A Port Stop at Edfu

We arrived at Edfu around 10:30 a.m. and almost immediately boarded shuttle buses to be ferried off to the local Temple of Horus, the city's major attraction. As we've journeyed "upriver" into the heart of Africa, the temperature has risen accordingly; and Monday was no exception. We REALLY sweltered throughout our lengthy visit with "Horus the Elder, or Horus of Behdet, conqueror of Set and avenger of his father, Osiris," but what a marvelous experience (despite the 104 degree temperature)!

Many of us are beginning to be able to keep straight at least some of the names and attributes and relationships involving the myriad dieties honored in Ancient Egypt. We are also increasingly in a position to recognize differences and similarities encountered as we explore one religious complex after another. The Temple of Horus in Edfu, it turns out, is the best preserved of all the sites we will visit (or have visited) on our tour and so provided a fantastic opportunity to put all our new found knowledge to work.

The similarities are immediately apparent: the large entrance pylons; an open forecourt -- here a Grand Court surrounded by thirty-two columns forming a sheltering colonnade; the vestibule and the hypostyle hall beyond (in which the roof is supported by columns rather than rafters or arches) and the inner sanctuary housing the temple's main image. But there are differences as well: the columns now (in the Ptolemaic era, under Greek influence) are topped with floral capitals; a series of halls surround the various rooms and sections of the complex of structures decorated with relief and incised sculptures; some of the imagery, as well, reflects a more fluid (and realistic) Greek style of figural modeling.

We all were relieved, however, to return to the air-conditioned interior of the Royal Orchid. Those who opted for the Light Lunch (scheduled to be served outside on the upper deck) were also relieved to have the meal service shifted to the inside Lounge instead. And the majority of us chose to watch the passing scenery from the cool comfort of various interior spaces as we continued our journey southward to Kom Ombo, our anchorage for the night. There are, it would appear, definite limits to our collective willingness to live the life of an Egyptian while in Egypt!

Later in the evening, however, we all dressed for dinner - in Egyptian costume (or, at least, in our interpretation thereof), no less. And most of us participated in an evening of games and dancing and silliness before drifting off to a quiet retreat on deck or to our respective cabins for another good night's sleep. Before then, the ship's photographer surely accumulated enough evidence to blackmail us all for years to come ...