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| Temple of Hathor, Dendera |
The great temple,
devoted to Hathor,
dates to the reign of King Khufu (Cheops, 2551–2528B.C.E.), and other from the Eleventh
Dynasty (2134–1991 B.C.E.)
was discovered near a sacred lake
at Dendereh. The main temple was fashioned out of a stone platform on a sand
base with a
mud-brick enclosure wall.
A propylon entrance leads
to a transverse
hypostyle hall with
24 columns. A second
hall has six
columns and a short
ramp. Also included in the temple are the Hall of Offerings, an inner lobby,
and the Hall of the Cycle of the Gods. Several chapels are also in the complex,
the Per-Ur, dedicated to the start of the new year; Per-Nu, honoring the
journey of the goddess to Edfu; Per-Neser, devoted to the goddess as a lioness.
Below, there are 32 treasure crypts. The essential temple backups at Dendereh
also mention Pepi I (r. 2289–2255 B.C.E.), Tuthmosis III (r. 1479–1425 B.C.E.),
and Ptolemy XII Auletes (r. 88–58, 55–51 B.C.E.). This structure also had a
“Dendereh Zodiac” relief and a sanitarium where Egyptians were reportedly cured
of illness through Hathor’s intercessions.
Hathor temple
inscriptions were studied
by Dümichen (1865–75),
Mariette (circa 1879), and
Heinrich Brugsch (circa 1880); systematic publication of the inscriptions was
undertaken by Émile Chassinat, observed by François Daumas (1934–87) and is
being kept by Sylvie
Cauville. The mammisi
were studied and
published by François Daumas (1959). The publication of
the temple of Isis
is in advance and will be surveyed by that of the north gate and the
repositories situated outside the inclosure wall (i.e. the temple
of Ptolemy VI
Philopater
and the gateway
of Horus). Architectural
studies are being undertaken by Zignani of the Hathor temple and by
Boutros of the basilica.
A structure whose axis
is adjusted with
the heliacal rising
of the star
Sirius was made during the reign
of Ramses II, so out the building of Ptolemy XII by
great 1,200 years.
Astronomical research has
demonstrated that the
famous Dendera zodiac relief
was conceived during the
summer of 50
BC; it reveals that Egyptian priests had a more advanced
knowledge of astronomy than had antecedently been known. The ribbon of the
Osiris chapels took place over 3 years, from 50–48 BC, and their startup took
place on December 28, 47 BC (the 26 th day of Khoiak), the day of a zenithal
wide moon, a alignment that takes direct only once every 1,480 years.
Temple of Hathor does not take issue appreciably from the project of the Edfu
temple, the most complete cultic
memorial of the
Graeco-Roman period. This
plan lies of a
sanctuary, chapels and great liturgical halls alongside cult rooms to store the
equipment and offerings required
for the daily
ritual or various
festivals. The architectural originality of
the temple of
Hathor domiciliate in
the majestic crypts
contrived in the thickness of the walls and on three
levels. The underground crypts helped as a sort of foundation for
the temple. Inside
these secret spaces
were stored about
160 statues, which ranged from
22.5 to 210.0 centimeter in height. The best statues, made of wood, were sunk
in an most inacessible crypt.