The
four panels depict, in order: 1-Thoth
announcing to Neith that she would become
pregnant. 2-Kneph and Hathor causing Neith
to become pregnant via an ankh. 3-The
birth, over a birth brick, of Ra (representing
Akhenaten). 4-The adoration of Ra by the
gods and the courtiers. Amenhotep's colonnade
from the peristyle courtAccess to the
temple was – and still is, for the
thousands of tourists who flock here every
day – from the north, where a causeway
lined by sphinxes that once led all the
way to Karnak begins; this road was a
later addition, dating from the time of
Nectanebo I in the 30th Dynasty. The temple
proper begins with the 24-metre high First
Pylon, built by Ramesses II. The pylon
was decorated with scenes of Ramesses's
military triumphs (particularly the Battle
of Qadesh); later pharaohs, particularly
those of the Nubian and Ethiopian dynasties,
also recorded their victories there.
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