Obelisk of Hatshepsut, a photo from Luxor, Inland

Photographer's Note

The unusual horizontal remains of the Obelisk of Hatshepsut in Karnak. She lived from 1479 BC to 1458 BC. "Following the tradition of most pharaohs, Hatshepsut had monuments constructed at the Temple of Karnak. She also restored the original Precinct of Mut, the ancient great goddess of Egypt, at Karnak that had been ravaged by the foreign rulers during the Hyksos occupation. It later was ravaged by other pharaohs, who took one part after another to use in their own pet projects. The precinct awaits restoration. She had twin obelisks, at the time the tallest in the world, erected at the entrance to the temple. One still stands, as the tallest surviving ancient obelisk on Earth; the other has broken in two and toppled." This appears to be the crown of that fallen obelisk. Many of the queen's images and structures were damaged and destroyed after the death of Thutmose III, but enough survives to form a good overview.

The most likely culprit is Amenhotep II, son of Thutmose III. "Amenhotep II, the son of Thutmose III, who became a co-regent toward the end of his father's reign, is suspected by some as being the defacer during the end of the reign of a very old pharaoh. He would have had a motive because his position in the royal lineage was not so strong as to assure his elevation to pharaoh. He is documented, further, as having usurped many of Hatshepsut's accomplishments during his own reign. His reign is marked with attempts to break the royal lineage as well, not recording the names of his queens and eliminating the powerful titles and official roles of royal women, such as God's Wife of Amun."

More info here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hatshepsut

ikeharel, pierrefonds, pajaran, jhm, COSTANTINO, PiotrF, mcmtanyel heeft deze opmerking als nuttig gemarkeerd

Critiques | Translate

mesutilgim (0) 2019-12-17 0:59

Hello dear Chris,
Another interesting and nice capture in your gallery. Both photographycally and informative perfect and enriched with many good, usefull notes.
For shure you know the two Aegyptian obelisks close to the Bluemosque. On one of them one can see how they were been transported from Aegypt to İstanbul.
TFS and best regards
MESUT ILGIM

abmdsudi (95869) 2019-12-17 1:11

Hi Chris
A very well composed and photographed shot of these ancient sculptures. I particularly like your chosen point of view.
Great light, detail and colour. Excellent shot
Best regards

Miguel82 (47110) 2019-12-17 1:14

Chris, that remain of the obelisk probably collapsed so it was exhibited horizontally for the visitors. That archeological site should be fascinating to explore. Two other obelisks are standing vertically in the bg. The ruins have a nice sandy color. Good sharpness, interesting photo note, regards.

Silvio1953 (223103) 2019-12-17 2:08

Ciao Chris, great detail of fantastic obelisk, wonderful colors, excellent clarity and splendid light, very well done, my friend, ciao Silvio

lousat (140070) 2019-12-17 2:44

Hi Chris,i remember well the sleeping obelisk of Karnak,unique opportunity to take the only one in horizontal position. Perfect capture with a diagonal perspective very sharp and bright,well done! Have a nice day and thanks,Luciano

kasianowak (17676) 2019-12-17 3:02

Hi Chris
The horizontal column looks unusual in juxtaposition to the standing ones we can admire in the background. It's obvious that it was intentionally left to be presented in this position.
Lovely reliefs, beautiful light and the clear blue sky. I also found your note fascinating and enlightening on the subject of ancient Egyptians' politics.
Best wishes
Kasia

pierrefonds (115677) 2019-12-17 4:38

Bonjour Chris,

Les ruines cadrent bien les obélisques. La prise de vue permet de voir les détails de l'obélisque d'Hatshepsut. La qualité de la lumière embellit les couleurs de l'image. Bonne journée.

Pierre

pajaran (117201) 2019-12-17 5:23

Pozdrav.
Lep pogled, interesantan i dobar tekst ...
Lepa stara arhitektura.
Lep obelisk i rusevina.
Lepo pokazano.
Zelim vam sve najbolje.
Paja.

Greeting.
Nice view, interesting and good text ...
Beautiful old architecture.
Nice obelisk and rubble.
Beautifully shown.
I wish you all the best.

jhm (211738) 2019-12-17 5:41

Hello Chris,

The unusual horizontal remains of the Obelisk of Hatshepsut in Karnak.
Perfectly captured and lovely presented.
An excellent soft contrast picture too.
Very well done, TFS.

Best regards,
John

Royaldevon (86564) 2019-12-17 6:05

Hello Chris,

This is another delightful photograph from your visit to Egypt. with lots of useful notes to explain the meaning of the features shown.
The close-up of the obelisk is super. We can easily see the hieroglyphs and the 3D details of its horizontal shape.
Excellent dof.

My warm regards,
Bev :-)

Sergiom (117241) 2019-12-17 6:32

Bonjour Chris,

J'ai l'impression que cette colonne a connu ses plus beaux jours lorsqu'elle était debout sur son socle. Couchée sur le côté ainsi elle ressemble à un obus. Magnifique arrière plan.

Amicalement

Serge

COSTANTINO (117940) 2019-12-17 10:27

Hello dear Chris
I love visiting your gallery
because I travel all over
the world
here we can see the
unusual horizontal remains
of the obelisk of Hatshepsut
in Karnak
thanks for your useful notes
welldone
regards
Costantino

Tue (93592) 2019-12-17 13:13

Hello Chris,
A great photo of the tip of the obelisk, this way we can enjoy the details and carvings very well and you captured them really clearly. The two obelisks still standing in the background along with the other ruins of this fascinating place look amazing too, especially against the blue sky.
Lars

PiotrF (56188) 2019-12-17 13:34

Hello Chris,
Interesting capture of the Obelisk of Hatshepsut in Karnak.
Very good picture with perfect exposure and good sharpness.
Fine presentation
Regards
Piotr

Nicou (193814) 2019-12-17 20:57

Hello

quel obélisque terre fantastique vue et composition cette forme avec la pointe très originel de nous le montrer avec les inscriptions ce ciel pur ces autres éléments des ruines fantastique
Bravo et amitié
Nicou

jemaflor (148368) 2019-12-17 23:31

Hi Chris,
Beautiful obelisk well framed, good depth result, so nice colors and light, perfect sharpness, tfs.

emka (158962) 2019-12-18 0:18

Hello Chris, Interesting remains of the obelisk of Hatshepsut. Difficult to imagine that it is so old and so well preserved.
I have visited Perspolis, also a fascinating place, but I haven't had time to preset it on TE yet.

Kind regards MAlgo

mkamionka (75255) 2019-12-18 2:13

Hi Chris,
great capture. The light was fantastic and the resulting colors so vivid.
The same color monuments are so well standing out from the well polarized sky.
The fallen obelisk combined with two more which are still standing (this reminded me the song "I am still standing" which could have been a good title for the photo :) )
-it all results in a great geometry. The hieroglyphs make amazing unique decoration.
Excellent work,
M

mcmtanyel (69384) 2019-12-28 21:22

Hello Chris,
I like your POV, showing this fallen obelisk situated in between the upright obelisks. Good composition, clarity and a lovely blue sky! 👍🏻👍🏻
Regards,
MT