FRIDAY, JULY 30: EDFU, ESNA, and onto LUXOR

• Sail to Edfu
• Visit Edfu Temple (slide show)
• Lunch onboard
• Visit Esna Temple (slide show)
• Dinner onboard
• Luxor Temple at night (slide show)
• Overnight in Luxor

Today’s adventure is a look at a site from the Greco-Roman era in Egypt, when the Ptolemies ruled, right before the country was absorbed into the Roman Empire.

The Temple of Kom Ombo is memorable as a symmetrical “double temple” housing the worship of two gods, Horus the Elder (Haoeris) and Sobek, the crocodile god. Kom Ombo has a striking relief of the pharaoh in a reed boat. The wall relief that raises the most discussion is one that appears to depict surgical instruments.

Early afternoon we’ll visit the temple of Horus at Edfu. It’s one of the best preserved monuments in Egypt and a highly significant part of an annual pilgrimage and festival celebrating the sacred marriage of the gods Hathor and Horus. Scenes of the New Year Festival and distinctive reliefs in its chapels are the temple’s drawing cards.

Luxor Temple was the home of the annual Opet Festival, when the pharaoh was mystically joined to the Egyptian god Amun amid great celebration. Late afternoon we explore Karnak temple, a massive complex of temples, dedicated to the chief Egyptian god, Amun-Re. Karnak’s building elements and setting have astronomical references tying them to ancient Egyptian cosmology.

On our way to Luxor, our Egyptologist will prep us for our visit to the Valley of the Queens where we’ll see an evocative tomb and evidence of the use of astronomy in ancient Egypt.