Abydos Egypt: Encyclopedia II - Abydos Egypt - Temples built

Abydos Egypt - Temples built

The temples successively built here on one site were nine or ten in number, from the 1st dynasty to the 26th dynasty. The first was an enclosure, about 30 x 50 ft., surrounded by a thin wall of unbaked bricks. Covering one wall of this came the second temple of about 40 ft. square in a wall about 10 ft. thick. An outer temenos (enclosure) wall surrounded the ground. This outer wall was thickened about the 2nd or 3rd dynasty. The old temple entirely vanished in the 4th dynasty, and a smaller building was erected behind it, enclosing a wide hearth of black ashes. Pottery models of offerings are found in the ashes, and these were probably the substitutes for sacrifices decreed by Khufu (or Cheops) in his temple reforms.

A great clearance of temple offerings was made now, or earlier, and a chamber full of them has yielded the fine ivory carvings and the glazed figures and tiles which show the splendid work of the 1st dynasty. A vase of Menes with purple inlaid hieroglyphs in green glaze and the tiles with relief figures are the most important pieces. The noble statuette of Cheops in ivory, found in the stone chamber of the temple, gives the only portrait of this greatest ruler.

The temple was rebuilt entirely on a larger scale by Pepi I in the 6th dynasty. He placed a great stone gateway to the temenos, an outer temenos wall and gateway, with a colonnade between the gates. His temple was about 40 x 50 ft. inside, with stone gateways front and back, showing that it was of the processional type. In the 11th dynasty Mentuhotep I added a colonnade and altars. Soon after, Mentuhotep II entirely rebuilt the temple, laying a stone pavement over the area, about 45 feet square, besides subsidiary chambers. Soon after Senusret I in the 12th dynasty laid massive foundations of stone over the pavement of his predecessor. A great temenos was laid out enclosing a much larger area, and the temple itself was about three times the earlier size.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Temples built", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki