Luxor today celebrates the start of winter by aligning the Sun perpendicular to the shrine of the Holy Place in the Temples of Karnak.Director of Temples: This event was instituted by the ancient Egyptians to emphasize their greatness in astronomy and architecture. For the first time in 1998. Pictures

Luxor – Ahmed Marai

Thursday, December 21, 2023 at 01:00 AM

Dozens of residents, tourists and leaders of Luxor Governorate celebrate by watching the sun rise perpendicular to the sacred shrine at the Karnak Temples at dawn on Thursday, December 21, to herald the start of winter. One of the most unique astronomical and architectural events observed annually for the last 25 years is the solstice and the official entry of winter. In public presence, ruling leaders, tour men and tour groups visited Luxor at that time. It was a pleasant experience to be in the heart of the temple at dawn to witness such a unique event.

Organized at dawn in Karnak, the celebration, under the auspices of the General Commission for Cultural Palaces, includes a famous tourist show offering tahtip and dance performances to the beats of Rababa and Saidi flute in Karnak Square while welcoming guests. The Tourism Promotion Authority will contribute to the entertainment and entertainment of foreign and Egyptian groups and visiting guests. Then the introduction to the sound shows begins. It highlights the steeplechase history of the Holy of Holies on the main facade. Building of the Karnak Temples The festival program also includes the initiation of traditional sunrise music in front of the main building of the Karnak Temples. The sunrise is monitored by guests and a team of media professionals from Egypt and around the world. Annual interest in vertical observation and it continues.until seven in the morning.

Regarding this unique phenomenon of the Karnak Temples, Al-Tayeb Gharib, Director of the Karnak Temples, tells about the secret of the solar vertical phenomenon that occurs every year on December 21, in which the disk of the sun is perpendicular to the sacred chamber. Hollis at the center of the temple, a unique astronomical event that occurs every year, explains that the secret lies in the engineering and architectural magnificence of the ancient Egyptians. Temples as appropriate for the day.

Al-Tayeb Gharib, Director of Karnak Temples, told “Youm7” that the beginning of observing this event was about 25 years ago, since the phenomenon of sunrise at Karnak Temples was first observed by the Egyptian-French Center. A 1998 study of the antiquities of Karnak has already proved that. Scientifically, the main axis of Karnak is the sun rising at the beginning of the spring season in winter. It is a religious architecture. and engineering philosophy, and during the ancient Egyptian civilization, it was at that time that the season of sprouting began to be symbolized as the beginning of resurrection into new life, so that the ancient Egyptian would assert his greatness in the use of architecture for everything. It… provides its best history.

The Director of Karnak Temples affirms that Karnak is considered one of the main temples, whose orientations are astronomically and architecturally linked to the seasons of the year, especially the main temple of the god Amunra, which is an observatory to determine. Beginning of the winter and summer seasons, the sun rises on the axis of the winter temple and is an indicator of the beginning of the new season, which is winter. Every year on December 21, the sun sets. The axis of the temple lies between its giant gates in the west, marking the beginning of summer on June 21 every year.

Meanwhile, Luxor celebrates one of the most important astronomical events in Egypt and the entire world every year at dawn on December 21, said Salah al-Massaq, director of the Karnak Temples, during which the disc of the sun is perpendicular to the shrine. The Holi of Holi at the Temple of Amun-Ra in Karnak is considered to be the official announcement of the winter solstice. One of the largest temples in Karnak, the Temple of Amunra was built by the ancients. Egyptian engineers with a spectacular display and special magic on the sun axis corresponding to the winter solstice considered an astronomical, architectural and historical discovery in the land of Luxor.

Salah al-Masaq al-Yum al-Sabia told the Karnak temples that this event occurs on the day of the winter solstice, during which tourists enjoy seeing the disk of the sun and its rays spread across it. Luxor Temple, and seeing the sun’s disk in the middle of the eastern gate, located on its major axis, represents the extreme southeast of the rising horizon, which is astronomically determined by day. After the winter solstice, the sun is perpendicular to Karnak’s sanctuaries (the open courtyard, the hypostyle hall, and the sanctuaries of the god Amun) and midday spreads through them.