Kom-Ombo and Edfu - Ancient Egypt along the Nile

Laura and Eric at the Kom-Ombo Temple

We were dropped off from the Felluca at about 9 AM, and headed toward Luxor in a van. Along the way, we made two stops, one at Kom-Ombo Temple and one at Edfu Temple. These two temples were great, and built in the same style as the Philae Temple in Aswan. It is really neat to see and learn about each one, the gods worshiped there and to see the intricate reliefs and statues.

The Kom-Ombo Temple was actually a duel temple, between Sobek, the crocodile god, and Hathor, goddess of music and love. Back in the day, they actually had sacred crocodiles lounging on the bank by the temple! This dual temple was cool, because it was symmetric down the middle to make everything even, but at the same time, everything was doubled, so there were two inner sanctums, and two doors to each courtyard, etc.

Laura in front of a column at the Kom-Ombo temple.

Eric besides a giant bird statue.

Eric peeking out of a temple.

Laura in front of a temple pylon.

Eric next to a wall of reliefs, on the steps to the nilometer.

Eric inside the Kom-Ombo temple.

Eric at the Kom-Ombo Temple

Temple doorway

Laura and Eric at Kom-Ombo Temples

Eric in front of a wall of hyroglyphics.

Laura in a doorway.

Laura at the Kom-Ombo Temple

The crocodile pit at the Kom-Ombo Temple.

Laura in front of the columns at the Kom-Ombo Temple.

Laura shopping for souvenirs.

The Edfu Temple was perhaps the best preserved temple we had been to so far. The god Horus was worshiped here. It was really cool to see, and had a nilometer, an ancient device used to measure the depth of the Nile and so predict the harvest. This helped twofold. First, the priests could “read the future” and know what the harvest would be like. And second, the would levee higher taxes during bountiful harvests, and light taxes during poorer years. Pretty smart, huh!

Eric in front of Edfu Temple

Edfu Temple in all its glory.

Laura in front of a Falcon statue.

Laura, inside Edfu temple, in front of a wall of carvings and reliefs.

An upshot of us in Edfu temple.

Laura with some columns in Edfu temple.

Eric at Edfu Temple.

Laura on some peices of Edfu temple.

We have been having such a blast exploring the history of ancient Egypt, a place that we both have always dreamed about experiencing. It is not just the history that gets us excited about our adventures though, the majority of these amazing temples and tombs we have seen are miraculously preserved with the architectural and artistic aspects simply divine. Egypt is just fabulous and we are elated to be here!

In addition to the artsy temple photos, here are some other fun and interesting pictures of the Egyptians.

Enjoy!

Eric in BFE.

A Tuk-Tuk, Egypt style.

An old guy on a cart.
A food stand

Camels in the farmers fields

The girl on the right is striving to staying the shade, while the one in the middle is just dealing with the sun.

A bridge across a Nile canal.

What year Chevy is that?

Carts

A picture of everyday Egypt, out of the van window.

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