The Third Dynasty of Ancient Egypt

The third dynasty date: 2705—2630

The dynasty list of Kings:

Sanakhte (2650—2630)

Djoser (Netjerykhet) (2630—2611)

Sekhemkhet (Djoser Teti) (2611—2603)

Khaba (2603—2599)

Huni (2599—2575)

Monuments of Huni

The Meidum pyramid

There are 7 small step pyramids, dating from the second half of the third synasty and as late as the early 4th dynasty. Likely there are others that have yet to be discovered. These may all belong to Huni and their purpose is unknown. They have no internal chambers, nor underground structures. They are generally on the west bank of the Nile. They are not tombs (lacking national structure) although they may have been cenotaphs (fake tombs) of the queens. They may have been enshrines.


Benha Pyramjid
Lepsius Pyramid 1
Zawiyet el-Meititin Pyramid
Sinki Pyramid
Elephantine Pyramid
Naqada Pyramid
Kula Pyramid
Edfu Pyramid

Huni (2599—2575)

Head of Huni's Statue

King Huni was the fifth king of the third Dynasty. He ruled the country from 2599 BC to 2575 BC. The king is fast for the construction of a fort at Elephentine Island as well as a pyramid at Meidum. His wife was Queen Meresankh I. She was the mother of his heir, Snofru. The famous sage Kagemi was a Vizer of Egypt during Huni's reign.  Huni is considered as the last king of the third Dynasty. In the Turin Kinglist he directly preceedes Snofru, the founder of the 4th Dynasty. The same Kinglist references him with a reign of 24 years, but there are no contemporary sources that sustain this number. The Horus-name of Huni is not known. The equation of Huni with the Horus Qa-Hedjet is tempting but not based by the archaeological record. The remains of several small pyramids built by Huni have been found broken throughout Egypt. The nature of these pyramids is not fully understood, but they appear to be concerned to royal estates and domains, the means by which the central government was able to exert economical state over the total country.

The premise that Huni built the Pyramid at Meidum is based solely on the desire to have a large repository ascribed to this king. His name is not got in or near the monument, which does it rather outside that he was its builder. It is, however, more future that it was Snofru, the first king of the 4th Dynasty, who built this pyramid, since his name has been found in the pyramid's vicinity. Huni was the fifth king of the 3rd Dynasty. He ruled the country from 2599 BC until 2575 BC. The king is responsible for the structure of a fort at Elephentine Island as well as a pyramid at Meidum. His wife was Queen Meresankh I. She was the mother of his heritor, Snofru. The famous rose Kagemi was a Vizer of Egypt during Huni's rule.

King Huni was the last Egyptian King of the third Dynasty. His Horus-name, usually written within a serek, is not known, and regrettably not so much of his acts is known disdain the fact that ha obviously had a reign of some a quarter of a century. His name is present at the royal canons of Sakkara and Turin, but not in the Abydos-list. An inscription with the name Nswth or Nswth Hun(i) is identified from Aswan in Upper Egypt. Other form of the name - Swtenh, Nisuteh or Nswt H(w), is engraved on the Palermo Stone by fifth dynasty king Neuserre, who gave a monument to him.

Monuments of Khaba

1- Tomb of Khaba at Zawyet el-Aryan:

Zawyet el-Aryan is placed to the South of Giza and North of Abusir and Abu Gorab. There are 2 bare pyramids at Zawyet el-Aryan. The best one is dated to the third Dynasty and would have been a Step Pyramid had it been complete. The other pyramid was built somewhere during the 4th Dynasty, but it is not known for particular by which king. The 2 oldest known Step Pyramids were constructed at Saqqara, set to the South of Zawyet el-Aryan, by the Horus Netjerikhet and his successor Sekhemkhet, both of the 3rd Dynasty. Another king of that dynasty chose to build his funerary memorial at some distance North of Saqqara. He also chose to make his repository near the floodline. In this, he departed from the cut set by Netjerikhet and Sekhemkhet, who established their pyramids well into the desert.

The personal identity of the builder of the Step Pyramid at Zawyet el-Aryan is not known with certainty. His name is not mentioned in the monument itself. However, vases found in a nearby mastaba mention the name of the Horus Khaba, an serious third Dynasty king. As it was regular for members of the nobility to be buried near their king, this has been taken as evidence that the bare Step Pyramid at Zawyet el-Aryan was built for Khaba. Had this pyramid been complete, it would have risen up in 5 steps to a height of some 45 ms. There were no hints of outer casing, an reading that indeed, this monument was never finished. Although it is somewhat simpler, the substructure is similar to that of the Step Pyramid of Sekhemkhet. It base consists of a gentle corridor dug in the ground, taking to a burial chamber of 3.63 by 2.65 ms and a height of 3 metres.

2- Pyramid of Khaba at Zawyet el-Aryan:

The Pyramid of Khaba

The pyramid of Khaba at the southern end of the situation is known as the 'Layer Pyramid' and has been ascribed to king Khaba of Dynasty III, probably a replacement of Sekhemkhet. The pyramid was investigated by the Italian archaeologist Alessandro Barsanti in 1900, but the owner of the structure was unknown until Reisner's American Expedition unearthed the pyramid and some of the mastaba tombs in the area in the future part of the 20th century. Here he got fragments bearing the name of Khaba as well as some pieces of pottery bearing the name of Narmer, which led him to suggest a Dynasty II date for the structure. The southern pyramid at Zawyet el-Aryan is locally called 'Haram el-Meduwara' or the 'round pyramid', due to its broken condition and smaller size. The base of the pyramid was about 84 meter square and the subtructure is very similar to that of Sekhemkhet's raw pyramid at Saqqara. Khaba's pyramid was conceived as a step pyramid with a centre built with sloping layers of masonry. Only the lower part of the first step remains of what may have been intended to be a five, 6 or 7 stepped structure, its height today rising to only 16 metre. No trace of a limestone case from the pyramid has been discovered which tends to put up the view that the pyramid was never complete.

The subterranean chambers were recorded near the north-east tree where a staircase continues in a westwards direction as a passage which then turns south at the bottom of a vertical shaft. Another bare passage takes from higher in the shaft in the same direction. The lower passage leads to another staircase and an empty burying chamber. On the northern side of the vertical shaft there were thirty two store-rooms which also raised to be empty. The area has never been thoroughly investigated and is now remote because it is within a military partition. Reisner's American team excavated a large mastaba to the northwest of the Layer Pyramid, identified as Mastaba Z-500 and it was here that the Horus name of Khaba was discovered on alabaster vases. Although these artefacts, in addition to the stylistic dating of the pyramid lead many Egyptologists to attribute the monument to Khaba, the owner is by no means certain.

Khaba (2603-2599)

Cartouche of Khaba

King Khaba was the fourth king during the third Dynasty. Egyptologists discovered his named sliced into the walls of Sahure's tomb. The name was as well found at the stone roll in Naqada. The pyramid at "Zawiet el-Aryan", in the desert of Giza, is believed to be his resting place. Even less is known about Sekhemkhet's possible successor, Khaba. In the Turin King-list, this king, whose name has been learned as "erased", is credited with a reign of a mere 6 years. The fact that his name was marked as "erased" in the Turin King-list may maybe indicate some dynastic problems. It may also be that the composer of the Turin King-list was incapable to read the name. Khaba is conceived to have built his funerary monument in Zawyet el-Aryan, about 7 kilometers north of Saqqara. It was left incomplete at an early stage of its constructing

Khaba credibly died before the finishing of his monument and the work on the site was left for all potential. The construction is a square with a 78,5 m long side at the base, and located on the highest part of the area high the cultivated Nile valley. With only 200 metres to the flood lain in the valley it's the pyramid in Egypt that is placed best the cultivated land. With the intended five steps it would have been about 45 meters in height if it hade been completed but today only 17 metres remain previous the sand. Under ground huge galleries (very alike looking those from the pyramid of Sekhemkhet) were hewn out but the burial bedroom did not contain anything, not even a sarcophagus, when it was entered in the late 1800s.

Facts that indicates that it was built in the middle or at the end of the dynasty is the increasing ability of the Egyptians to manage to handle larger and larger stones, culminating during the end of the Old Kingdom. Khaba's memorial is built with stones of bigger size (for the pyramid's core) than Djoser's, indicating it's younger. The construction has also an almost complete orientation North-South that most elder repositories (including substructures) don't have. It's disputed to put Khaba as the founder of the third dynasty and the reigns of his and Sekhemkhet's were brief ones and generally judged to be after king Djoser's. The traditional episode of kings for the dynasty set is among most Egyptologists: Sahnakht-Djoser-Sekhemkhet-Khaba-Huni brought with those who are only known from names in king lists or fragmentise and have left no repositories to history.

Pyramid of Sekhemkhet

Pyramid of Sekhemkhet

Sekhemkhet's pyramid, Like King Djoser's Pyramid, was intended as a step-pyramid. In the construction of the pyramid, the same technique was practiced as for Djoser's: accumulations leaning inwards by 15°, with sloping courses of comparatively small stone blocks were set at right angles to the run. As a result of the pyramid not being broken, the outer casing never appears to have been added. Had it been finished, the pyramid would have risen in 7 steps to a height of 70 metres, thus great Djoser's. Probably due to the short prevail of Sekhemkhet, it was gave at a very early stage and it never rose above the surface of its rectangular enclosure. In its present state, all that is gave are a few courses of center masonry, nowhere higher than 7 metres above ground level. The foot of the pyramid wasn't as complex as Djoser's. A black set of 132 galleries or magazines built in U-shape about the North, East and West position of the  pyramid was never finished.

The capture to the substructure is set to its North, but last of the actual pyramid. A descending entrance corridor leads to the burial chamber, past 3 positions of blockings which seemed intact. A wide vertical shaft enters the roof of this passage, rising direct the rock and the core of the pyramid. This shaft was credibly used to lower blocks into the passage when the tomb needed to be secret. The roughly rectangular burial chamber of the pyramid, placed directly under the centre of the repository, measured 8.9 by 5.22 by 4.55 metres and was left raw. Corridors led to different but again unfinished galleries, that may have been involved to be "apartments", as was the case in the pyramid of Djoser. The alabaster sarcophagus named in the sepulture chamber is unique in that it was made of a single part of stone with a slippery door at one end. On top of it lay some rotted plant material, originally thought to be a funerary wreath, but analysis has shown that it was bark and wood. Although the sarcophagus was closed and obscure with mortar when it was found, it was clean. Because it was obscure and because the down passage was still blocked when it was cleared by archaeologists, it is unlikely that this tomb had been broke by tomb-robbers. The question what found to Sekhemkhet's body and why it never appears to have been placed inside the sarcophagus thought for it has never been answered satisfactorily.

Sekhemkhet (Djoser Teti) (2611—2603)

Cartouche of Sekhemkhet

King Sekhmekhet was the third king of the third Dynasty. His name is engraved on a cliff near Wadi Maghara. The king has an bare pyramid at Saqqara with an alabaster coffin within.   Matching to the Turin King-list, Netjerikhet's close successor, Sekhemkhet, named by his own name Djoser-Ti, ruled for only 6 years. His funerary memorial, the Buried Pyramid built to the south-west of Djoser’s, was never broken, which may corroborate the short reign due to Sekhemkhet by the Turin King-list. If it would have been finished, yet, it would have been an even more magnificent building than Djoser’s.  When this memorial was discovered, its sarcophagus was found secret and empty. It does not seem to have been used. The human remains got in the South Tomb of Sekhemkhet's pyramid complex belong to a 2 year old child and are thus unlikely to have belonged to Sekhemkhet himself.

A ease in the Wadi Maghara in the Sinai indicating Sekhemkhet as an grown slaying a foe is sometimes seen as resistant that Sekhemkhet was an adult during his reign. Such stereotyped representation, however, should be seen for what they are: conform to the standard way of representing a king, regardless of his actual physical state, age or even sex. Sekhmekhet was the third king of the 3rd Dynasty. His name is carved on a cliff near Wadi Maghara. The king has an unfinished pyramid at Saqqara with an alabaster coffin inside. This king was completely unknown until 1951 when his repository was located at Saqqara.

Aside look at photographs taken from the air archaeologists knew that a long right area was situated just  200 meters south west of Djoser's complex. This cut to be the remains of the now called "Buried Pyramid" placed within an area intended to be enclosed by a wall. The whole building had been abandoned afterward a few years of work. The first one and a half steps were set in place and it had a height of eight meters. Probably it had been twice as high before the work had been stopped apparently because the king died, and the site had later been a stone quarry for construction material. 

Djoser Age Artifact

Serdab Stone of Djoser Pyramid

A beautifully kept limestone statue of Netjerikhet was observed in the Serdab of his funerary complex at Saqqara. Measuring 1 meter 42 in height, this statue does the king regally sat on a throne with a high backrest, wear the typical cloak of the Heb-Sed. So, the king was thought to continue the Heb-Sed jubilees after his death, which would guarantee him of an eternal life.

The statue's left hand is open and breathing palm down on his left leg. His right arm is held across his chest, with the hand closed. An new nemes head cloth partly covers a heavy wig. The black paint on this wig and on the false beard is still visible, as is the brown paint on characters of his face. The eyes were once mounted with glass. The nose is somewhat damaged and taces of a black painted moustache are yet present.

An lettering on the front of the base of the statue places the king as: The King of Upper and Lower Egypt, the one of, the Two Ladies, Netjerikhet.

Djoser (Netjerykhet) (2630—2611)

Djoser statue' base

King Djoser was the first king of the Third Dynasty (present-day sources give the Horus name Netjerkhet: the name Djoser is only attested in later sources). Builder of the step pyramid in Saqqara. The complex is published in several volumes (Lauer 1936/1939 - the architecture). The second pharaoh of the third dynasty was Netjerykhet, the son of Khasekhemwy. As Well known as Djoser, he governed for almost two decades and is credited with building the Step Pyramid at Saqqara. The king's vizier, Imhotep, was the designer of that great tomb, and of the amazing Funerary Complex of Djoser at Saqqara. Egypt known a seven year famine during Djoser's reign, so he sought the advise of Imhotep and one of his governors, Medir, and agreed to travel to Elephantine at Aswan. Once there he raised a temple to the god Khnum, who was said to controlled the flow of the Nile. The famine finished, miraculously decent, and people considered it was due to this act of faith.

Djoser is the most famous pharaoh of the third Dynasty. Through contemporary sources, he is only identified by his Horus- and Nebti-names, Netjerikhet, "the divine of body". Later sources, among which a New Kingdom reference on his Step Pyramid at Saqqara, confirm that the Djoser from the king lists and the detergent builder of the Step Pyramid, Netjerikhet are one and the same. According to the Turin King-list, Netjerikhet governed for about 19 years, following the 20 year long reign of the opposite unattested Nebka. Archaeological sources, however, have shown that he must be considered as the first king after Khasekhemwi, the last king of the 2nd Dynasty. The order by which some heralds of Kheops are mentioned on the Papyrus Westcar may confirm that Nebka must be located between Netjerikhet and Huni and not before. The fact that the "Turin King list" has observed Netjerikhet's name in red may also be large.

In view of Netjerikhet's construction projects, especially at Saqqara, the number of years attributable to him by the Turin King-list has been doubted as well. It is not supposed that the Turin King-list has wrong bi-annual cattle-counts for years. If this is indeed the case, then Netjerikhet may have found up to 37 or 38 years. Nimaathapu, the wife of Khasekhemwi, is known to have kept the title "Mother of the King". This makes it likely that Netjerikhetwas her son, with Khasekhemwi his father. Three royal women are identified from during his reign: Inetkawes, Hetephernebti and a third one whose name is destroyed. One of them might have been his wife, others perhaps daughters or sisters. The relationship between Netjerikhet and his heir, Sekhemkhet is not known.

Sanakhte (2650—2630)

Relief fragment of Sanakht

Sanakhte, pharaoh of the Third Dynasty, take position uncertain. Zanakht was the give of the 3rd Dynasty, and was the older brother of Djoser. Zanakht's figure is listed in the Abydos Book of Kings, the (Turin Canon) and in the (Westcar Papyrus). Sanakhte's tomb at Sakkara was unified into the Step Pyramid. The prevail of Sanakht and its chronology are somewhat serious. The Horus-name Sanakht can not be engaged with certainty to any of the names noted in the king-lists. Settled on a source that stops the Horus-name Sanakht and part of a second name that finishes with the element "Ka", it has been advised that Sanakht was the Horus-name of a king only known in the king-lists, Nebka.

According to the Turin King-list and historian Manetho, Nebka was a precursor of Netjerikhet (Djoser), the give of the 3rd Dynasty. Other King-lists do not quotation Nebka at all, whereas the Papyrus Westcar, listing some precursors of Kheops, refers Nebka after Djoser and ahead Huni. The archaeological sources still, show that Sanakht must be located after Netjerikhet (Djoser), more towards the end of the dynasty and probably before Huni. If the idenitification of the Horus Sanakht with the king Nebka from the king-lists is correct and the Turin King-list simply misplaced this king, then it is manageable that Sanakht ruled for some 19 years. Sanakht's name has been base on the island of Elephantine, Egypt's south border, and on a fragmentary rest in the Sinai, where he is shown slaying a foe. Although this is a very traditional pose for a king, it is possible that this relief fragment indicates some military activity by the king in the Sinai region. Sanakht's name is as well present in the persists of a small pyramid built on the island of Elephantine, Egypt's south edge at that time. It seems to have been the customs during the reigns of Huni and Snofru to built small pyramids passim the country. The intention of these small pyramids is not in full known, but the fact that remains of a like monument of Sanakht has been got on Elephantine may confirm that he was a herald of Huni.

A funerary memorial for Sanakht has not yet been found or placed as such. Zanakht was the break of the 3rd Dynasty, and was the older brother of Pharaoh Djoser. Zanakht's name is numbered in the Abydos Book of Kings, the Turin Canon and in the  Westcar Papyrus. His tomb at Saqqara was incorporated into the Step Pyramid. This swayer has by custom been considered the founder of the third dynasty, but in the last decades of the 1900s this has been wondered by Egyptologists. A fact is that Sahnakht's tomb isn't found with sure thing, but the big mastaba from Beit Kallahf near Abydos (see picture below), has very strong indicators to pointing out his final breathing place. Since historian Manetho has stated that a rule from this time was very tall and heavy built, the earthly remains from this mastaba-tomb makes it even more spectacular since it might be the oldest pharaoh who is preserved from this early state of Egyptian history.

The Unfinished Obelisk

The Unfinished Obelisk of Aswan

It is a huge obelisk yet to be finished. If finished, it would have easy around 41 m and would have weighed nearly 117 tons. Its grandness lies in the fact that it carries inscriptions that explain the method acting the ancient Egyptians practiced in cutting and graving obelisks.

Also the unfinished obelisk, an unfinished part worked obelisk base was discovered in 2005 at the pits of Aswan. Likewise discovered were some rock sculptures and remains that may correspond to the site where most of the famous obelisks were worked. All these quarries in Aswan and the unfinished objects are an open-air museum and are officially saved by the Egyptian administration as an archeological site.

Saint Simeon Monastery

Monastery of Saint Simeon

Saint Simeon Monastery, in Aswan, goes back to the  6th Century AD. It is one of the most beautiful ancient Coptic monasteries that comprises a church the  walls of which illustrate pictures of Christ and the Saints.



The Monastery of Saint Simeon enclosed by desert sands, the monastery was established on two levels, the lower level of rock and the upper level of clay brick – surrounded by 10 m-high walls. At its height, the monastery may have domiciliate as many as 1000 monks, but it was partially destroyed by the troops of Sultan Saladin about 1173. The basilica has hints of frescoes. The cells set have their mastaba (bench) beds. The close room on the right includes graffiti from Muslim pilgrims who continued here en way to Mecca in El-Hejaz.

Tombs of the Nobles

The Tombs of the Nobles

The Tombs of the Nobles were  ordained  to  the  rulers  of Aswan and Elephantine Island in the old years. They are located on the west bank of Aswan. The tombs are carved in sandstone. They have a historical importance that points them at the spotlight of the tombs of Upper Egypt. The most important of these tombs are Mekhu and Sabni tombs that act the architectural style of the tombs at that time. The dedications on the walls of the tombs prove the titles of the governors of Upper Egypt, the posts they occupied and the characters they played to protect the area as well as their journeys in middle of Africa.

Amun Island

Amun Island is a smaller island in Aswan. Recently, a hotel was established there.

Amun Island

Agilkia Island

Agilkia Island

Agilkia  Island  comprises  the  Philae  Temples and  memorials  that  were  flooded  by  the  Nile and were relocated and reassembled on the island 500 meters from Philae Temples place.

A gilkia Island is an island in the reservoir of the Old Aswan Dam along the NileRiver in southern Egypt; it is the show site of the relocated Ancient Egyptian temple complex of Philae.Partially to completely flooded by the old dam's structure in 1902, the Philae complex was dismantled and relocated to A gilkia island, as part of a wider Unesco project referred to the 1960s construction of the Aswan High Dam and the final flooding of many sites posed by its large reservoir upriver. A gilkia , like the island, was the name chosen for the projected landing site on a comet by the Rosetta place craft mission's Philae lander. Upon first touchdown yet, the lander took a large bounce followed by a smaller one before finally getting to rest perhaps a kilometer away from A gilkia, named Abydos.

Nilometer

The Nilometer in Aswan

The Nilometer dates back to the Roman era and it shows the scales of the Nile flood in Arabic and Greek languages. It had been practiced till late.

This Nilometer is one of the most whole relics of Elephantine Island. Remember that a Nilometer was in fact an cat's-paw. Dissimilar many types of artifacts, an tool and particularly an instrument as important as the Nilometer had to be kept in a state of repair to be functional. The Elephantine Nilometer has been dated to Roman times, with markings in cubits (about 2 1/3 inches). Yet, this was likely only a renovation, and while all of the special pieces have been substituted at some point, there has probably been a Nilometer here, are close here for as long as Nilometer have existed. There are dedications from the reigns of Tuthmosis III and Amenophis III (18th Dynasty) and of Psammetichus II (26th Dynasty) about here. Afterward having been idle for some time, the Nilometer was again rebuilt by the French and Arab during the 19th Century and placed back in use. Hence, it now has markings in French and Arabic. Today, satellites are applied to measure water flushes, and the Aswan Dam has alleviated the need for such instruments.

Kitchener's Island

Kitchener's Island

A Felucca ride by local boat from the side bank of the Nile in Aswan and a three hour drive from Luxor City with an alternative to fly from Cairo to Aswan in about one hour.

Kitchener's Island is also known as the Island of Plants, set on the Nile near Aswan in the South of Egypt. Introduced with the island in gratitude for his military exploits in Sudan, Consul-General Kitchener gratified his love for exotic flora, importation shrubs and seeds from as far afield as India and Malaysia. Today this island-wide botanical garden is a lovely place to spend a low afternoon (except on Fridays), with much of birdlife. The island is accessible by rowing boat or felucca from the west bank or Elephantine. The broken strait between Elephantine and Amun island looks its best from a Felucca. If you are not already waterborne, the surrounding coves are frequented by local lads who'll blithely sail you to any of the islands or the West Bank.

Elephantine Island

Elephantine Island

Elephantine Island is one of the most beautiful places to visit in Aswan. It is like a piece of paradise with its some gardens and precious archeological relics. It is a great place for entertainment, where visitors can enjoy strolling among the black houses in the Nubian villages of Siou and Koti on the island, fishing in the Nile, or taking a walk on its banks.

Beit El-Wali Temple

Beit El-Wali Temple

Beit El-Wali Temple is  one  of  the  5  temples  cut  in  the  rock which were built by Ramses II in Nubia. It contains a residence of columns and a terrace adorned with letterings and multiple-color texts in addition to pictures of the King in the battlefield.

The area also consists other temples that are still under development, to wit the temples of Al-Dekkah, Al-Dorr, Al-Sobu’, Aamda and Al-Mahraqa and Ebrim Palace as well as the tombs of "Banout and Abou Auda".

Kalabsha Temple

Temple of Kalabsha

Kalabsha Temple is  one  of  the  most  magnificent  temples  in Nubia. It dates back to the geological era of the Octavious Augusts ( Roman emperor ) in 30 B.C. It was moved from its original home on the Nile’s west bank and rebuilt left the High Dam.

Kalabsha Temple is the largest temple built of sandstone  in  Nubia.  Its  walls  hold  inscriptions and engravings which draw the Egyptian story of ( Isis and Osiris ).

Nubia Old Temples

Nubia is the address of the land that stretches from the south of the 1st cataract of the Nile in Aswan to Dongola beyond the fourth cataract in Sudan. This  country  encompasses  the  surveying  restored temples:

- Kalabsha Temple
- Beit El-Wali Temple

Philae Temples

Philae Temples

They are based to the south of Aswan. Philae or (Phili) in Greek means (the beloved woman or women).

Its Arabic figure is (Ans El-Wogoud) in source to a myth with the like name in “The One Thousand Nights and Night” stories. The ancient Egyptian and Coptic name was "Pilak or Pilakh" which agency “the end” because it was the most southern edge of Egypt. It houses a group of temples that were dedicated to the worshipping of Isis, Hathor, Amenhotep and others. Latterly, they have been placed in Agilkia Island in implementation  of  the  design  of  Nubia  monuments rescue  against  the  new  subterranean  water. Visitors of the temples can view the Sound and Light show in several languages.

The Small Abu Simbel Temple

Small Abu Simbel Temple

It is placed to the north of the Great Abu Simble Temple, and was constructed by Ramses II to honor and  commemorate  his  beloved  wife  Nefertari and  for  Hathor,  the  Goddess  of  Love,  Music and Beauty. Although the temple is little than the great one, it is characterise by its beautiful drawings and bright colors.

The Sound and Light prove was introduced to the 2 temples.

The Sun Festival at Abu Simbel

Sun Festival at Abu Simbel

Complete more than 3000 years, one of the extended  miracles  has  been  taking  place  at  the Great Abu Simbel Temple with the shafts of the sun cutting into the sanctuary and informative the sculptures of pharaoh Ramses II and 2 statues of Ra-Hurakhti, God of the Sun, and Amun, God of Thebes on the back wall. Only the statue of Ptah, the god connected with the Underworld, remains in the dark. This phenomenon takes place in 2 large days of the year; on the dates that  mark  the  pharaoh’s  birthday  (October  21) and his investiture day in February 21.

Through that two days, thousands of tourists from all over the world come to Abu Simbel to watch this phenomenon during the the Sun Festival. The festival plan includes music performance and story about the era after Ramses II ascended the  throne  of  Egypt  in  nine  languages; Arabic, French, English, Spanish, Deutsch, Russian, Italian, Japanese, and Chinese.

The Great Abu Simbel Temple

Great Abu Simbel Temple

Façade of the Great Abu Simbel Temple is about 33 metres high and 38 meters wide. It was cut  63  meters  secret  into  the  rocks.  Four  colossal 20 metre statues of Ramses II, embodying the most important gods, decorate the façade of the Temple. Though large, the sculptors were creative in sculpture the Pharaoh’s pretty face and his  spiritual  smile  that  welcomes  the  shining sun. Previous the statues, there is a frame in which the names and titles of King Ramses II, the glorified, the born from the sun and the taken from it,  were  inscribed. Above  the  frame,  there  is  a frieze  of  spiritual  serpents,  followed  by  other frieze of baboons in a row producing their arms in the air and, supposedly, worshipping the rising sun. The catch, in the middle of the façade, is crowned by the statue of God Ra-Hurakhti. Next to and between the legs of the four colossi, there are other statues, no higher than the knees of the Pharaoh,  of  the  family  of  King  Ramses  II  (his mother, his favored chief wife Nefertari, and his sons and daughters).

Abu Simbel

Abu Simbel Area

Abu Simple consists in lower Nubia, south of Egypt, near the Sudanese border, about 280 km southwest of Aswan. It is a deal cliff of reddish sandstone that used to stand excellently on  the  west  bank  of  the  Nile  (and  now  on  the west bank of Lake Nasser behind the High Dam). In this area, Ramses II, the third Pharaoh of the 19th ancient Egyptian dynasty, had 2 temples cut in the rocks. The 2 temples were thought to make Nubia populated and reenforce the Egyptian sovereignty on it as well as to establish the Pharaoh’s  being  a  God  and  record  his victory over the Hittites at the Battle of Kadesh.

The 2 temples were full in 1206 BC and  were  thought  among  the  most  proud temples of ancient Egypt. They are visited the Great Abu Simbel Temple and the Small Abu Simbel Temple. With their outstanding architecture, good scales, larger statues and the inscriptions decorating the walls, the two temples are the most spacious and beautiful of all Egyptian rock temples in all times.

Tourism in Aswan

Tourism in Aswan

Aswan is qualified by several tourist features that made it a address for tourists from all over the world, especially in winter. It has a moderate and dry climate due to its position on the Nile east bank. It is taken an international winter resort and likewise an open museum for some archeological landmarks which date from to various ages and spread all over the city such as:

List of Aswan Monuments:

Abu Simbel Area

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The Great Abu Simbel Temple

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The Sun Festival at Abu Simbel

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The Small Abu Simbel Temple

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Philae Temples

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Nubia Old Temples

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Kalabsha Temple

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Beit El-Wali Temple

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Elephantine Island

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Kitchener's Island

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Nilometer

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Agilkia Island

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Amun Island

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Tombs of the Nobles

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Saint Simeon Monastery

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The Unfinished Obelisk

Aswan

Right bank of the Nile in  the city of Aswan

The city of Aswan is a magnificent tourist goal. It is likewise Egypt’s southern gate to Africa. It lies on the east bank of the River Nile that smoothly flows in splendor through the granite rocks about the Emerald Islands. It is covered with palm trees and white plants, which gives it a good view on the Nile and makes it a perfect starting point for Nile cruises.

In  Ancient  Egypt,  Aswan  was  identified  as "Sono"; or the market, due to then goes a commercial centre for the convoys coming from and going to Nubia. Through the Ptolemaic era, it was called "Syene", and then the Nubians called it  [Lipa-Swan].

It was also known as the "Land of Gold", as it was involved a great treasure; being a burying ground for the Nubian pharaohss who lived there for thousands of years. Before the known Nubians migration, Aswan used to extend from Isna to the east towards the borders with the Sudan to the south. Afterward the Islamic conquest, some Arab tribes knew there.

Aswan has a widespread fame thanks to its essential history  and  magnificent  geography.  7000  years ago, there in Aswan the outstanding civilization on the  River  Nile  had  egressed.  During  the  Old Kingdom, Aswan run a great role in defending the country’s southern borders. Aswan was as well the armies gathering center during the Middle  Kingdom  when  kings  tried  to  thrive  their govern  towards  the  south,  not  to  mention  during fighting against Hyksos. Philae Island, the homeland of God Isis, had also pulled the care of the Ptolemaic so that they completed the construction of its large Philae Temple.

In an attempt to get closer to the Egyptians, the Romans erected many Pharaonic-style temples. An instance of those temples is a close one in Philae  Island  established  by  Emperor  Trajan. When  Christianity  went  Egypt’s  religion  in the 5th Century AD, various Pharaonic temples were become into churches. Philae Island had went the center for one of the bishoprics, thus taking to the spread of Christianity in the southern towards Nubia in Egypt and the Sudan.

Since  the  coming  and  spread  of  Islam,  some writings in the Kofi penmanship that date back to the 1st Century AH have been discovered in Aswan. During the Islamic epoch and in the 10th Century AD, Aswan has expanded and became a road to (Aivab) on the Red Sea coast, where ships used to sheet to Hejaz, Yemen and India.

Aswan  was  as well  an  essential  cultural  central during the 6th and 7th centuries AH where 3 schools had been established (namely Aswan, Al-Saifiah and Al-Najmiah schools). What Is More, Mohamed Ali Paha had as well established the first military school in Egypt there about 1837.

The Second Dynasty of Ancient Egypt

List of the Pharaohs of The Second Dynasty of Ancient Egypt.

Hetepsekhemwy
Reneb
Weneg
Ninetjer
Sened
Nubnefer
Neferkare
Neferkaseker
Peribsen
Sekemib
Khasekhemwy

Khasekhemwy (2732—2705)

Cartouche of King Khasekhemwy

Khasekhemwy (2732—2705) was the fifth pharaoh of the 2nd Dynasty was likely responsible for the union of Upper and Lower Egypt. Not much is known nearly him, save the fact that he undertook big military campaigns. A statue of him which occupies in the Cairo Museum, demonstrates the first use of hard stone work during this stop. He is responsible for the building of a large granite door jamb inside the temple of Hierakonpolis, and for the construction of many of the mortuary complexes at both Saqqara and Abydos.

The most outstanding figure from the second dynasty and probably the whole Early Dynastic Time, was pharaoh Khasekhemwy. He really should have the title "Unifier of the two countries". Afterward winning the fight against the North that had went during the prevail of his predecessor. He chose Hierakonpolis in the far southern to be his capital and it was the first and last time the united Egypt was ruled from there. It took some effort to win the war and inscriptions from granite vessels discovered in his capital tells about his fights with the North, described as "rebels".

Being diplomatic he did not favour any of the main gods Horus and Set when the military fight was over. He simply put them both atop of his serek, thereby hoping to make peace and order to the country. He as well changed his name putting to it an additional -WY making it say - "The Two Powers Come Forward", instead of single one (Set) that he had before. In result he also put another commander's staff to his serek thereby making his different political view visible.

Statue of King Khasekhemwy

He as well made a campaign in to Nubia and adopted a new title: "overseer of the outside lands" that shows his involvement to keep contact abroad. His names has thus been discovered all the way up to Byblos in Syria. His tomb a little aside the others in Abydos is a remarkable construction unlike any of the earlier memorials there. The design is a somewhat (diplomatic?) mix between the north style mastaba-tombs and the traditional square constructions from the south. On top of all he placed it on "neutral" ground some 100 metres aside the old cemetery. He also held the tradition from most of the earlier kings by making an inclosure 1,8 kilometres towards the Nile from his tomb, probably for rituals of his mortal fad.

The size was far bigger then his predecessors: 69 m in length and 10-17 metre wide made of walls a good 2 m high. When it was dug in 1900 it still contained half a dozen applies such as chisels and woodcutting tools made of copper. In the middle was the grave chamber built in stone, the first of its kind. The ability to handle this material was shown for the first time in Egyptian history by the statues of Khasekhemwy that have survived from a find in Hierakonpolis. If they are portraits more such than gods images, the king seems to be a man with a discovered look in his face, and a firm mind, and this seems to have been the characteristics of the pharaoh. The most strikingly remain from him is the huge building he made at the capital Hierakonpolis. On the west side of the Nile a bit inside the desert lies the oldest known monumental building of sun-dried bricks in Egypt.

Sekemib (2743—2732)

Nothing is known about Sekemib. But he was a pharaoh of the second Dynasty. Some scholars suggest that Sekemib reigned towards the end of the dynasty while others references to "Wadjenes" place this ruler near the beginning of the dynasty.

Peribsen (2751—2743)

Observed by three kings, sendji, neterka, neferkara, before khasekhemwy, Peribsen was the fourth king of the Dynasty 2. He was really not the legitimate heir of Nintejer. In fact, many historians believe that the king was an outsider who instigated coup against King Nintejer. King Peribsen used the designation of seth in his titles. Unfortunately, nothing from Peribsen's era is well documented except for his mortuary complex near Abydos.
King Peribsen was a ruler who had his roots in the South, and was probably ruling from there throughout his time on the throne. Not a single trace of him is base in Lower Egypt with an elision of a writing with his name discovered in Sakkara and brought there in afterward times. He was the first pharaoh to write his name within a cartouche as seen in a preserved cylinder seal now in the Egyptian museum in Turin in Italy.

He made a remarkable change in royal custom by putting the god Set on top of his serek, (picture right) thereby disregarding the old south Horus falcon that from earliest times had been the symbol of pharaoh. This move was plain a political,/religious statement and he thereby took side in the current conflict between the supporters of these gods.

Vesse foundl in the tomb of Peribsen

Another King called Sekhemib-Perenmaat (see aabove) might have been a separate ruler, but most scholars take the view that this was the name of Peribsen before "conversion". "King Sekhemib" thus has no tomb in Abydos but the name has been got on labels in the domain inside and outside Peribsen's tomb. When he became king of Upper Egypt it might have been after civil war against Lower Egypt. His opponent might perchance have been king Sened and these two thus found each part of the Nile Valley. At some point Peribsen took over the whole country. We know this from inscriptions getting from his tomb in Abydos that tell about tribute, or conqueror?, concerning the town of Sethroë in the delta.

Neferkaseker

Cartouche of Neferkaseker

After Sened three kings do not appear on the Abydos list, and Neferkaseker is one of them. In the lists from Sakkara (from the tomb of Áaka) and in the royal Canon from the Turin papyrus he is attested by his neswy-bity name, but his Horus-name within a serek has not been base. A cylinder seal opinion from him base in a unknown place in the Nile Valley points good similarities in style and composition to the one of Peribsen from Milan, a piece that has been questioned. If this impression containing two cartouches with his name written in different ways (picture above right) is genuine and modern, it would be the second oldest known cartouche with a king's name found in Egypt so far.

Being a pharaoh not so well known (i.e. more or less unknown), Egyptologists have found a remarkable papyrus fragment from the second century A.D. written by demotic hieroglyphs.  It deals with prospecting a temple in the Faiyum area and has a visible though damaged text that has been interpreted as: Na w-nfr-ka-skr by some scholars (picture left). The roll of the king in this text is not quite detectable, but the preparation of the building can have been guided by a sketch or depiction from Neferkaseker's time as a prototype. If so, that means an impressive persistence in the archives from the Department of Royal Constructions, spanning for 3000 years.

Neferkare

Cartouche of Neferkare

There are no contemporary remains from the king Neferkare. Various rulers have had this name and the sound elements building up the name are very common. Archaeologists know him only from the two king lists from Áaka's tomb at Sakkara and the lettering in the papyrus from Turin known as the "Royal Canon of Turin". In the third list of substance - the Abydos king list from a wall in the temple of pharaoh Seti I from the 19th dynasty, he does not exist and nor does his immediate replacement. This temple is from 1200 years after the second dynasty and so are the other 2 lists. If the deletion of him and his replacement has to do with a tradition in Abydos (with hostility to the northern Memphis domain during the second dynasty) we don't know.

In both the Saqqara and Turin lists he has the position between Sened and Neferkaseker and in Manteho's list he is in the same place under the Greek-formed name Nepherkheres. At the end of the Old Kingdom about dynasty 6 his name comes to light during various rulers. This shows that he and other more than or less unfamiliar kings from the same time, was far from forgotten by the generations that follow them. Picture at top right points the cartouche with Neferkare's name as it appears in the Saqqara list. It contains the signs KA with the put up arms (meaning soul) and Nefer (a sign possibly showing a belly and a windpipe) significant beautiful and the sun (or really solar god) Re.