Dendera Temple of Hathor — Attraction in New Valley

Fantastic temple. We booked this as a stop from Luxor to Hurghada and our guide recommended we not go (and instead do more things in Luxor) because they said it was very similar to other temples and it was a newer temple with less history. There is truth to that, but in reality I think they didn't want to have to make their way separately back to Luxor. This temple is similar in some ways but different in others. We got an early 7am start from Luxor and we were literally the only ones at the temple, which made it even more special.

Some unique things about this temple: The ongoing restoration work of the ceilings is just amazing. As of May 2018 they had completed the other half of the front hypostyle hall and had moved on to the second room. It was especially remarkable to see the other room with scaffolding and the pitch black ceiling, compared to the bright color (particularly blue) of the paintings in the front room. It also helps show how the soot so thoroughly preserved the paintings. There is a secret underground storage chamber that you can go into, that apparently no other temple has. You can give the temple guard a tip for opening it for you. There is a secret upper chamber in one of the rooms that apparently no other temple has. This one is very small but it's still cool. This has a similar spiral staircase to Edfu Temple but in this one you can actually go all the way to the roof. There is a unique large zodiac sign on the ceiling of one of the roof rooms, which is now a reproduction, as the real one is in the Louvre.

A couple things to note: A lot of people artificially saturate their photos to make colors appear brighter than they are. The ceiling colors are incredible and bright but they're not THAT bright. I've added some of my untouched photos which I think represent the color well. In particular, the 360 degree photo should give you a good idea of what to expect. BTW, photos were allowed in the temple with no extra fee. We had a police escort for the last 10 minutes of the drive to the temple. I had read about that online and I'm not sure why they do this, as it seems it would only attract more attention. In any case, it's standard procedure and not anything to worry about. Although it's fine to give hard currency (USD) tips elsewhere in Egypt, stick with the Egyptian pounds here. We gave an EGP tip but one of the guards asked if we could convert a couple USD dollars for him. We had the pounds to do it and were happy to, but it just shows that it's not as easy for the locals to convert currency here.

We had to squeeze this into our itinerary and I'm glad we did. The ultimate question I was trying to determine was whether this is a must-see temple. I knew very little about Egypt before our trip and I especially wanted to go for the paintings, as I thought that they were the best preserved paintings in all of Egypt. In truth, there are excellent paintings and bright colors elsewhere in Egypt, such as in the tombs in Luxor. On one hand, I really like the unique elements and I'm so glad we fit this in, and I highly recommend it. On the other hand, for the average tourist, I wouldn't quite call it "must-see" in the sense that you shouldn't skip any of the other major things in Luxor in lieu of...

The temple complex at Dendera is quite large, boasting a basilica, two birth houses, a sacred lake, and numerous other temples and shrines within its walls. Structures at the site hail from an assortment of different ancient Egyptian eras, with monuments from the Middle Kingdom, the Ptolemaic Era, and the period of Roman provincial rule.

There is evidence that the first building on the site went up around 2250 BCE, but the standing structures mostly date from the Ptolemaic era forward. In 1995 BCE, construction likely began on the Mentuhotep II monument, the oldest existing structure when the site was rediscovered. The Mentuhotep monument has since been moved to Cairo. The oldest structure currently there is from Nectanebo II, built ca. 345 BCE. All that said, it may be more accurate to say the structure as we know it began in 54 BCE, when construction began on the Temple of Hathor, the most prominent structure at the Dendera complex.

The Temple of Hathor is one of the most well-preserved antiquity sites in Egypt today, and is an excellent example of traditional Pharaonic architecture. The Temple of Hathor was built primarily during the Ptolemaic Dynasty, which was a period of Greek rule in Egypt. However, construction of the temple was completed under the Roman emperor Trajan, who is seen depicted on the walls of the complex making offerings to Hathor. The temple complex also includes a monumental gateway, constructed by Trajan as well as Domitian, another Roman emperor.

This site was a center of the cult of Hathor. It was believed that during a period known as the Happy Reunion, Hathor would journey from her temple at Dendera to spend some time with her husband, Horus, at his temple in Edfu. This “reunion” was a yearly occurrence, and at the end of the celebration, the return of Hathor to Dendera was thought to signal the official beginning of the flood season of the Nile.

The temple originally housed the famous Zodiac of Dendera. This bas-relief with human and animal figures represented a night skyscape, and was found on the ceiling of a chapel in the Temple of Hathor, where the mysteries of the resurrection of the god Osiris were celebrated. Egyptologists determined it should be interpreted as a map of the sky rather than a giant horoscope or a perpetual astrological tool.

The particular configuration of the planets among the constellations shown in the Zodiac of Dendera occurs only about once every thousand years. Two astrophysicists have dated it to between June 15 and August 15, 50 BCE. Two eclipses are represented on the Zodiac exactly where they occurred at that time.

The representations of the signs of the zodiac as we know them today did not appear in Egypt until the Greco-Roman Period. This monument reflects the way Egyptian cultural elements merged with Babylonian and Greek astronomical and astrological theories, as a result of the Assyrian and Babylonian deportations of the eighth and sixth centuries BCE, and the Persian and Greek invasions of the sixth and fourth centuries BCE.

The Zodiac of Dendera was transported to France in 1821, with the permission of Mohamed Ali Pasha, who was the Turkish viceroy of Egypt at the time. The Egyptian government has asked for its return. It currently is on display at the...

Denedera is more beautiful and amazing place. Territory is so quite and peaceful. Front of the entrance to the Main Temple, on the right side, will be find some interesting. Have a lot things for watching. Check roof of Temple. Will find interesting things with maps of stars sky. And some different part of another culture. How is coming here? It's looking like part of Indian culture. It's so strange and interesting. Better visit this place alone, mean without excursion. With group it's will be so fast. Just keep more information, and visit it with your self. Parking out side is 20 EGP. Entarance 100 EGP. On the territory have WC rooms just after entrance. On territory of Temple didn't have. Will be need back to the entrance. And if you come alone, didn't listen security on the parking territory, they try to all time stop you for checking documents and everything when you want to leave. Thay tell us - wait 5 minutes, and you will be go. OK. We are waiting. 5-10-15 minutes - Egyptian minutes))). After we asked, what's wrong, why we can't go? They tell us - all people will be come out from Temple, and you will be go to Luxor. Excually we don't need to Luxor, and try to explain that things for security)) they didn't want to hear us))) You go to Luxor. Yes, they try to help and make us safely. But we was need to go in another, different side, Hurghada. So, was waiting 5 minutes, nothing changed. After we say for them, Goodbye and move.))) Thay try to stop us from the beginning, but after, am think, they understand what we didn't need their help. And they let's us go. So, didn't listen them, they want help, but don't understand nothing))) Egypt is amazing place. Enjoy. And catch...