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A Temple to Horus the Elder & Sobek + a Costume Party - Egypt, P
(by Patti Day-Miller - July 06, 2010)
Kom Ombo is surrounded by fields of sugar cane and corn, and is home to many Nubians, who were displaced by the creation of Lake Nasser, when the High Dam was built at Aswan. We were scheduled to leave the ship for our tour of the Temple of Kom Ombo at 5 p.m. (temperature of 99º at that time), and it was a five-minute walk from the ship, but most of Gate 1, Bus 2 folks moved gamely forth.
The town became important during the Ptolemaic times because it was an important military base and trading center between Egypt and Nubia, not only for gold, but also for the African elephants the Ptolemies needed to use against their enemies, the Seleucids, who used Indian elephants. (The Seleucids ruled the largest chunk of Alexanders former empire to the east of Egypt.)
The temple here is unique in that it is totally symmetrical with two entrances, two halls, and two sanctuaries. The left side of the temple is dedicated to the falcon god, Horus the Elder, and the right side to Sobek, the local crocodile god. The construction of the temple was begun by Ptolemy VI in the 2nd century BC and mostly completed in the 1st century BC.
The first pylon, forecourt, and birth house have mostly disappeared in the Nile, and the 1992 earthquake did serious damage, but there is still much to see here. The many columns are carved with the lotus or lily of Upper Egypt and the papyrus of the Delta (Lower Egypt). The chapel of Hathor houses crocodile mummies. (Sacred crocodiles once basked in the sun on the shore here.)
The first hypostyle hall has two gates leading into the twin sanctuaries. On the left facade is Pharaoh Neos Dionysos in front of Horus, while on the right, he appears in front of Sobek. The ceiling is decorated with flying vultures. The walls of the second hall depict Ptolemy VI making offerings to the gods. On the door between the twin sanctuaries is a relief of Ptolemy VI and his wife receiving a palm branch.
Our tour also saw the areas nilometer (something like a well with steps going down into it and measuring notches on the walls). Nilometers were designed to measure the rise and fall of the Nile, and thus predict the fortunes of the annual harvest. If the higher notches were reached by the water that indicated a good harvest year (more fertilized silt/soil), though also higher taxes. The annual meter reading was a big deal to the Egyptian people; their very survival depended on the Nile and its water. It is important to remember that 96% of the land in Egypt is arid desert.
I cant stress enough how important the Nile has been to Egypt over the centuries. The ancient Greek writer Herodotus said that Egypt was the gift of the Nile. Although the Nile is shared by 10 African countries (it is the worlds longest river), Egypt has been the main beneficiary of its waters because it flooded annually covering the land with a rich layer of silt. As the water subsided the farmers would plant their seeds on their newly fertilized land and wait for their crops to grow. Herodotus also said that the Egyptians gather in the fruits of the earth with less labor than any other people. This agricultural abundance allowed them to focus on developing the knowledge and culture that formed their unique and sophisticated civilization.
After a five-minute walk back to our ship, everyone readied themselves in their newly purchased Egyptian apparel for the dinner on the sun deck. And what a sight we were! Many men looking like Arab sheiks, and the women in various styles ranging from belly dancers to elegant Egyptian queens, and everything in between. (Thankfully, the temps were very comfortable for our dinner, and then it was down one flight to the air-conditioned lounge where the party was to be held.)
Egyptian music, dancing, posing for a group photo, and a good time was had by all! Then it was off to our room, where we found a crocodile towel sculpture resting on our bed. Quite the fetching croc, we thought. We were tired, and headed to bed right away. Besides, many of us had signed up for the optional excursion to Abu Simbel, which meant a 5:15 wake-up call and leaving the ship at 6:20 for the 35-minute flight to view the two colossal temples there. Our ship cruised to Aswan as we slept.
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