As you can see at Karnak and Luxor Temple, obelisks were placed inside the temple or in front of the temple.

They served as an antenna to bring cosmic energy to the earth. As religion held a significant place in the lives of the Egyptians, religious objects like an obelisk were incredibly important.

No matter how much work was involved in quarrying, the massive transports, and the erection of an obelisk

One of the largest and ambitious plans for a huge obelisk during the reign of Queen Hatshepsut was this obelisk that still lies here in the Aswan quarry.

This obelisk was intended for the Karnak Temple.

Unfortunately, it never moved from its place due to a huge crack in the stone.

It is known as the Unfinished Obelisk of Aswan. It should be the largest obelisk with a size of 41.75 meters.

If it had been completed, it would have had a weight of 1,168 tons. Think about the technology available at that time.

The transport would have been by boat along the Nile from Aswan to the Karnak Temple, which is 177 km in a straight line.

If we consider the time it took for an obelisk of a normal height of about 30 meters to stand, we are talking about months for production, shipping, and erection in the temple.

How did they work in the quarry to cut an obelisk from the hard granite.

A row of holes was made about 10 cm in size, then wood was introduced into the holes and wet with water.

The wood then expanded and the rock tore off. The shape of the obelisk was created by rows of workers who made a trench around the obelisk using dolomite stones. This was possible because dolomite is harder than granite.

To smooth the edges, stones were heated and placed on the stone of the obelisk at the places where pieces had to be cut away.

When the stone of the obelisk became hot, cold water was poured over it, and the uneven pieces came off in flakes, thanks to the crystal line in the granite.

The reason this obelisk was never completed is because there was a fatal crack in the stone that was too deep, and there was nothing that could be done about it.

So, the obelisk was abandoned, and it has remained there forever. Today, we are glad that the crack occurred because it has provided us with valuable insights into the process of making an obelisk.

ABU SIMBEL THE SUN TEMPLE OF RAMSES II

You will be picked up at 5 a.m. from your hotel for your excursion to Abu-Simbel. You will be provided with a breakfast box for the road.

The temples of Abu Simbel were discovered by the Swiss traveler Burkhart in 1813, but unfortunately he could not enter the temple because the facade and entrance were completely blocked with sand. In 1817, Belzoni managed to excavate the interior of the temple to go inside.

The temples of Abu-Simbel are located about 285 km south of Aswan. The temples are one of the most important temple complexes of ancient Egypt.

After the construction of the High Dam in 1960 and the formation of Lake Nasser, many of the Nubian temples encountered problems as the water rose and damaged the temples.

Then UNESCO decided to save these monuments as part of the world's cultural heritage, to prevent them from being submerged in the formation of Lake Nasser, and it was decided to move the temples to a higher area.

Salvage of the monuments began in 1961, and the Abu-Simbel Temple was the largest and most difficult project, because the temple was built into a solid rock and had to be completely removed.

The idea was to cut the temples into blocks and then rebuild them at a higher site 80 meters up and 150 meters inland.

A corridor of metal plates was constructed through the sand, this was for the people who had to work inside the temple to get in and out more easily. Then the stones and blocks were covered under a layer of sand to protect them from the vibrations of the machines.
The statues were separated using motorized saws, and in difficult cases the hand saw was used one needed 1 year for this huge work.

In the end, there were 1042 pieces of stone, and each had a weight of more than 20 tons. Reconstruction of the temples began in 1966. They had to be placed in the same position and distance as in the old position. The cost of this huge move was $40 million. Paid for by UNESCO and Egypt.

In the facade of the temple, the king had himself depicted four times to make his power and position clear.

Ramses II led many expeditions to the Levant such as Israel, Lebanon and Syria, he also led expeditions south into Nubia

The beginning of his reign focused on building cities, temples and monuments.

He also led many wars against the enemies of Egypt, one of which was the great battle of Kadesh against the Hittites. This battle is depicted in many of his temples.

The construction of the Abu-Simbel temple took about 20 years and was completed in year 1224 of his reign.
The temple is dedicated to Amon-Re, Re-Horachty, Ramses II and Ptah.
The memorial stone in the side of the temple records the king's marriage to King Hattusili II's daughter, which sealed the peace between Egypt and the Hittites.

The pylon, has a facade 27.50 meters high . And 4 large statues show the king in sitting position they are about 21 m high, and above the statues there is a frieze of 22 baboons welcoming the rising sun each morning.

The four statues show the king and he is wearing the crowns of Upper and Lower Egypt

In addition to the sacred Cobra, he also wears the false beard symbol of authority, and his hands rest on his knees.

Each of the statues has its own title written on the shoulder of the king's statue, and between them are small statues for his mother, his wife Nefertarie, his sons and daughters.

Above the entrance to the temple are written in hieroglyphics the titles and names of the king.

Then behind the facade we have the entire temple with a depth of 48 meters.

Entering the main hall, we see 8 huge columns with statues 10 meters high of the king as Osiris. The walls record all the king's victories over his enemies. And on the north wall the battle of Kadesh.

The 2nd hall has 4 columns and shows the king in different positions with different gods in different rituals and scenes.

There are also 5 more long narrow rooms that were used as warehouses of the temple.

In the back is the holy of holies here are 4 statues , Amon-Re of Thebes, Re-Horachty of Heliopolis, Ramses II and Ptah of Memphis.

Twice a year on Feb. 22 and Oct. 22, the sun's rays come all the way into the sacred part of the temple, shining on all four statues of the gods and Ramses II.

The temple that Ramesses II built for his greatest love, his wife Nefertari, stands 100 meters to the south and is dedicated to the goddess Hathor of Ibshik and to Nefertari himself.

Ramses II, had known Nefertari since childhood and she was the king's great love. And especially for her, he built a temple at Abu Simbel. There are 6 niches in which statues of the king and queen stand behind the statues are their children.

Surprisingly, the statues of the king and queen here are the same size that is not common in Egyptian art. Traditionally, the queen's statues were next to the king's, but they were never taller than his knees. From this exception, we can see the importance of Nefertari to Ramses II.

Behind the facade lies the temple, which is 24 meters deep in the rock. In the 1st hall are 6 columns with capitals of Hathor and on the walls are images of the king and queen before the gods.

The reliefs in the hall show Ramses II and the destruction of his enemies. On the north and south sides show scenes of the king accompanied by his wife and they give an offering to Hathor.

The colonnaded hall is followed by a vestibule here is access through 3 passages, behind which is the holy of holies where the goddess Hathor was depicted in the form of a cow.

After this we drive back to Aswan and have lunch there

In the afternoon we visit the Botanical garden and then the Nubian village where you can meet the villagers' pets, the crocodiles.

Today we leave for Luxor and visit various temples and tombs along the way. We will pick you up at 6 o'clock in the morning and you will receive a debox.

First we visit the double temple in Kom-Ombo. This is located on an excellent rocky outcrop on the Nile. This is located on an excellent rocky outcrop on the Nile.

The temple of Kom-Ombo is located 50 km north of Aswan. What does the name Kom-Ombo mean, Kom means mountain, Ombo comes from Nebo which is Nubian for gold.
In short, Kom-Ombo means the mountain of gold. There used to be gold mines here.
This temple is different from all the other temples in Egypt, it is a double temple and dedicated to two gods. The crocodile-headed god Sobek, and the falcon-headed god Horus, but in his older form with the name Haroeris.
You must understand that the ancient Egyptians worshiped animals in the form of a god. This does not mean that they worshiped the animals themselves. They took only the image of the animal and made it in the form of a god. But let's see why the crocodiles were worshiped here.
As I said, here we are 50 km north of Aswan city. Aswan is located on the first cataract, which consists of enormous granite blocks that lie in the Nile and form islands.
They also block the Nile flow, so it was only during the rainy season that the water rose between 28 and 36 meters high.
Only at this point could the crocodiles continue swimming north. It was a long and hectic 50-km trek they had to go through. By land was not possible because everywhere the banks were too high to get out.
When they finally got to land they attacked everything that came their way and they were tired and hungry whatever came their way. Animals, birds and also people.
So the people who lived in Kom-Ombo had to come up with something for this problem.
So they turned the crocodile into a god named Sobek, and they built a temple in his honor and held a huge feast for him every year.
They made many sacrifices every day, in return asking for a protected life and protection for the other crocodiles.
But they were not happy about it, because the ancient Egyptians saw the crocodile as a symbol of bad things, and it is not good for people to worship a bad person in a temple.
So something had to be figured out to solve this problem.
They borrowed from the temple of Edfu the God Horus the avenger and brought him to Kom-Ombo. His name and his form were slightly changed, and there was Horus-the Elder, and a temple was also built for him to share with the dangerous crocodile god. The Ancient Egyptians gave Horus four forms like Horus the avenger in Edfu, in Kom-Ombo,
Horus the Elder, in Philea Horus the Baby and in Dendera Horus the Child.
The temple is a unique temple, it is actually 2 temples one half is for Sobek and the other half for Haroeris.

We then drive to Edfu where the second largest temple is located, the temple of Karnak. The temple is dedicated to the Falcon-god Horus of vengeance. And it is the best preserved temple in Egyptian history.

Edfu is considered one of the oldest cities in Egypt. Edfu was the 3rd province in ancient times and the 1st name was Behedet then it became Etbo and then Edfu which means"the city of vengeance." The Temple of Horus is located on the west bank of the Nile.

The temple is the second largest temple in Egypt after the Temple of Karnak but also one of the best-preserved temples. The temple is dedicated to the falcon god Horus.
The inscriptions are very important and give us an enormous amount of information about the language the myths and religion in Greco-Roman times.
The temple was built in the Greco-Roman period, just like the temples in Dendera, Esna, Kom-Ombo, and Philea.
Construction started in 237 b. B.C. during the reign of Ptolemy III and was finished in 57 BC. Chr. under Ptolemy XII
The temple was built on an older smaller temple, which was also dedicated to Horus but dates back to the New Kingdom and had been built by Ramses I, Seti I and Ramses II. Over the centuries, the temple became buried under the sand to a depth of 12 meters that the river brought with it from the floods.
Discovered in 1860 by French archaeologist Auguste Mariette, it took 43 years to remove all the sand.
The Temple of Horus is the best preserved temple and is built of sandstone.
The Edfu Temple has the traditional elements of an Egyptian temple of the New Kingdom, along with some Greek elements such as the Mamisi which means "the house of the divine birth"
The reason the temple was built here is because this is where Horus won his victory over his uncle Seth and sent him into the desert.
The temple was built to celebrate the victory of the avenger against evil.

What we are standing in front of now is the pylon of the temple, these are 2 large towers and you can see in each of the towers are 2 grooves these are flag masts one for Edfu and one for the god Horus.
What is between the two towers, which is a window of appearances. This is where the king came to wave to the the people when the people came here when there was a feast. Under the window of appearances is an important relief namely the winged solar disc of Re. The worship of Horus the Avenger and the of Re the great Forgiver.
On the pylon, Horus the Avenger stands as a great warrior with prisoners brought back from war. The king holds them by the hair in 1 hand. And stands ready to strike them and offer them to Horus and his wife Hathor. The king wears the white crown of Upper Egypt on one side and the Red crown of Lower Egypt on the other tower. In this way he confirms that he is king of upper and lower Egypt.

The graves of Governor El-Kab, these are new imperial graves. When you are at the tombs of El-Kab you will also look at the walls of the ancient city of Necheb. One of the oldest places in Egypt where the palette of King Narmer was found, he was the first king from the 1st dynasty who turned the 2 countries of Upper and Lower Egypt into 1 country. He also founded the new capital Memphis, which means white walls.

These tombs, which belong to the governors of the new kingdom, are located directly across the road from ancient Necheb (Hierakonpolis).

Four graves can be visited: the grave of Ahmose son of Ebana, he had an entire biography written on the wall of his grave about his life and the time he was in the army.

He was there when the Hyksos, which means "foreign people" who ruled Egypt in the 17th dynasty, were expelled.

He was governor of Nechen during the reign of Thutmose III.

But he was also the grandson of Ahmose son of Ebana EK05 and scribe, and priest of the goddess Nekhbet. And he oversaw the construction of his grandfather's tomb.

The tomb is 4 meters long and 3.5 meters wide unfortunately it is badly damaged there were prayers and hymns on the walls depicted to Amon-Re and other gods.

There is a picture here that Pahari is sitting with the king's son on his lap.

Unfortunately, this grave has been badly damaged by the enormous amount of gravity that was scratched onto the walls by visitors from the 18th and 19th centuries.

He was Viceroy of Nubia in the second half of the reign of Ramses II. And also Ramses' best friend.

He is also the one who built the temple in the Wady-es Seboea and left a long biographical text there. There were also 11 steles of his found here that are now in the museum in Cairo.

And he had the temple of Gerf Hussein built.

In Ahmose's tomb, a whole biography was put on the wall of his tomb about his life and when he was in the army.

He was there when the Hyksos, a strange people who ruled Egypt in the 2nd Intermediate Period, were expelled.

The autobiography of Ahmose, son of Ebana:

Ahmose served in the Egyptian army under the kings, Ahmose l, Amenhotep l, and Thutmose l, his autobiography has survived and is intact on the wall of his tomb, in El-Kab.

Ahmose was born in the city of Nekheb, modern-day El-Kab. During the war to drive the Hyksos out of Egypt during the reign of Seqenenre Tao, his father had joined the navy, Ahmose began serving as a soldier under King Ahmose. He took part in the battle of Avaris (the Hyksos capital in the Nile Delta) where he killed two Hyksos and was twice awarded the title 'Gold of courage'. Ahmose received slaves and other loot from the king after Avaris was defeated. Ahmose also participated in the three-year siege of Sharuhen in southern Canaan for which he was rewarded.

He followed his king to Nubia where they put down three rebellions. Under Amenhotep, he fought against the Nubians and received gold and slaves for his prowess. During the reign of Thutmose I, Ahmose took part in a naval campaign against Nubian tribes in the Nile Valley and was appointed admiral, he also followed Thutmose I on a campaign against Naharin all the way to the Euphrates River.

Ebana was the name of Ahmose's mother (and probably a very important woman) the name of his father was Baba.

Paheri, in el-kab tomb EK03 is the grandson of Ahmose and a scribe, and priest of the goddess Nekhebet oversaw the construction of his grandfather's tomb. The photo shows Ahmose in his grave in El-Kab.

Renni was governor of El-Kab during the reign of Amenhotep I at the beginning of the 18th dynasty, in addition to being governor, he was also priest of Necheb.

Finally, we visit the temple of Esna dedicated to the god Chnum, the god with the ram's head.

The ancient name for Esna is Ta-Senet, and the temple is dedicated to Chnum the creative god often depicted behind his potter's table. He is worshiped here with his wife Menheyet a small goddess with a lioness head. But it is also dedicated to other gods such as Neith, Satis, Heka and Menheyet. The temple was built in the Ptolemaic/Roman period and is one of the last temples built in Ancient Egypt. The temple originally had the same building plan as the temples of Edfu and Dendera. But all that's left of it is the hypostyle hall.

After this, we will drive to Luxor and transfer you to your hotel.