Aswan: Nile at its Prettiest

Aswan: Aswan is a strategic location which currently houses a garrison of the Egyptian army, but which has also seen ancient Egyptian garrisons, as well as that of General Kitchener, Turkish troops of the Ottoman empire, and the Romans. In Aswan, the Nile flows through granite rocks and around emerald islands covered in palm groves and tropical plants. People since ancient times have visited the city; and many have considered it a favorite winter destination. I got carried away taking pictures of the Nile in this fabulous location.

Hometown of Al-Aqqad: The famous Egyptian writer, Abbas Mahmoud al-Aqqad (1889-1964) was born in Aswan. Poet, literary critic, and politician, he was one of the most important modernist writers and thinkers of the liberal era in modern Egypt. Beginning in the early 1950s, Al-Aqqad established a salon in his home that met every Friday. Its participants, who included some of the leading Egyptian intellectuals and artists of the day, discussed literature, philosophy, science, history, and other subjects. One of the most contentious topics of the salon was the role of Muslim women in society. Al-Aqqad, who reportedly had great respect for women, wrote three books on the subject, insisting in each of them that women should have the right to participate fully in society, as opposed to the severely restricted role they were relegated to orthodox Islam. He argued that women should enjoy freedom of thought as well. Women: Women do have some freedom of movement in Aswan. I have seen them walking singly or in groups unaccompanied by males; women sell garden products and doves in the markets.

Nubian Village on Elephantine Island.

Edfu (إدفو)

Edfu:The temple of Edfu is the largest temple dedicated to Horus and Hathor of Dendera. It was the center of several festivals sacred to Horus. Each year, Hathor traveled south from her temple at Dendera to visit Horus at Edfu; and this event marking their sacred marriage was the occasion of a great festival and pilgrimage. A front chapel on the east is the Chapel of the New Year, a sun court like that at Dendera. Here, a depiction on the ceiling shows the voyage of the solar barque through the twelve hours of the day, with an inspiring image of the goddess, Nut. The statue of Horus would be taken from here up a flight of stairs to the roof terrace where it would be recharged by the sun during the Festival of the New Year. The walls of the stairs located in the outer anti-chamber depict this ritual. Note: A shēn ring is a circle with a line tangential to it, which represented eternal protection. In its elongated form the shēn ring became the cartouche which enclosed and protected a royal name.

Statue of Horus as falcon enclosing image of a Roman emperor.

Statues of Horus as falcon before inner wall of temple. Common people were only allowed into an outer ceremonial hall of temples not inner portions or sanctuaries.

Capital of temple column.

Temple relief.

The Sanctuary of Horus, the holiest part of the temple. The sanctuary centers on a black-granite shrine that once contained the gilded wooden cult image of Horus. Next to the shrine is an offering table and the ceremonial barque (barge) on which Horus was carried during festivals.

Inscriptions covering the walls of the Temple of Edfu are among the most important sources on Ptolemaic Egypt. They offer a wealth of information about religion, political history, administration, and other topics.

A Ptolemy presenting offerings to the gods.

Perfume offerings.

The site of ancient Djeba (Coptic Etbo, Arabic Edfu) was the traditional location of the mythological battle between the gods Horus and Seth. The inner walls of the temple tell the story of how Horus was conceived from parts of his father, Osiris, god of the underworld. Seth chopped Osiris up into little pieces and cast his parts into the Nile. Isis used her magic to restore Osiris to life only to have Seth do the same again. The second time Isis was unable to restore Osiris, so she used the parts to conceive Horus. Horus later slays Seth (now in the form of a miniature hippo) but loses an eye in the battle. The eye of Horus is an important religious symbol in ancient Egyptian mythology.

The sycamore tree was one of the trees considered significant in Egyptian mythology.

Relief of sycamore tree at Edfu.

Relief at Temple of Horus at Edfu displaying the dual patron deities of the unified country of Lower and Upper Egypt crowning the king with its new crown. The goddess Wadjet or Uto (left) is represented as a cobra joined by the goddess Nekhbet (right), represented as a white vulture, as they confer a new crown that combines their respective previous crowns.

Statue of Horus as falcon.

Horus as falcon wearing the double crown of lower and upper Egypt.

A Ptolemy slaying his enemies.

Kom Ombo (كوم أمبو), Edfu

Guide: I enjoyed Kasem as the guide for all my trips. He was very knowledgeable, polite, and ready to answer questions. He was a great conversationalist; and I learned so much about local Egyptian culture and life. He did have his opinions, such as Mubarak was good, a military ruler could answer some of Egypt's problems, Morsi didn't cause all of the current problems, a preference for males, etc. He had a dark prayer scar, zabiba (raisin in Arabic), and took his religion seriously. He is from the Hadeed tribe in Esna, although all of his present family, 9 brothers and sisters and himself, now live in Kom Ombu. His ancestors came from Saudi Arabia. He mentioned that tribes are still very important in Upper Egypt; and his tribe came to his defense when he ran into problems in Abu Simbel. He hopes to be getting married in April, although he gave all of his money to help his brother get married before the revolution thinking he could make a lot more; and the economy (especially the tourist trade) is suffering in Egypt right now. His fiancé is from Esna. He has wanted to be a tour guide since he was a child and watched guides take tourists around the monuments in his hometown of Kom Ombo. He mentioned that at birth, a verse from the Qur'an is recited in each ear of the newborn, usually by the mother's father-in-law. The Sebou (meaning the seventh) is one of Egypt's oldest and most cherished celebrations. The family gathers a week after the birth of a baby of either sex. On the seventh day, the Sebou celebration starts with the baby taking a bath and then getting dressed in a new outfit. The mother and the women of the family are responsible for preparing a feast. In Kasem's area, this seems to involve the preparation of many, many doves to last the family a long time. Certain rituals are performed for this happy and joyous occasion.

Kom Ombo: Kom Ombo is an agricultural town, thirty miles north of Aswan in the Aswan governorate with irrigated sugar cane and corn making up most of the agricultural industry. It has a huge sugar factory and refinery. The town itself officially has a population of 60,000, but is part of a much larger metropolitan area. Kasem showed me the area where the family of former King Idris of Libya (who are descendants of the Prophet Muhammad) currently live and the alley leading to his family home. The Temple of Kom Ombo, built on a high dune on the west bank of the Nile with beautiful views, is an unusual "paired" temple built during the Ptolemaic dynasty with some additions during Roman times. The structure has a dual design meaning that there were courts, halls, sanctuaries and rooms duplicated for two sets of gods. The southern half of the temple was dedicated to the crocodile god Sobek. The northern part of the temple was dedicated to the falcon god Haroeris, also known as Horus the Elder. The temple is unique since all features are perfectly symmetrical along the main axis.

Edfu: Edfu, on the west bank of the Nile, is 33 miles from Kom Ombo. The Nile is much wider here than in in Kom Ombo. The Temple of Edfu is one of the best preserved temples in Egypt. Edfu was one of several temples built during the Ptolemaic period, including Dendera, Esna, Kom Ombo and Philae. Dedicated to the falcon god Horus, building of the temple from sandstone blocks took place in the Ptolemaic period between 237 and 57 BCE. The temple of Edfu fell into disuse as a religious monument following Theodosius I's edict banning non-Christian worship within the Roman Empire in 391 CE. As elsewhere, many of the temple's carved reliefs were razed by followers of the Christian faith which came to dominate Egypt. The blackened ceiling of the hypostyle hall, visible today, is believed to be the result of arson intended to destroy religious imagery that was then considered pagan. Long Trip: The trip to see the temples at Kom Ombo and Edfu took 8 hours. We left the hotel at 7:00 AM and returned a little after 3:00 PM. It was a beautiful trip, much of it along the Nile by irrigated land and fields of palms, mangos, etc.. Crossing the bridge at Edfu, I could see how wide the Nile becomes at that point. At Kom Ombo, the river runs between steep and narrow banks of sandstone and in antiquity deposited little of its fertilizing silt on the barren shores.

Sobek at the Temple of Kom Ombo.

Neos Dionysos (Ptolemy XII [81-50 BC], the father of Cleopatra) is shown being purified by Thoth and Horus.

Woman giving birth relief in Temple of Kom Ombo.

One of the rooms for patients seeking treatment. The temple became a sanctuary for the ill who were seeking help by priests.

Medicinal eye of Horus.

Medical instruments relief at the Temple of Kom Ombo thought to be the first representation of medical instruments for performing surgery, including scalpels, curettes, forceps, dilator, scissors and medicine bottles dating from the days of Roman Egypt.

Temple relief.

Relief at Temple of Horus (Kom Ombo).

Columns of the Outer Hypostyle Hall.

A huge round vertical column with a staircase serving as a Nilometer lies near a well connected to this drainage system which provides water to Cleopatra's bath.

According to my guide, Cleopatra III used this bath surrounded by mirrors to treat a skin disease.

Relief at Kom Ombo.

Mummified crocodiles in Kom Ombo Museum, A few of the three hundred crocodile mummies discovered in the vicinity. The crocodile was held in honor by the people of Ombos (Greek name).

Mummified crocodile eggs in museum.

Mummified crocodiles found near Fayyum in museum.

Glass crocodile in museum.

Temple visitors.

Visitors.

Temple overseer.

More Nubians

Nubian community or family celebration: Last evening I heard group celebretory singing coming from a nearby Nubian village. I heard it another time with flute playing. Another time, I heard singing using different instruments at sunset.

Nubian father and child.

In a Nubian kitchen.

Domed roofs and open vents common in Nubian homes.

Salamlek, Nubian living room for men.

Fragrant spices.

Nubian scarf weaver. I bought two.

Villa on the Nile of a famous Nubian singer, Muhammad Mounir.