Philae Temple Complex
(Island from the Time of Re, Pilak)
Philae Temple was dismantled and reassembled (on Agilika Island
about 550 meters from its original home on Philae Island) in the
wake of the High Dam. The temple, dedicated to the goddess Isis,
is in a beautiful setting which has been landscaped to match its
original site.
It's various shrines and sanctuaries, which
include The Vestibule of Nectanebos I which is used as the
entrance to the island, the Temple of the Emperor Hadrian, a
Temple of Hathor, Trajan's Kiosk (Pharaohs Bed), a birth house
and two pylons celebrate all the deities involved in the Isis
and Osiris myth.
The Victorian world fell in love with the
romance of the Temple.
But at night you can also visit the Sound
and Light Show, a magical experience as floodlit buildings are
silhouetted against the volcanic rocks and water surrounding
them. So today, Philae is more fun then every before.
Although antiquities on the island date between the 26th Dynasty
and the Roman Period, most of the work is from that of the
Roman.
This was a time of immense popularity of the Goddess
Isis, and this was her island, where pilgrims would come from
all over the Mediterranean.
Construction on the island took
place over an 800 year span, and it was one of the last
strongholds of Ancient Egyptian Religion which continued to
flourish here into the 6th Century. When the Temples where
finally closed by Justinian in A.D 550, it ended 4,000 years of
worship of the pagan gods.
The Philae Temple complex, prior to its removal and restoration,
set alongside Biga Island. To the ancient Egyptians, Biga was
the sacred mound, the first ground created from Nun out of
Chaos. This was the legendary burial place of Osiris.
The earth
was considered to be part of his body so that only priests and
temple servants were permitted to live there |