance.

During his childhood Akhenaten was known as Amenhotep, he was never included in any festivals or ceremonies along with his family, he was a hidden child, excluded from the royal circle, rejected, possibly because of obvious signs of an illness that royalty would not accept, but yet his mother Queen Tiy showered him with her love regardless of the reason for his exclusion. His older brother Tuthmosis was the heir to the throne, but when he died suddenly, a new heir was needed and Amenophis was finally exposed to the people as the new successor to the throne.


I stood beneath his statue and was drawn by the hypnotic stare from  his elongated Asian eyes that viewed me from above , his  face was long with unusually broad cheekbones and a high forehead, a strong masculine jaw  fought against the supremacy of his wide and sensuous mouth that pouted somewhat, I felt that he would have known my innermost thoughts in life, I was un- nerved by his steadfast probe of my soul, never had a pharaoh been portrayed in such an unusual  manner before, his deep sensuous lips reminded me of the African race, his long face with highly pronounced cheek bones suggested European and his eyes suggested Asian, his face was a confusion and seemed to portray a man  possessing the features from all the four corners of the earth within one race, his athletic  arms and long slender fingers grasped the crook and flail firmly, but there was no impression of the raw brutality strength or power from  within his body that previous pharaohs had amplified, he was an enigma, a man whose body portrayed both male and female characteristics with his sweeping wide female child bearing hips,  his mind held the key to his power and his strength, the wealth of his position and centuries of belief that the pharaoh was a living god fueled his defiance of the priests of Amun to eradicate their powers and install  his chosen God the Aten to rule supreme, like a despot he blindly pursued his belief and forced his will over others, but his will  was only as strong as his own mortal life and his beliefs and suppression of the priests of Amun then ended with his mortal  life.

I left his steadfast gaze and followed the small pieces of talatat across the wall, Akhenaten had initially created a temple at Karnack that he dedicated to the Aten, and to fulfill his usual rapid need for renewal he used these small slabs of talatat to decorate his temple. Pharaoh Horemheb had been an army general during the reign of Akhenaten, after his death he destroyed the remains of Akhenaten's Sun temple and used its remains to fill his 10th pylon.

All the pieces of talatat that could be found to match, like a jigsaw have been pieced together again to create a small scene from within one of the Sun Temples that Akhenaten had created outside the eastern gate of Karnack Temple. He named his main temple Gempaaten which means “The Sun Disc is found in the Estate of the God Aten",  there’s defiance for you and a snub to authority, his temple had no roof and was created in the same style that his father Amenophis 111 had made the  festival hall at luxor temple, its offering tables were exposed to the warmth of the rays of the Sun,  the opposite  of  the dark secretive and covered chambers that had been created for centuries of worship in the temples of Amun. A special house within the precincts of Karnack contains the remains of the small pieces of the talatat .It is  almost like a  library for  the privileged where only the chosen few are allowed to have a glimpse of all the broken remains of Akhenaten's rule. In time someone will come that can put all the pieces together and recreate Akhenaten's dreams once more. Many layers of history have tried to destroy and eradicate this most unusual pharaoh, a man of peace, a man who made his own rules and defied the priests of Amun, a king not interested in following the traditions of dominance,  a man  that was eventually  broken by the overwhelming forces against him, enemies on his frontiers and a plague within his Capital that took the life of two of his beloved young daughters, his hopes were diminished and after his death his religion and the sanctuary he had created at Akhetaten was abandoned by his people,  the lonely life he had lead as a child, and his vision of one god, the Aten was rejected, he had brought Egypt to the brink of economic disaster with his non violent policy and his life of seclusion, his only interests in life had been the love of his wife Nefertiti his children and the worship of the Aten.

Regardless of his faults   I admired him for his determination to stand up for his own beliefs and for the obvious love of his wife and daughters; he had tried to create a haven of peace within a country that needed the wars and suppression of its neighbors to survive. Akhenaten was a rare pharaoh indeed and was not afraid to be shown in the tender embrace of his family something that no other pharaoh has ever been portrayed for, a man of the family, a child that had begun life as an outcast he blindly soared to the heights to live his dreams. Sadly his dream had broken him; he tried to change too much too soon. I sat and stared at his face for a long time, was this really him? Had he been as honest in his strange portrayal as he had been as open in is love for his wife and daughters? I sat and reflected for a long while, and then I left with the memory of his unusual face in my mind, as nothing else in the museum could compare to this enigma of a pharaoh.

Ramses 1 - A Story of Tomb Robbers & Saviours

Ramses 1 triumphant arrival at Luxor Museum followed an extraordinary tale of tomb robbers and eventual saviors.

Ramses was the Father of Seti 1, and the Grandfather of Ramses the Great, who was named after him. Ramses 1 was not of Royal birth, although he was born to a noble military family, he was the son of a Troop Commander named Seti.

Across the river at Dier El Bahari in 1888 the Rassul brothers, local tomb robbers, after severe beatings, and harassment of their village on the Westbank of Luxor, had eventually admitted that they had found the secret hiding place of forty great Kings, Queens and Royal Family. It is considered that Priests had removed the Kings from their own tombs to protect them from Tomb robbery when the High Priest of Karnack ruled, I think he probably moved them from their Tombs to use their treasures, as the days of Egypt's supremacy had died many years ago with the Loss of the Great Royal Kings

When the cache of forty Kings Queens and other Royalty was found at Dier El Bahari by Ahmed Rassul, The mummy of Ramses 1 was missing, although his sarcophagus was found with the rest of the kings. It appears that the Rassul brothers had sold Ramses 1 for seven pounds to a Canadian physician named James Douglas who had acquired the mummy for the owner of a museum at Niagra Falls.

Over a hundred years later In 1980 a German Egyptologist visited the museum and recognized the features of Ramses the great as he looked at this mummy, he was aware that the mummy of Ramses 1 had been missing from the cache, and also this mummy had its arms crossed and its hands appeared to have been grasping what could have been the symbols of royalty which indicated that it was a royal mummy.

In 1999 the Niagra Falls Museum closed and the mummy was sold to the Carlos Museum for two million pounds,. The museum arranged for cat scans and compared the details with the mummies of Seti 1 & Ramses 11 and were convinced that they had in their possession the mummy of Ramses 1, and with this knowledge they generously offered to return the ‘lost’ king to his homeland.

And so Ramses 1 arrived at Cairo airport, his sarcophagus was draped with the Egyptian flag, and he received a military escort even though he had been dead for thousands of years. Eventually plans were made to return him to the place of this throne and burial in ancient Waset, now modern Luxor,

A flotilla of boats escorted Ramses 1, along with Ahmose 1, 'The Warrior Kings', up the river Nile to a military celebration and welcome that waited for them on the Eastbank of Luxor. Their sarcophagus were then driven by horses through the town on a special white barque to a joyous reception held for them at Karnack Temple, from there they were driven to their new home and their final resting place within the new Military Wing that had been specially created for them at Luxor Museum the 'Warrior Kings' had arrived home to jubilation once more.

Ramses the Great and the Tree of Life

I walked through the Hypostyle Hall of the Ramesseum, the Mortuary Temple of Ramses the Great 'The Temple of Millions of Years'.

I arrived at the back wall of the Hypostyle hall to see one of my favorite relief’s, the beautiful Goddess Sheshat the inventor of writing holding the palm of years in her hand as she stands at the side of the tree of life, and draws a cartouche for the king in the presence of her husband Thoth the scribe of the gods.

The god Amun Ra is seated and he tells Ramses ‘I make your years on earth last in unending numbers, I make your lifespan more secure than the lifespan of heaven remaining in your own temple. I write your name in the holy Ished tree with my own hand, I have proclaimed you King on my Throne’.

Tutenkhamun & Anaksenamun's Children Foetuses Found in his Tomb

Tutankhaten and his child bride Ankhesenpaaten arrived back in Weset (Luxor) after their father Akhenaten had died. Tutenhaten was 9 years old when he became pharaoh, and he married his step sister Ankhesenpaten when he was ten, she was thirteen..

Under the firm grip of Ay his chief advisor and General Horemheb they began to repair the damage that had been done to Ancient Egypt’s religion under the rule of Akhenaten, who had closed all the Temples down and said they could only worship one God, The Aten. On their return to Ancient Weset (Luxor) Tutankhaten changed his name to Tutankhamun to show that he now followed the God Amun again and he opened all the Temples, he ruled Egypt for a decade, with his wife Ankhesenpaaten who became known as Anaksenamun.

Tutankhamun was the 12th king of the 18th Dynasty, until the age of 19 when he died suddenly, research has shown that he had severe knee injuries, one of his knee caps was almost apart, it is considered that his injuries would have been infected and gangreen would have killed him in a few days after an accident.

Anaksenamun had lost her childhood friend, her husband, and two small children whose foetuses were also found in the tomb in tiny coffins. This is the only tomb that has been found with new born foetus, apart from the son of Ramses 111 in the Valley of the Queens, where there is on display in a glass case a small foetus, it is considered that the WIfe of Ramses lost a child .tragically when her young son died.

In Tutankhmun's tomb one of the mummies was a newborn female of about 5 months old. The second mummy was female of  seven months old. After Tutenkhamun's death Anaksenamun found herself  alone and just turned twenty one years old.

Tutankhamun,s chief Advisor Ay could now see a way that he would be able to rule Egypt legitimately, he would marry Anaksenamun. In despair at the thought of having to marry this forceful old man Anaksenamun wrote to the Hittite king Suppliluliumas requesting that he send one of his sons urgently for her to marry. The request was extremely unusual and Suppliluliumas decided to send an envoy to confirm the request, once he was satisfied he sent one of his sons the Prince Zennanza, The prince never arrived, he was murdered as he crossed the Egyptianborder, possibly with the instructions of General Horemheb and so the Chief Advisor Ay seized the throne, and as was the custom when a king died, he administered the ‘Opening of the mouth ceremony’. The scene is detailed on the wall in the tomb overlooking the sarcophagus of Tutankhamun. Anaksenamun was forced into marriage with Ay and then she also disappeared from known records.

Experience the Macabre Fear & Chaos of a Journey through the Tombs in Ancient Egypt

Try and imagine the tombs with an invisible passage of water that flows within a dark tunnel of fear and chaos that could ultimately lead you to the light and eternity at dawn. A Solar barque that has soaked in the rays of the sun during the hours of the day will now be empowered to travel through the darkness of the night on this eternal carrier of light, and it waits for you. Your   mortal body is dead, you are incapable of speech, you cannot move,  you are traveling across the waters of chaos, you are helpless, you sense a macabre fear of something enclosing you in the water, suddenly the water begins to drain away, a demon snake known as Apophis the God of Chaos has guzzled the water, while its demon eyes  will hypnotize the crew, enabling the snake to swallow their heads engulfing them in everlasting darkness, you are helpless, help is desperately needed, the companions on the barque struggle to fight off this vile creature, the enemy of the Sun God Amun Ra, that has swum in the waters of chaos for eternity, In the battle Heka stands on the prow of the boat his divine magic was given to the human race by Ra and with his magical incantations he will exorcise the snake, subduing it to his power.  

Ra then calls for Set, the god of Darkness, war and Chaos to help them kill the snake whilst Heka (magic) has it in his spell, Seth leaps to the prow of the boat with his spear launching it at this terrifying demon serpent, it rises above the boat emitting a screech as its poisonous fangs launch towards them, Seth leaps onto the serpent and thrusts his sword into the back of its head.  Screeching it crashes into the waters of chaos launching the boat into a tidal wave through the caverns. Seth is washed across to the shore where he drags the serpent and hacks its goutiness body to pieces.  In contempt of Ra and the other companions he gloats that only he could save them from the threat of this Demon, Ra in his anger instructs Hu (command) and Sia (perception) who guides the barque to safer waters, leaving Seth on the shore. Hu takes a deep breath, then releases the divine breath of life across the water, and the barque once more is thrust into fresher waters, the light and perception of Hu’s female partner Sia expresses the mind of Ra, and together the spiritual essence of these companions on the boat connect the soul with the heart of Ra once more and enable it to journey towards the light again leaving behind the terrible darkness and fear of attack. Only a man with a pure and righteous heart would be offered the everlasting release and joy to be a part of the eternal cosmic cycle of renewal with the God Ra, the alternative was a macabre and  sinister torment that would await an unrighteous man. 

Before the New Kingdom,  those who were found guilty in the Hall of Judgement were damned to suffer a continuous cycle of everlasting torment in the outer darkness  of an area in the deepest recesses of the underworld, a place of continuous punishment that was infested with demons who had risen from the ranks of the damned themselves, killing and torturing each other. They would rip the protective mummy wrappings off each other, screeching and tearing each others flesh, their skin no longer protected, it rotted  and decomposed  Their hearts were ripped out and the ba soul was lost, never knowing the way to fly back to its bodily home again. Thirst and hunger ravished them, but they are denied the gifts of wine or bread, as their funeral gifts never reach them.,  they would sneak past the four baboons that guarded the Lake of burning fire only to find the water was not cool for them,  refreshing their thirst as it would for a righteous man, for the damned it was a place of destruction where burning, bloody water and the horrendous stench of putrefying burnt flesh  rose from its cesspools, for they were the brothers of Set, the God who murdered his own brother Osiris, and disguised himself as a pig to blind Horus thus causing  the eclipses of the light and sun. Their torment never ceased but each new dawn a ray of hope would spring forth inside their wretched bodies as a blinding golden barque passed overhead rays of light lit up the darkness for a second and as the ray of light passed over them, they would scream and beg for help, but the Righteous Barque of Ra sailed silently over them, completely oblivious to their cries and torment………………..  Only enter these portals of ancient Egypt to catch a glimpse of your possible destiny if you believe that you have lived a righteous life, for these tunnels are the passage between what we understand as Heaven and hell.

The Tomb of Queen Nefertari in the Valley of the Queens

The Tomb of Queen Nefertari


Queen Nefertari was The Great Royal wife of  Ramesses the Great and her name means Beautiful Companion

In the Valley of the Queens on the West Bank of the River Nile, Ramses created an exquisite tomb for Nefertari the Incomparable, Beloved, Glory for her Soul.

Queen Nefetari’s coffin was not found in her tomb,  it was discovered by the tomb robber Ahmed Rassul who was looking for his goat near to the temple of Hatshepsut at Dier El Bahari, 3,000 years after her death in the cache known as DB320. Nefertari was surrounded by forty Great Kings,  and royalty along with her husband Ramses the Great . It took sixteen men to lift its weight from the tomb and move it alone.

It was thought that priests had removed the Kings and Queens from their own tombs in this isolated place from the Valley of the Kings and Queens, they were found by the tomb robber Ahmed Rassul

The Royal mummies  were taken from their hiding place near the Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut at Dier El Bahari  and were carried by donkeys and mules to the banks of the Nile where they were transported to Cairo. Women came to the river bank and wailed in mourning for the deceased kings and their kin. Never in the history of any nation has there been such an awesome entourage of deceased royalty, the glory of Ancient Egypt rose again as their Ancient Kings and Queens  traveled to safety in Cairo, their final resting place, where modern scientists now continue the work of some of the ancient priests to protect and preserve the mummies of their kings.

Below is a short video of Nefertari,s tomb.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p1g-BSiJmu0

The Tomb of Rekmire - An Ancient Egyptian Judge & Vizier of Tuthmosis 111

A judge is a straight thinking direct man, and Rekhmire’s Tomb symbolizes this with its sombre reversed T shaped design. The walls detail Rekhmire’s position and responsibilities as a judge, on entering the 66ft long and narrow vestibule I turned to the left to see a court in process with prisoners being brought before the court by the police.

Rekhmire offers advice on the walls of his tomb on the qualities necessary to hold the position of a Judge: ‘Know how to inspire fear and make yourself respected. He who is held in awe is a good judge, but the true function of a judge is to practice justice, if you fear him too much then there must be something wrong with him’ On the installation of a judge he advises; ‘see to those things that can be justly accomplished, do justice to everyman, a judge has a visible face, the water and the wind bear witness to his deeds which none can be aware of’.
On the wall opposite the court scene are five rows of interesting paintings of the conquered nations bringing their tributes to Egypt that Rekhmire must record and report to the king, At the top from the lands of punt  their people bring incense trees and baboons, the living animal representing the god of magical words Thoth, beneath them follow the Mediterranean peoples wearing kilts and carrying decorative vases and pots in the shape of animal heads, they bring silver and lapis lazuli,  a little monkey is shown cheekily climbing up the neck of a giraffe as the Kushittes of Africa escort cattle and leopards they carry the large eggs of the Ostrich and the feathers used for the royal fans
Tusks of Ivory are balanced over  their shoulders and in their hands they bring precious stones and

gold, the Syrians with their neat pointed black beards all dressed in long white gowns bring a young elephant and brown bear,  carts weapons and magnificent striding white horses. Finally slaves from all nations Following these scenes  across the wall I enter through the doorway directly facing the   door I find myself in a very long and narrow chapel like a hallway or  corridor, the right hand side represents the funeral aspect and events, with beautiful musicians playing their instruments at the funeral feast,  while the opposite wall details the depth of his power and position and the  work he was responsible for as he supervised all the work in the Temple of Amun and its workshops, the  craftsmen are busy making bricks, blowing glass, making gold, and under Rekhmire’s Instructions making a sphinx and cutting a seated colossal statue of  Tuthmosis. As I progress down the narrow chapel the gradient of the ceiling rises to a great height giving the impression of   mountain, Rekhmire had reached the top of the mountain when he became Vizier, he virtually controlled the land when Tuthmosis 111 was on Campaigns, which was for most of his reign as he was a Pharaoh determined to bring other nations under the submission of Egypt with his military force once again. At the end of the chamber looking up to the top of the wall a hole is cut that probably held the statue of Rekhmire where he would sit on his own throne looking down on his achievements in life.

The Tomb of Sennefer on the Westbank of Luxor

The Tomb of Sennefer who had held the position of Mayor of the Southern City under the reign of Amenhotep 11 during the 18th Dynasty can be found high on the hill directly facing the Rammessium Mortuary Temple.

Sennefer held many titles, he was not only the Mayor of the city and controller of Administration and taxes, but he also held the title of Overseer  of the Granaries of Amun, Superintendent of the gardens of Amun and High Priest of Amun, he was loyal to the king and efficient in his duties.

Deep cut steps lead me into the door well of the tomb and as I entered within, an arched tunnel enfolds  me, the walls are roughly cut, whilst shadows and the warm glow of lights guide me down 44 steep winding cavernous steps, at the bottom the tunnel bends sharply to the right, where I was completely unprepared for the total contrast and brightness of a small vestibule that I arrived in, it had a low undulating ceiling that seemed to hang low with the weight of the plump succulent grapes all waiting to be plucked painted on its surface. The artist has used the undulation of the ceiling to   create this glorious vineyard in a three dimensional effect, The Overseer of the Gardens of Amun was fortunate to have such a thriving succulent purple vineyard. The walls are bright white and bursting with beautiful small coloured images of Sennefer receiving offerings from the priests and his wife Meryt. Sennefer is also shown witnessing his funeral procession and the presentation of the funerary equipment to be placed inside his tomb.


Bending my body almost double to pass beneath a deep square entrance that leads into a larger square burial chamber, I was amazed by the vibrancy of bright yellow that bounces off the ceiling in geometric designs   and tapers off into more grapevines. This tomb is alive and blazing with colour that lifts your heart with gladness. Supporting the ceiling are four solid square cut pillars, I felt that these pillars are an expression of love between Sennefer and his wife Meryt The Lady of The House and Chantress of Amun, who is shown on each face of the pillars making offerings to Sennefer, she kneels beside him and stands along side him offering him gifts of Myrrh linen wine necklaces and a scarab to protect his heart in the Hall of Judgement. I feel that the pillars are a true expression of their commitment and love, showing Meryt in early stages of pregnancy on one pillar, in the very subtle way that the ancient Egyptians portrayed a woman’s ever increasing waist line.
The scenes on the walls detail the funeral procession, with Sennefer before Osiris and Hathor, again Meryt is present to support her husband whilst he worships Osiris and they are purified together by a priest in leopard skin, as a chantress of Amun Meryt plays her sistrum for her husband and carries a Menat necklace.


In a corner of the chamber painted in small detail Sennefer and Meryt sit beneath a belachin on board a small boat that is painted green, the colour is symbolic and like the papyrus it represents regeneration, their small boat is towed by a larger white one showing the captain, helmsman and rowers. The journey was to take Sennefer and Meryt on a pilgrimage to the Holy city of Abydos where the tomb of Osiris is said to be located.  Osiris had been killed by his wicked brother Seth, who then scattered the pieces of his body all over Egypt. Isis the wife of Osiris loved her husband so much that she desperately searched the land of Egypt until she found all the scattered parts, and then with her  magical powers she joined his body together again and resurrected him back to life, he was then made the Judge of the dead and Lord of the underworld by Amun. Many Egyptians made this pilgrimage to Abydos because at sunset   they believed it looked like a golden staircase leading to the afterlife


I feel that the tomb of Sennefer is a celebration in the most vibrant colours of a mortal life and the journey to the underworld embracing eternity of a successful nobleman who was supported by the deep love of his wife. As I climbed back up the staircase the vibrancy of this tomb had lifted my spirits more than the emergence through the door back into the blazing sun light beating down.

The Sound & Light Show at Karnack Temple in Luxor

One of the most interesting and dramatic ways to experience Karnack Temple, the earthly home of the God Amun is during the evening when the Sound and Light Show is presented in all different languages.
I stood in the darkness in the midst of a crowd of chattering people, I decided to squeeze my way through towards the guardian sphinx that sat high above us on pedestals leading towards the entrance portal of the first pylon, originally the sphinx traveled a mile and a half to connect with Luxor Temple, but these particular sphinx  had the faces of a ram, a representation of the God Amun., the head then morphed into the body of a lion, the king of the animal world, the giant paws of the lion protectively enclosed the figure of the pharaoh.

The crashing sound of a gong suddenly vibrated across the evening and brought our procession to silence, then the darkness was irradiated by a blaze of light and the pylons glowed before us, trumpets cut through the air announcing the arrival of a regal presence, and then a powerful male voice declared....'You are now at the House of the Father'......more dramatic music....then........'Here the creator was worshiped for over two thousand years', and so the story of Karnack Temple and the Kings and Queens who helped to create it was relayed to us by the voices and iridescent lights of the night.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=78iSZj3Y1iE

A video of the Sound & Light Show at Karnack Temple