Boasting
a ‘perpetual’ construction process that spanned over two millennia
(circa 21st century BC to 1st century AD), the ancient Karnak temple
perimeter, mainly dedicated to the Theban triad of Amun,
Mut, and Khonsu, is considered as one of the largest (or possibly even
the largest) religious complexes in the world. When translated to
jaw-dropping numbers, the sheer size of the compound, in its complete
form, covers a whopping 200 acres or 1.2 million sq m (approx. 13
million sq ft) – the equivalent of over 220 American football fields!
Within this astounding spatial scope, the sacred enclosure of Amun alone
flaunts an area of 61 acres, while the famed Hypostyle Hall measures
54,000 sq ft – which makes the largest room of any religious structure
in the world. Suffice it to say, the Karnak Temple Complex was
symbolically important for the ancient Egyptians, with Karnak itself
being called Ipet-isu
– “most select of places”. As such, the colossal site served as a
pilgrimage center for nearly 2,000 years – with the veneration and
fanfare focused on the main sanctuary and the proximate sacred lake that
made room for the enormous floating barges of the Theban Triad.
The Digital Karnak Project (
link here)
from University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) aims to shed light on
this fascinating parcel of ancient Egyptian history, thereby making the
historical legacy and prominence of the magnificent Karnak site more
accessible to a wide variety of audience and aficionados – ranging from
teachers to students. As for their
incredible reconstruction project, UCLA said –
As
part of this [aforementioned] goal, a 3D Virtual Reality model of the
temple was constructed, offering students a completely new way to view
the temple: reign-by-reign, following the complex patterns of royal
construction, modification, and destruction that are now obscured by the
latest building phases at the site. Footage of this model, as well as
original videos and maps, are accompanied by thematic essays written and
reviewed by Egyptologists to supply students and instructors with
reliable information in a digital and visually dynamic platform.
The design elements of the Karnak Temple Complex –
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