Ancient Egyptian temple reveals previously unknown constellations
Restoration filled with soot Ancient Egyptians According to German and Egyptian experts, the temple has revealed a previously unknown name for the constellations of ancient Egypt.
The restoration also revealed the gorgeous original colors of the ancient Egyptians’ 2,000-year-old temples.
Egyptian workers removed soot and dirt from the temple, sometimes mixing alcohol and distilled water, and the original sculptures and hieroglyphs depicted below were very vibrant, saying, “It seems to have been painted yesterday.” Project Leader Christian Reitz, Dean of Egyptology at the University of Tubingen, Germany, told Live Science. “But we’re not repainting anything, we just remove the soot.”
Relation: Photo: Egyptian sculpture 3,300 years ago
During the restoration, researchers cleaned up ancient sculptural scenes depicting constellations, such as the Big Dipper (known as Mesectiu) and Orion (known as Sir). They also found inscriptions about previously unknown constellations, including what is called the ancient Egyptian sun god “Apedunra” or “La Goose”, Lights said.
But without the images that accompany these explanations, he said, there is no way to know which stars in the night sky they describe.
Sanctuary to storage warehouse
The first modern description of the Greek-Roman Temple, known as the Temple of Esna, dates back to 1589, when Venetian merchants visited Egypt and described it. UCLA Egyptology Encyclopedia.. About 40 miles (60 km) south of the ancient capital Luxor, the town of Esna used to have more temples, but two were quarried during Egypt’s industrialization and one of the largest, Esna. The temple was used for storage. According to Rights, cotton in the first half of the 19th century.
The facility, which turned from this sanctuary to a storage facility, may have been valued for being in the city centre. People began to build houses and huts directly on some of their walls, and postcards from the 19th and 20th centuries show that it is surrounded by rubble. Decades of negligence have left temples covered with soot and bird droppings dirty.
Today, only the front yard remains. The large sandstone structure is supported by 24 pillars, 18 independent pillars decorated with botanical carvings. It is approximately 120 feet long, 65 feet wide and 50 feet high (37 x 20 x 15 meters). However, it would have been dwarfed by an actual temple built under Roman emperor Claudius (governed in 41-54 AD). What happened to this part of the temple is a mystery. It was already gone by the time the Venetian merchants explained it in the 16th century.
The construction and decoration of the temple, which included an astronomical design on the ceiling, probably took 200 years, Lights said.
During the latest restoration, researchers discovered new inscriptions, including inscriptions on unknown constellations. Lights said that when the ancient Egyptians decorate temples, they first paint the design in black ink, then have the craftsmen carve the reliefs, and then the painters paint the reliefs.
Many of the inscriptions were painted in ink on the astronomical ceiling, but were not carved or painted.
“Previously it wasn’t detected under soot, but now it’s gradually exposed,” Lights said.
Launched in 2018, this project is a collaboration between the Institute of Ancient Near East (IANES) of the University of Tubingen and the Ministry of Tourism of Egypt.
Originally published in Live Science.
Ancient Egyptian temple reveals previously unknown constellations
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