The Egyptian Temple (Pt.1)
A microcosm of stone
I hope that these synthesis elements can be helpful for you to find inspiration in deepening and research within the context of ancient and archaic Egypt, which, despite many apparent differences, contains many elements related to the birth of the so-called western culture.
Disclaim: ! text below has been extracted, transalted and adapted from “Gods of ancient Egypt” a brochure sold and edited by the Egyptian Museum of the Metropolitan City of Turin in 2022. Text has been translated and conceptually adapted by the author with no purpose other than cultural disclosure. No religious dynamics are conveyed in this article, but the anthropological study and deepening of the ancient and archaic Egyptian civilization.
The very first thing to keep in mind while studying the context of this magnificent ancient culture is that, the Egyptian temple is not comparable to a synagogue, a church, a mosque or a hindu temple, as it was not intended to prayer or praise of one’s god nor was it the place where men affirmed and/or confirmed the existence of the divine.
The hut-netjer, “house of the god”, was the place where the image of the divinity received a cult and where the divine established itself and manifested itself directly on earth, a sacred place which was opposed to the profane world that surrounded it.
Ancient Egyptian temple remains are very scarce for the Old and Middle Kingdoms, while they abound from the New Kingdom to the Ptolemaic Period and during its development, the temple, followed an ideal model that literally represented the transcription of a metaphysical thought in stone, through the creation of structures that had, at the same time, a strong symbolic value and a concrete cultural function.
The central nucleus was separated from the rest of the internal and external structure by the temenos, a sacred space delimited by a high and thick adobe wall with an undulating pattern that recalled the ripples of water and, therefore, the hieroglyphic sign identifying this element (the nun) also defined as the sign of the primordial waters of creation.
The access door, facing river Nile, was often connected to a dock with a harness, since the temple had to be accessible also to boats destined to carry on board the statues of the gods carried in procession.
This gate generally opened between two pylons assimilated to Bakhu and Manu: the mountains of the East and West, which represented the boundaries of the solar journey.
It is a monumental set of two trapezoidal bodies decorated with rods, sometimes preceded by obelisks and statues. From here, one entered an open-air courtyard surrounded by a colonnade, at least on two sides, designated as the “Courtyard of the parties”. In fact, the people could access it only on the occasion of great festivities, such as the exits of the god.
Continues with The Egyptian Temple (Pt.2)
Credits: contents “Gods of ancient Egypt” , Egyptian Museum of Turin. — Translations by Alberto Ballocca.
