On our way to Aswan from Luxor, we stopped at two Ptolemaic temples – the Temple of Edfu and the Temple of Kom Ombo.
Temple of Edfu
The Temple of Edfu is a temple dedicated to Horus and Hathor built during the Ptolemaic period of Egypt. Edfu was completed in 57 BC, so quite a bit newer then the temples we saw in Luxor.
With many side rooms and hallways to explore, as well as very well preserved inscriptions, the Temple of Edfu was very much worth the stop. Just as every other Egyptian temple, every where you looked there was something interesting to look at.
Temple of Kom Ombo
Our next stop after the Temple of Edfu was the Temple of Kom Ombo. Kom Ombo is interesting in that it is built as a double temple – one side dedicated to the crocodile god Sobek, while the other side is dedicated to Horus the Elder. The temple is split down the middle in almost a mirror image.
Like the Temple of Edfu, Kom Ombo was completed during the Ptolemaic period around the year 47 BC. The inscriptions are very detailed showing depth and muscle structure in a number of the images.
I particularly liked the inscriptions showing medical instruments – many of which are very similar to our own. The inscriptions throughout the temple were beautiful, as we had come to expect at this point in our Egypt trip.
Crocodile Mummies
Because the Temple of Kom Ombo was dedicated to the crocodile god, many mummies of crocodiles were found around the temple. Some of these mummies are displayed at the Crocodile Museum. This just shows you that the Egyptians didn’t only mummify royal humans.
