15/50.- Luxor, Karnak Temple, Ramses III temple's courtyard

Here you can see some of the statues of the Ramses III temple's courtyard. Ramses III reigned from 1187 to 1156, and he built a small temple to Amon outside the Ramesside Pylon.

At the right you can see the column of taharqa. There used to be nine more of them. Taharqa was an Ethiopian pharaoh of the 25th dynasty.

The history of the Karnak area dates back to the gerzean period (c. 3400–c. 3100 BC), as excavations in the 20th century demonstrated. Unfortunately not much of this period remains today. Of the old temples of mont and mut only the foundations remain. Between these two temples lies the temple of Karnak, the largest temple complex in Egypt. A complete visit to this temple could take you several days. Most probably you won't have time to visit all the temples in this complex. I will try to show you different parts of this complex in this Photographic Tour.

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