Other sights in Luxor
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Temple of Hatshepsut
The eyes first focus on the dramatic rugged limestone cliffs that rise nearly 300m above the desert plain, a monument made by nature, only to realize that at the foot of all this immense beauty lies a man-made monument even more extraordinary, the dazzling Temple of Hatshepsut. The almost modern-looking temple blends in beautifully with the cliffs from which it is partly cut, a marriage made in heaven.
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Qurna Discovery
These will be devoted to explaining the history of life on the hillside in the last millennia. The zawiya (a family meeting, ceremonial and religious building) houses the permanent collection of the early-19th-century British artist Robert Hay’s drawings of Gurna. These finely detailed works depict the ancient mudbrick structures and a way of life that are now lost, plus the famous tomb houses. The adjoining Daramalli house will be used to exhibit household objects and agricultural implements to show how Gurnawi families lived and worked. Historic photos will show the village and its residents as recorded from the 1850s to the 1950s. Entry to Qurna Discovery is free, but…
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B
Tombs of the Nobles
The tombs in this area are some of the best, but least visited, attractions on the West Bank. Nestled in the foothills opposite the Ramesseum, there are more than 400 tombs belonging to nobles from the 6th dynasty to the Graeco-Roman period. Where the pharaohs decorated their tombs with cryptic passages from the Book of the Dead to guide them through the afterlife, the nobles, intent on letting the good life continue after their death, decorated their tombs with wonderfully detailed scenes of their daily lives.
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The Ramesseum
Ramses II called his massive memorial temple ‘the Temple of Millions of Years of User-Maat-Ra’; classical visitors called it the Tomb of Ozymandias; and Jean-François Champollion, who deciphered hieroglyphics, called it the Ramesseum. Like other memorial temples it was part of Ramses II’s funerary complex. His tomb was built deep in the hills, but his memorial temple was on the edge of the cultivation on a canal that connected with the Nile and with other memorial temples.
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C
Luxor Temple
Largely built by the New Kingdom pharaohs Amenhotep III (1390–1352 BC) and Ramses II (1279–1213 BC), this temple is a strikingly graceful monument in the heart of the modern town. Visit early when the temple opens, before the crowds arrive or later at sunset when the stones glow. Whenever you go, be sure to return at night when the temple is lit up, creating an eerie spectacle as shadow and light play off the reliefs and colonnades.
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D
Carter's House
Surrounded by a garden on what is otherwise a barren hill, where the road from Deir al-Bahri to the Valley of the Kings meets the road from Seti I’s temple, stands the domed house where Howard Carter lived during his search for Tutankhamun’s tomb. The house has been decorated with pictures and tools of the excavation. A cafe is expected to open shortly, making this a peaceful place to stop for a refreshment.
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Temple of Merenptah
Almost directly behind Amenhotep’s temple lie the remains of the Temple of Merenptah, who succeeded his father Ramses II in 1213 BC and ruled for 10 years. In the 19th century, the ‘Israel Stele’, now in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, was found here, which is the only known Egyptian text to mention ‘Israel’ (which Merenptah claimed to have defeated).
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Mntophaat
This group of tombs, located near Deir al-Bahri, belongs to 18th-dynasty nobles, and 25th- and 26th-dynasty nobles under the Nubian pharaohs. The area is under excavation by archaeologists, but of the many tombs here only some are open to the public, including the Mntophaat; tickets are available at the ticket office of the Deir al-Bahri Temple.
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Pabasa
The tomb of Pabasa, a 26th-dynasty priest, has wonderful scenes of agriculture, hunting and fishing. Entry tickets are available at the ticket office of the Deir al-Bahri Temple.
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