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Facts about Ramesseum  | Ramesseum Temple | Ancient Egypt History

Details about Ramesseum

  • 05 16, 2023

Ramesseum Temple

This temple derives its name from the name of King Ramses II, who is buried there. The "Ramesseum" temple's entrance is situated near Luxor on the eastern side of the Nile. It is situated across from the present-day city of Luxor in the Theban cemeteries of Upper Egypt, on the western side of the Nile River. It was not until Jean-François Champollion's 1829 visit to the ruins that the names and titles of Ramesses were identified in hieroglyphic script on the walls. It was originally called the House of the Millions of Years of Usermaatre-Setepenre, Unifier of the City of Thebes in the Kingdom of Amun. Usermaatre-Setepenre was the pharaonic name of Ramesses II.

Ramesses II modified, appropriated, or built from the ground up many buildings, the most magnificent of which, in accordance with the royal burial practices of the New Kingdom, was his memorial temple: a place dedicated to the worship of the pharaoh, the god of the earth, where his memory would live on after his death. Surviving records indicate that work on the project began shortly after the beginning of his reign and continued for 20 years.

The design of the funerary temple of Ramesses II adheres to the standard canons of New Kingdom Egyptian temple architecture. The temple itself, oriented northwest-southeast, consists of two stone pylons (gates, about 60 metres wide), one after the other, each leading into a courtyard. Beyond the second court, in the centre of the complex, was a covered hypostyle hall with 48 columns, surrounding the inner sanctuary. A massive gateway stood in front of the first court, and the royal palace was to the left, with a colossal statue of the king looming behind it.[2] As was customary, the towers and outer walls were decorated with scenes commemorating the pharaoh's military victories, leaving a great record of his devotion and closeness to the gods.

In the case of Ramesses II, great importance was given to the Battle of Kadesh (c. 1274 BC); however, more interestingly, one of the buildings above the first pylon records his sack, in the eighth year of his reign, of a city called "Shalem", which was probably Jerusalem. Scenes of the great pharaoh's victory over the fleeing Hittite forces at Kadesh, as depicted in the canons of the epic poem Pentur, can still be seen on the pylon.

Unlike the colossal stone temples that Ramesses II had carved out of the face of the Nubian Mountains at Abu Simbel, the three thousand years that passed since its construction were not kind to Ramesses II’s “Million Years Temple” at Thebes. This was largely due to its location on the edge of the Nile floodplain, where the annual flooding gradually eroded the foundations of this temple and its neighbors. Neglect and the rise of new religions also took their toll: for example, in the early years of the Christian era, the temple was put into service as a Christian church.

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‪‬Ramses II Information :

  • Ramses the Great is another name for Ramses II.
  • He ruled between 1279 and 1213 BCE.
  • One of the most powerful pharaohs in Egyptian history, according to some.
  • Ramses II participated in a lot of battles throughout his rule.
  • He was well known for his military skills.

 

The Ramesseum is famous for its colossal statues, particularly the fallen statue of Ramesses II, which inspired Percy Bysshe Shelley's poem, "Ozymandias." It is also renowned for its magnificent architecture and intricate reliefs that depict scenes from ancient Egyptian mythology and the pharaoh's military victories.

Here are some interesting facts about the Ramesseum:

Dedication to Ramesses II: The Ramesseum, also known as the Mortuary Temple of Ramesses II, was built by Pharaoh Ramesses II in the 13th century BCE. It was dedicated to the worship of the pharaoh himself and various Egyptian deities.

Size and Grandeur: The Ramesseum was one of the largest and most impressive mortuary temples in ancient Egypt. It covered an extensive area and featured massive pylons, courtyards, halls, and statues.

Colossus of Ramesses II: One of the most famous features of the Ramesseum is the fallen colossus of Ramesses II. This statue was originally about 17 meters (56 feet) tall and depicted the pharaoh seated on his throne. Today, only fragments of the statue remain, but they still give a sense of its grandeur.

This temple is a hollow tomb, built by Pharaoh Seti I in Abydos, Upper Egypt, and completed by his son Ramses II, who also belonged to the 19th Dynasty.

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