Description: Temple of Kom Ombo.
The second temple on our tour was at Kom Ombo previously known in ancient times as Nubt or city of gold. It was also known as Thebaid. It is situated on the East bank of the River Nile on a small close to the river. It looks quite stunning and it is only a two minute walk from standing hill where the boats dock on the quayside moorings.
Kom Ombo was a small garrison town which was not really suitable for a large settlement due to its position on the Nile being slightly raised and the ground was infertile due to its rocky domain. However it was an important
The temple was built from stone from local quarries and hauled by men to the site. There are two entrances at the front of the temple after which there is a long corridor that goes through the centre of the temple. It looks a little like a Pantheon with 15 grand columns at the front of the temple standing in three rows, two of the columns are missing. Each column is intricately carved with the crocodile headed Egyptian God and Horus the Falcon headed God hieroglyphics. There are still traces of paint in places throughout the temple. It is a double temple one at the front dedicated to Sobek which is nearest the River Nile and the one at the northern side is dedicated to Horus the Falcon God. Sobek was the crocodile headed deity who was held in great esteem and revered in awe so much so that mummified remains have been found in the area. Sobek was the God of fertility. Interestingly there are no crocodiles found this far down the river now since the building of the two massive dams at Aswan. Good news for the locals especially kids who are often seen playfully splashing about in the river along the Nile.
In the hypostyle hall some of the columns have carvings of papyrus and some are carved looking like a lotus and one is in the shape of a palm tree high above the ground. There is an imaginary line and a dividing wall that separates the two temples. There is not a lot left of the actual sanctuaries but there are offering blocks of stone and altars. There are also side chambers and vestibule rooms parallel to each other so that there is one set for the temple dedicated to Horus and one set for Sobek.
In the centre of the Temple there are magnificent walls full of descriptions of daily life you can read about the building of the temple how long it took. There is also a hieroglyphic calendar on one of the walls which gives a good description of days, months, and years phases of the sun and moon. There is also information about the gathering of crops in the area.
What I found very interesting was at the back of the temple on two massive walls was hieroglyphics detailing the types of medical instruments that were used at the time. Remember that this was 2 years BC. There were dilators, clamps, scissors, scalpels, curettes, bone cutters, saws and forceps instruments that we still use to this very day. They are quite detailed and easily recognisable.
Quite a bit of the temple has been destroyed over the centuries by natural disasters including floods and earthquakes. The most recent earthquake was in 1992 which caused some more damage to the temple. Man has also destroyed parts of the temple by taking some of the stone work for building.
To the left side of the temple there is a massive dug well which must be about 20 foot wide. There is a wall about three feet high but you can look over into the well and see the different water levels markings on the inner sides there is also a small set of steps at the bottom which would aid in the measurement of the water depth. It still has water at the bottom of the well.
On leaving the temple you exit down a ramp and there is a small museum here exhibiting some of the Mummified crocodiles and other interesting objects found locally
Throughout the day the colour of the temple changes according to where the sun is in the sky and after sunset the temple is lit up at night and looks quite a magnificent site.
Around the outside of the temples there are small markets selling clothing and trinkets.
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