The fallen colossus
Ozymandias's inspiration.
Marc Ryckaert — CC BY 3.0 · Chabe01 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Chabe01 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Chabe01 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Chabe01 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Chabe01 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Djehouty — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Onceinawhile — CC BY-SA 4.0
The memorial temple of Ramesses II on Luxor's West Bank, built to keep his memory alive and his offerings made after his death; work on it took about twenty years of his long reign. Its ancient name was the House of Millions of Years, and it covers a wide stretch of ground. Its best-known feature is what remains of a colossal seated statue of Ramesses II, once among the largest in Egypt, which fell and shattered so its pieces now lie on the ground. It is said to have inspired the English poet Shelley's famous poem Ozymandias on the passing of the glory of kings. On its pylons and walls are reliefs of the Battle of Kadesh that Ramesses fought against the Hittites, a large hypostyle hall whose columns still stand with their capitals, and Osiride statues of the king. Around the temple lie the remains of mud-brick storerooms with vaulted roofs, where grain and supplies were kept. A foreign visitor's ticket costs about two hundred and twenty Egyptian pounds, and it opens from six to five. It is far quieter than Hatshepsut's temple and Medinet Habu, so you wander in peace, and it fits a West Bank tour with them.
Ozymandias's inspiration.
Reliefs on the pylons.
Ancient vaulted stores.
West Bank, Luxor, near the village of Qurna
Tombs of the Nobles (Sheikh Abd el-Qurna)A necropolis on the slopes of the West Bank hills, the largest group of private 4 minutes walk
Colossi of MemnonTwo enormous stone figures standing alone in an open field beside the west bank 11 minutes walk4.5
Deir el-Medina (Workers' Village)The village of the craftsmen and artists who cut and decorated the royal tombs i11 minutes walk
Temple of HatshepsutThe mortuary temple of Queen Hatshepsut, set into the foot of an immense rock cl15 minutes walk4.6
Medinet HabuThe mortuary temple of Ramesses III, and the finest thing on the west bank after17 minutes walk4.9Yes if you have time: it is quiet and little visited, with the fallen colossus, the Kadesh reliefs and rare mud-brick storerooms.