The Mortuary Temple of Amenhotep III (Featuring Dr. Hourig Sourouzian)

Submitted by Prad on Tue, 10/27/2009 - 10:33

Description

Dr Hourig Sourouzian explains the excavations and work being carried out at the Mortuary Temple of Amenhotep III, a mortuary monument ten times bigger than any other in Egypt. However, the temple's close proximity to the River Nile left it exposed to flooding, and the temple collapsed within 200 years of being constructed. Dr Sourouzian explains her goal is to restore every object found at the temple to its original position, and create detailed maps and models of how the building might once have looked.

Related Heritage ExpertsSandro Vannini, Dr Hourig Sourouzian

CreditsDr. Hourig Sourouzian, Sandro Vannini, Nico Piazza

Transcription

Here we are at the temple of Amenhotep III. It is the funerary temple of a king who lived during the first half of the 14th Century B.C. It is a time when Egypt is at the pinnacle of its glory, its expansion and its power. During his reign, which lasted 39 years, the king built here, in the Theban area the biggest temple ever seen, which stretched from the Memnon Colossi all the way to the modern road that runs in front of the Antiquities Office for a total length of 700 meters. Compared to the other temples found in this area, this was truly 10 times bigger.

All that was contained in the temple was really extravagant. It was something extraordinary. The temple walls have all been destroyed, but whatever was inside is still there. The work we do here is not only about advancing our historical knowledge, but also saving the last remains of a temple that was once very prestigious that unfortunately was managed very badly.

I believe that in less than 20 years we will have achieved our objectives here. We would never attempt to rebuild the temple, that would be foolish to try and impossible to do. But what we can do is virtual reconstructions using modern tools like the computer. We will make models and maps. And we will showcase what has survived after restoring every piece to its original position within the temple. And finally we will make an open-air museum, where we will display all the beautiful statues of the Lion Goddess, Sekhmet.

Regarding the raw materials used here, because of the rich era when temple was built, all the quarries of Egypt were at the king's disposal. So we can find some rare and beautiful stones, like quartzite.

I must pay homage to the great Amenhotep who has built something truly magnificent and never seen before by working on a scale that had never been achieved before, pushing the envelope without forgetting to mention that artistically this represent an apex.

We have submitted a request to the World Monument Fund to have this site enlisted as one of the world's most endangered monuments as a part of the 'World Monuments Watch' list since the year 1998/99 – we are there together with another 1,100 monuments – and again in the year 2004.