Philae

Philae is an island in the Nile, so again we take a small boat from the cruise ship to reach it. Actually the island we reach is Agilkia: the whole temple complex from the original island of Philae was moved here for preservation when the High Dam was built and the original island location was endangered. Approaching Philae by boat

We first circle around the island and get a view of the pavilion of Trajan.

We enter the Temple of Isis. Here we are in the courtyard.

That's Isis and Horus (he's the one with the beak) on the first Pylon.

There they are again, Isis and Horus, on the Second Pylon. Over on the right is the pharaoh.

Roman Emperor Trajan rebuilt the nice pavilion over to the side of the temple of Isis, with a view of the Nile. The Roman and the Greek civilizations left their mark on many Egyptian temples in fairly subtle ways, often restoring or expanding on existing temples.

The early Christians are another story. They were responsible for much of the defacement (literally scratching out the faces) of the gods and goddesses of Egypt. Here's an early altar from when the Coptic Christians used the temple in the 6th century. Look closely and you can find Coptic Crosses carved in the column and the altar.

Boy with Grazing Cattle on Nile shore As we continue our cruise down the Nile, you can watch the simple agrarian life go on along the shores. Cattle like these were not so common; sugar cane production seemed to be a bigger occupation.

And of course, there were more Nile sunsets.

On to KomOmbo

Philae is an island in the Nile, so again we take a small boat from the cruise ship to reach it. Actually the island we reach is Agilkia: the whole temple complex from the original island of Philae was moved here for preservation when the High Dam was built and the original island location was endangered.
	We first circle around the island and get a view of the pavilion of Trajan.
We enter the Temple of Isis. Here we are in the courtyard.
	That's Isis and Horus (he's the one with the beak) on the first Pylon.
There they are again, Isis and Horus, on the Second Pylon. Over on the right is the pharaoh.
	Roman Emperor Trajan rebuilt the nice pavilion over to the side of the temple of Isis, with a view of the Nile. The Roman and the Greek civilizations left their mark on many Egyptian temples in fairly subtle ways, often restoring or expanding on existing temples.
The early Christians are another story. They were responsible for much of the defacement (literally scratching out the faces) of the gods and goddesses of Egypt. Here's an early altar from when the Coptic Christians used the temple in the 6th century. Look closely and you can find Coptic Crosses carved in the column and the altar.
	As we continue our cruise down the Nile, you can watch the simple agrarian life go on along the shores. Cattle like these were not so common; sugar cane production seemed to be a bigger occupation.
And of course, there were more Nile sunsets.