KARNAK

This is a variation of my "Places of Worship" theme. At the same time it is part of my threat to post more slides of Egypt, and there are more to come.

The first picture is the imposing entrance to the temple of Karnak.Please notice the rows of sphinx lining the walk. Also observe the immense size of the Temple compared with the people.
The second is one of my personal favorites and I have a large print hanging in my home. How minuscule modern man is in contrast to the building accomplishments of our ancestors 4000 years ago.
The third is Ramses III statue in his sanctuary. Each Pharaoh tried to outdo his predecessors by adding another sanctuary to the complex.
The last is a picture inside the great sanctuary. Not as dramatic as others,but here again there is a row of sphinx lining the far columns.



Unfortunately (a word I seem to use a great deal) these world treasures are now in great danger. Not from air pollution, but again as a result of modern man's activities. The Aswan Dam has not only altered the cultivation cycles along the Nile,But has raised the ground water level which is destructive to the limestone stones. Water is seeping into the stone and by increased pressure cracking them. In addition when the water evaporates it leaves behind salt and other mineral residues which are destructive to the stone.

Another problem from the Aswan Dam in preventing the annual Nile flooding also keeps the natural nutrients from inner Africa (up stream) from fertilizing the Nile bank farmlands.