DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.9059#0222
KARNAK— INSCRIPTION OF THOTHMES III. 205
temple of Karnak. The sanctuary of the grand
temple was anterior to Philip, anterior even to
Thothmes; it ranked among the oldest edifices
in Egypt, since it dated from the second king of
the XIIth dynasty. It was built of sandstone,
and stood in the centre of the large court to the
east (S). Its renown, its antiquity, and prob-
ably also its riches had the effect of attracting,
more than any other part of the temple, the
attention of every conqueror who invaded
Thebes, and it has disappeared to its very foun-
dations. With the exception of two or three
shafts of shattered columns, on which may still
be traced the legend of Usertasen I., nothing
remains to recall its memory.
The Eastern Gallery and its Dependencies (T).
—All those passages, chambers, and galleries
which form the extreme eastern boundary of the
grand temple of Karnak were set apart for reli-
gious purposes. The processions must have
passed through the galleries, while some of the
chambers served either for the manipulation
and preparation of the offerings, or as a deposi-
tory for the sacred objects which were used at
the celebration of the fetes. This part of the
temple was the work of Thothmes III., some few
temple of Karnak. The sanctuary of the grand
temple was anterior to Philip, anterior even to
Thothmes; it ranked among the oldest edifices
in Egypt, since it dated from the second king of
the XIIth dynasty. It was built of sandstone,
and stood in the centre of the large court to the
east (S). Its renown, its antiquity, and prob-
ably also its riches had the effect of attracting,
more than any other part of the temple, the
attention of every conqueror who invaded
Thebes, and it has disappeared to its very foun-
dations. With the exception of two or three
shafts of shattered columns, on which may still
be traced the legend of Usertasen I., nothing
remains to recall its memory.
The Eastern Gallery and its Dependencies (T).
—All those passages, chambers, and galleries
which form the extreme eastern boundary of the
grand temple of Karnak were set apart for reli-
gious purposes. The processions must have
passed through the galleries, while some of the
chambers served either for the manipulation
and preparation of the offerings, or as a deposi-
tory for the sacred objects which were used at
the celebration of the fetes. This part of the
temple was the work of Thothmes III., some few