ESNA

The town of Esna as seen from the cruise ship dock. A tall minaret (tower) of a mosque dominates the center of the picture. This view reminds me of an odd fact that our guide told us about: the tops of many Egyptian buildings are unfinished (with rebar and other structural pieces perpetually sticking up into the sky), as the owner of the building will continue to add more floors as the family grows with each succeeding generation. Also, the owner does not have to pay as high of a property tax as long as the building is not finished.

We took horse carriage rides from the dock to the temple of Esna. This is a typical carriage, with a typical street and store in the background.

Almost all of the ancient temple complex at Esna is gone, buried under the large landfill that the modern town now sits on. The hypostyle hall (similar to the one at Dendera) is its main survivor, occupying a pit from which it was excavated. The temple here was dedicated to the god Khnum.

This is a sample of artwork from the walls of the temple. Thoth (the ibis-headed god) stands on the left, while Horus (the falcon-headed god) and Sekhmet (the lion-headed goddess with the sun disk overhead) stand to the right of the pharoah.