Egyptian Temples by Murray Margaret A

Author:Murray, Margaret A. [Murray, Margaret A.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Dover Publications
Published: 2012-10-15T16:00:00+00:00

XXIV

RAMESSEUM

THE temple, known as the Ramesseum, is the centre of a great mass of buildings, of which it is the chief. It was built by Rameses II for his funerary rites, but like all Theban mortuary temples it was also dedicated to a god; usually, as in this case, to Amon (pl. XXX, 1).

The description given by Diodorus is so accurate that it is obvious he was writing from personal knowledge: “The sepulchre of Simandius contained above half a league about, at the entrance whereof was a gate of porphyry, next to which was a square gallery of stone, in it on the tops of the pillars were architraves all of one stone, and the covering was all of stone, ten foot broad, enriched with azure stars. In front was another gate like the former, but fuller of work and sculpture, where there were three great monolithic statues, the workmanship of Memnon; one of them, representing the King seated, surpassed in size all the statues of Egypt. The work was wonderful, not only for the size, but for the art and also for the excellence of the stone in which, huge though it was, there was neither crack nor blemish. Upon it was inscribed, ‘I am Simandius, the King of Kings. If anyone desires to know who I am or where I lie, let him outdo what I have done’.” [Diodorus goes on to describe the sculptures on the pylon, the statues on the terrace, and the great hypostyle hall.] “Next after was the sacred library, at the entrance of which was inscribed ‘The Medicine of the Mind’.” [The sanctuary he calls the Tomb of the King.] “The tomb was surrounded with a golden circle, three hundred and sixty-five cubits in circumference, and a foot and a half thick; in it were described from cubit to cubit the three hundred and sixty-five days of the year, the course of the stars, and what they signified according to Egyptian astrology.”

The temple stands on the very edge of the cultivation, so that the entrance through the pylon was from the fields. The pylon (A) though greatly damaged still retains much of the sculpture illustrating the great battle of Kadesh which Rameses II delighted to record in all his temples. Here the “army of Amon”, which led the van in this campaign, is shown camping with all the deliberation of fancied security. The unharnessed chariot-horses, the great baggage waggons, the unloaded pack-asses, and the leisurely unconcerned soldiers, make a scene of cheerful animation. The King’s council of war is being held, and the enemy’s spies, who had lulled the Egyptian generals into a belief that the enemy had withdrawn their troops, are being beaten to make them confess. The confession came too late, for the Hittites are seen bursting into the camp. Another sculpture shows the immediate sequel, Rameses in his chariot is charging the Hittites who fly before him. Both from the illustrations and from the inscriptions it is evident that Rameses,

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