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Open Air Museum
It is called White Chapel, and dates back to the
12th Dynasty.
The Open Air Museum contains a collection
of smaller shrines and temples which mainly
illustrates how diverse the Karnak area was, and
how many options there must have been for the
devout.
The handful of shrines are in fair to excellent
condition. Perhaps the most attractive to many is
the Red Chapel of Hatshepsut, which I found
impossible to transform into a proper photo. It is
interesting from the fact that every stone
contains an individual design, instead of forming
part of a larger design. This has made it
difficult to reconstruct the chapel.
The gem of the collection is usually considered to
be the White Chapel built by Sesostris 1 of the
12th Dynasty, with its excellent bas-reliefs. It
was not open for entry upon last visit (2004).
Apart from the shrines, the Open Air Museum
contains a rather badly presented collection of
bits and pieces and just a few complete statues.
These are mainly Sekhmet statues from the Temple
of Ptah. They seem to have been made by the same
people carving out the hundreds of Sekhmet statues
for the Temple of Mut. |
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Excavations
The Karnak precinct may look flooded by temples,
but there is more to be unearthed. These
excavations, near the Open Air Museum, seem to
reveal private chapels, and a processional highway
connecting them with the Temple of Amon.
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