7 Wonders of Egypt ...

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This is the 2nd most visited site of and one of the true wonders of Egypt. It’s the largest ancient religious site in the world and is now a huge open air museum. There are 4 main parts although you can only access the largest temple structure. Be fascinated by the avenues of ram headed sphinxes and massive blocks of stone carved with hieroglyphs.

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This massive statue is a human head on a lion’s body and is on the Giza Plateau. It’s one of the largest single stone statues in the world and most experts date it to the 3rd millennium BC. Legend is that the nose of the Sphinx was broken off by a Napoleonic cannonball.

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The Great Pyramid (and the smaller ones) are not only one of the wonders of Egypt but surely of just about anywhere. It is actually the only one of the original 7 wonders of the world that is still standing and the fact that it is believed to date from around 2560BC is tantamount to the incredible feat of engineering that it is. Constructed for Pharaoh Khufu, the smaller pyramids are for his wives and there are also smaller mastaba tombs on the site for the nobles of his Khufu’s court.

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Built by Amenhotep III and Rameses II, the Temple of Luxor (originally the ancient city of Thebes) was for rituals and festivals to pay tribute to Amen-Re, his wife Mut and their son Khonsu. Today you can still see remains of the carvings of the images of the Royal family that used to line a whole street. This street was where festival processions would parade along to reach the temple.

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Abu Simnel is definitely one of the wonders of Egypt. It’s 2 massive rock temples that are carved into the mountainside. The work was done in the 13th century BC during the reign of Pharaoh Rameses II and is a monument to himself and his wife Nefertari as well as being a temple to the gods Amun Ra, Ra Harakhti and Ptah.

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Saqqara was a vast, ancient burial ground and is the site of the world’s oldest standing step pyramid. It might lack the grandeur of Giza and the Valley of the Kings but it was an important burial and ceremonial ground for more than 3,000 years. When you visit now, you can explore the new Imhotep Museum who was the designer/architect of the wonder of Saqqara.

Photo Credit: Fouad GM

For the last of the wonders of Egypt I’ve chosen one of the world’s longest rivers. This is definitely the life blood of the country and it flows through the middle of Cairo. It’s the income provider for countless fishermen and is also a favourite of tourists who cruise the Nile in distinctive river boats.

That was a short journey around the wonders of Egypt. I hope you enjoyed it. Where’s your favourite place of antiquity?

Top Photo Credit: Fouad GM