Egypt is one of those countries, a visit to which allows you to see firsthand the beauty of the ancient world, preserved in magnificent works of architecture.

Ancient Egypt - the beginning of the birth of modern civilization

It belongs to the first states that appeared in the world in the distant past (there were several of them - those about which information has survived to this day). They arose on the territory of the Ancient East due to the good living conditions that existed there (climate, the presence of reservoirs) at the beginning of the 3rd millennium BC. e. These include Mesopotamia, Egypt, India and China.

Ancient Egypt (let's briefly review the history of this country) was located in the valley of the Nile River. Only along its banks and in desert oases was life possible. The rest of the territory of the ancient state was occupied by the desert. It posed a great danger to the Egyptians - the advancing sands, which they had to fight all year round and reclaim lands suitable for crops, the drying wind that tormented the country in April and May ... But at the same time, the desert was also good: it contributed to the formation of a wet river in the valley. and the temperate climate necessary for successful agriculture, and was a natural barrier against attacks from other countries. Here, along the banks of the Nile, covered with fertile black earth, the great civilization of Egypt arose, the wonderful works of art and majestic architectural structures of which modern people can admire even now.

Great rulers are the embodiment of the gods on earth

They are the chosen ones of the gods, mediators between heaven and earth, the unshakable center of the country. is more than four thousand years old, and all these long centuries it was a single whole - a state in which time seemed to stand still.

The significance of the pharaoh was expressed in the fact that with the coming to power of the king, a new era and a new countdown began for the country. The ruler, the earthly embodiment of the god Horus (Horus), had to zealously watch his main wealth entrusted to him by the gods - Egypt. He eradicated violence and evil, established justice, order and harmony.

One of the main duties of the pharaoh was building houses for the great gods. Ancient temples of Egypt, built in huge numbers, glorified Osiris, Isis, Ra and other deities. Pharaoh himself was at the same time the high priest, who conducted religious rites and ceremonies. It was believed that the gods can only hear him. Therefore, ancient temples were of great importance in the life of the Egyptians.

Art

Time has preserved for us only a small fraction of the works of art of the ancient Egyptians. A huge number of precious items were buried together with the pharaohs in the pyramids, but all the tombs of the kings found today were plundered thousands of years ago. Only the discovery gave the world an idea of \u200b\u200bthe great skill of ancient artists, potters and jewelers.

There is also something that even time could not cope with. These are the ancient temples of Egypt and the pyramids. Of course, the past millennia have greatly affected their safety, and some of architectural structures disappeared without a trace. But the surviving ancient temples can give an idea of \u200b\u200bthe life of the Egyptians and their religion. Due to the fact that the walls of buildings were covered with frescoes with scenes glorifying the pharaohs, and inscriptions telling about their deeds, we now know a lot about that time.

Architecture

Majestic Egypt and monumental pyramids - the main example of the architecture of the builders of the past. It is believed that the history of architecture began in this country. Due to the lack of forests, the building materials here were limestone, sandstone, granite and raw brick. The stone was used for the construction of pyramids and temple complexes, palaces and fortresses were erected from bricks.

The peculiarity of Egyptian architecture was that the masonry was done without the use of adhesion mortars. Inside and outside, the walls of the temples and columns were decorated with frescoes, figurines and inscriptions. They were all symbolic.

You can see the work of ancient architects with your own eyes or in a photo of Egypt. Temples and pyramids, even in the images, amaze with their monumentality, strict lines and majestic tranquility.

How ancient architectural structures were built

The pyramids are one of the mysteries of history that modern man still cannot solve. Actually, everything connected with them is one big puzzle. Scientists are still not sure that the pyramids were built as the burial complexes of the pharaohs. How exactly they were erected, given the lack of any technology for processing and delivering giant stone blocks, is another

Much more is known about the construction of temples. There were three types of them: rocky, semi-rocky and ground. The latter were built according to a certain type. They were rectangles surrounded by high walls. From the Nile to the temple, a road usually led, which was decorated with statues of sphinxes on both sides. The structures were not a complete composition, they were erected according to the principle of formation - buildings were added one after another.

Rock temples had an external facade, all other rooms were cut out in the rock. The semi-rock complexes were partly built on the surface and partly in the rocks.

Columns were an obligatory element of the temples. There are 134 of them in the hall of the Karnak temple. Often they depicted bundles of reeds.

Ancient temples in Egypt had no windows. They were illuminated by small openings under the roof itself.

The cladding of the walls of the temple complex or painting with paints was obligatory.

The great female pharaoh and her sanctuary

One of the most beautiful buildings in Egypt - the Hatshepsut temple - was erected for the great ruler who ruled the country during the era of the New Kingdom.

In the history of this ancient state, there were only a few cases when power passed into female hands, and this happened in times of crisis. Hatshepsut, a purebred queen, daughter of Thutmose I, was the high priestess of Amun, which in no small measure helped her to gain the reins of government in Egypt. She became the wife of her brother Thutmose II and after the death of her husband from illness she ruled the country.

The queen is known as the builder pharaoh. During her reign (for 22 years) many temples, obelisks, sanctuaries were erected, monuments destroyed by the Hyksos conquerors were restored.

The funeral temple of Hatshepsut is located west of Thebes and belongs to the semi-rock type. In ancient times, it was called "Jeser Jeseru" - "Most Sacred of the Sacred", and it was called after Queen Hatshepsut much later.

The builder of this magnificent architectural complex was the architect Senmut, to whom the great woman-pharaoh later entrusted the education of her daughter Nefrura. The temple was built in a record short time - for 9 years. It was carved into the rocks and seems to be their natural continuation. Consists of three huge terraces, one above the other. Each has an open courtyard and a sanctuary. In ancient times, the road to the first terrace was lined with myrrh trees specially brought to Egypt for this. According to tradition, the road was also decorated with brightly painted sphinxes.

The pristine beauty of the Hatshepsut temple has been lost. He suffered from time and earthquakes. But even now the magnificent monument of antiquity amazes with its severity of lines and grandeur.

Ancient beauty of Luxor

Egypt can be amazed not only by the monumentality and grandeur of the famous pyramids. The Karnak temple, dedicated to the god Amon-Ra, is the largest architectural complex in the country.

It is located on the right bank of the Nile in the small village of Karnak, three kilometers from another famous temple - Luxor. It is connected with it by a long alley decorated with statues of sphinxes. In ancient times it was called Ipet-Isut. The giant temple complex was under construction for over a thousand years.

The sanctuary was erected in honor of but also includes temples of other Egyptian deities - Khonsu, Ptah, Montu, Mut. There are chapels, numerous obelisks, statues of pharaohs and a sacred lake.

The center of the Karnak temple and its pride is the Great Column Hall. It was built during the reign of the pharaohs Seti I and Ramses II. It contains 134 columns arranged in 16 rows. The largest of them are 8-storey buildings.

The size of the temple complex is enormous. It houses more than 30 temples. Most of the territory is closed to tourists, since archaeological excavations and the restoration of antiquity monuments do not stop here. At present, the Sphinx Alley is being recreated literally piece by piece.

The holy place of Christendom in the land of the pharaohs

A country of many religions - this is how one can confidently characterize Egypt. The Cathedral of Catherine - one of the revered shrines of the Christian world - is located on its territory. The structure has existed for 1600 years. The temple was founded in the 4th century and fortified by order of the Byzantine emperor Justinian I in the 6th century.

The Temple of St. Catherine in Egypt was built at the foot of where, according to biblical legends, Moses received from God, who appeared to him in the flame of an unburned bush, ten commandments. It is named after the Christian enlightener Catherine, who lived in the 3rd century, tortured and executed for refusing to renounce her faith in Christ.

The Cathedral of Catherine is a whole town, which includes a monastery, a temple and hundreds of other buildings.

Abu Simbel

On the territory of Egypt, you can see many magnificent temples. One of them is interesting because it is carved into the rock, and only the facade is outside. More precisely, these are two sanctuaries of a married couple: Pharaoh Ramses II and Queen Nefertari. Their other purpose is to determine the southern border of the state. The sanctuaries are famous for their giant sculptures depicting the pharaoh and his wife.

Conclusion

In ancient times, Egyptian temples were an important part of the religious life of a great country. Today, their value lies in the cultural heritage that they represent. Architectural monuments give a modern person an opportunity to touch deep antiquity and allow you to learn more about the history of Ancient Egypt.

Contemporaries were immensely fascinated by the royal palace in Per-Ramses. Unfortunately, their descriptions are not supported by anything. Even the exact location of the palace is unknown. The excavations have yielded no positive results in this regard.

There are other royal residences in the Delta. The remains of the palace have been discovered in Kantira. A village under the shade of two palm trees, twenty-five kilometers south of Père Rameses. When Pharaoh was expecting his bride, the daughter of the Hittite king, who, striving for her betrothed, crossed all of Asia Minor and Syria in the middle of winter, he, out of gallant motives, built a fortified palace in the desert between Egypt and Phenicia, where he was going to meet her. Despite the remoteness, this palace had everything that the soul could desire.

Plan of the palace-temple

In his city to the west of Thebes, Ramses III had a palace, which he called "the house of joy." Its remains have been excavated and studied by archaeologists at the Chicago Oriental Institute. The facade of the palace faced the first courtyard of the temple. The reliefs that adorned it eloquently testified to the power of the pharaoh. On them, Ramses beat the enemies with a mace, accompanied by a brilliant escort, he visited his stables, in a chariot, in battle armor, he prepared to lead the troops into battle and, finally, together with his entire court, he watched the struggle and exercises of his best warriors. In the middle of the facade, a richly decorated balcony was attached for the appearance of the king to the people, under the balcony four graceful columns in the form of papyrus stalks carried a three-part relief: in the lower register a winged solar disk was depicted, in the middle - palm trees, in the upper register - Ureas with solar disks on their heads ... Pharaoh appeared here when people were allowed into the temple courtyard in honor of the feast of Amun. From here he handed out awards. This balcony communicated with the royal chambers. They were a suite of many pillared rooms (including the throne room, the pharaoh's private quarters, and the bathroom). The lobby separated them from the queen's chambers. The queen's quarters also had many rooms. Long straight corridors facilitated the passage from one apartment of the palace to another, as well as observation and security, because Ramses III, taught by his bitter experience, was suspicious and cautious.

The throne room, judging by the glazed tiles found here more than thirty years ago, and the fragments of the relief discovered relatively recently by the American expedition, looked rather austere Pharaoh is represented everywhere in the form of a standing sphinx, as well as his royal cartouches. The enemies of Egypt are depicted tied at his feet. They are dressed in rich robes embroidered with barbaric patterns, while the artist tried to convey their faces, hairstyles and jewelry as accurately as possible. On the Libyans, we see a tattoo, on the Negroes - large earrings, on the Syrians' necks - medallions, on the Shasu nomads - long hair thrown back with combs. However, one must think that the private chambers of the pharaoh and the queen were decorated with paintings and reliefs on more pleasant themes.

The royal dwellings did not occupy a particularly large area. It was a square structure less than forty meters on a side. Undoubtedly, the pharaoh did not stay here for long, because he had a palace on the other side. There are plenty of palaces built in Delta, just choose! Memphis, He, Per-Ramses always rejoiced at the arrival of the pharaoh. But he started another construction between On and Bubast, on the site that the Arabs call Tell el-Yahudia; glazed tiles of the same type as in Medinet Abu were found here.

Time has so mercilessly dealt with the palaces of the Pharaohs of Seti and the Ramses that, in order to get a clearer idea of \u200b\u200bthe palaces of the pharaohs of the New Kingdom, we have to turn to the royal residence of Akhenaten, which is not far from these pharaohs.

The floor of the pillared halls is decorated with mosaics - a pond with fish and water lilies, surrounded by thickets of reeds and papyrus, with waterfowl flying over it; wild ducks take off from the water. The columns are entwined with vines and bindweed. The capitals and cornices are beautifully inlaid. The walls depict scenes from the life of the royal family: the king and queen are sitting opposite each other: Akhenaten in an armchair, Nefertiti on a pillow. She has a baby on her lap; the eldest of the princesses embraces the youngest; the other two play side by side on the floor. Many scholars argue that they have not seen a more charming scene in Egyptian art, but this is perhaps an exaggeration. Indeed, ponds, papyrus, birds, animals are all classic relief characters. And in Medinet Abu we see the pharaoh surrounded by charming concubines. It is safe to say that the palaces of the pharaohs of the XIX and XX dynasties were decorated with the same luxury. As in the time of Akhenaten, walls, ceilings, mosaic floors, columns and cornices delighted the eyes and soul with the freshness of colors and images. Rich furnishings, sumptuous decorations and clothing created an exceptionally sophisticated ensemble.

Pierre Monte Egypt Ramses. M., 1989

Today I want to tell you about one more ancient Egyptian city of Akhetaton. The ruins of this city were found near the village Tell el-Amarna on the east bank of the Nile, 287 km south of Cairo. For the first time excavations were started in 1891 (under the leadership of Petri. Later, other archaeologists took part in the excavations of Amarna - G. Frankfort, C. L. Woolley.

The city was built by Pharaoh Amenhotep IV (Akhenaten) after his break with the priesthood of the cult of Amun. Here he moved his capital and it is no coincidence that archaeologists call it the city of luxury. Unlike Kahun, where there was no space for gardens, Amarna's layout included open public spaces where trees were planted and residents often had their own private garden plots. The remains of a zoo were even found in the city.

The site for the settlement was carefully thought out: the city was built between ancient Memphis to Thebes, and this area had not previously been dedicated to any deity. Just like in many ancient Egyptian cities, grandiose buildings were located along the Nile and Akhetaton stretched for many kilometers.

Excavation plan of ancient Amarna.

The city was surrounded by border steles, eleven of which have survived to this day on the eastern slopes of the mountains. Three more were found on the west bank of the Nile: the pharaoh included part of the fertile land on the left bank of the river into the city. The entire city, together with the temple complex and the royal palace, was built in less than 10 years. The city existed for about 17 years (this is how Akhenaten presumably ruled), and immediately after his death and the cancellation of his religious reform, it was abandoned and partially destroyed as a sign of the hatred of the subsequent pharaohs towards the approved reform.

As in Kahuna, the city of the Middle Kingdom, in Akhetaton, along with wealthy houses, palaces and temples, there were houses of the less prosperous population and a workers' quarter. Since the city was built on a place that had not been inhabited by anyone, the question of the limited urban area was not then raised. This is how N.A. Ionina in her book.

“The town was characterized by wide-spread manor-type houses. The layout of both rich and poor houses did not differ in variety, moreover, a characteristic feature of all buildings is the uniformity of their plans. The only significant difference between the poor and the rich was that prayer houses, household services, and premises for slaves and servants were not attached to the poor.

Large and well-planned houses of the nobility were located along the very roads; smaller houses - behind them, but also close to the road, and further on, on the crooked streets with narrow passages, the poor peasants' huts were randomly huddled.

Plan of the Central City of Akhetaton: 1 - Great Temple of Aten, 2 - Small Temple of Aten,3 - Central Palace, 4 - House of the Pharaoh, 5 - Amarna Archives, 6 - Barracks, 7 - Southern Suburb, 8 - Thutmose Workshop

Along the Nile ran the main Royal Road or the street of the Great Priest, planted with palm trees. This was very unusual, since usually the main decoration was the statues of the sphinxes. Several more streets ran parallel to it, while others crossed the city in the direction of the river.

Conventionally, the new capital can be divided into several districts: the so-called Central City, the Southern and Northern Suburbs, the settlement of slave workers. The central city can be called the official center - the main royal palace, the Big and Small temples of Aton, government institutions - the Amarna archive, barracks, an arsenal, a parade square, tax authorities, warehouse and industrial buildings at the palace and temples were located here.

Obviously, the Central City was carefully planned, while the other residential areas were not. There, the spaces between the previously constructed large buildings were gradually filled with smaller groups of houses.

Three palaces were built in the new capital: northern, central and southern. Pharaoh's north palace had the character of a country estate, it occupied a rectangular piece of land measuring 112x142m. All the premises of this palace were grouped around a courtyard and a water basin. Numerous halls testified that this palace was intended for royal feasts and entertainment. According to some archaeologists, it belonged to Queen Nefertiti.

Reconstruction of the Central Palace

Central palace was located next to the main sanctuary of Aton. This palace occupied an area of \u200b\u200b300x700 m, located along the river, which was crossed by the main road of the city. In the riverside part of the palace there were reception halls, in the east - the living quarters of the king. Both parts of the palace were connected by a bridge over the main street. Archaeologists have discovered the remains of murals covering the walls, floors and ceilings of some of the palace premises. These murals mainly depicted the flora and fauna of Egypt and were distinguished by high artistic skill.

Southern palace in Akhetaton was two walled sites, in the center of which were reservoirs. The main reservoir was 60x120 m in size. The purpose of these reservoirs is still unknown, although the nearby temple buildings suggest that they had a cult significance.

Reconstruction of the Temple of Aton.

The main temple of Akhetatona was located in the city center. It was located perpendicular to the river and occupied a vast rectangular area measuring 800x300 m. Like all Egyptian temples, the Temple of Aton was an alternation of pylons, open courtyards and columnar hall spaces. In contrast to the Theban temples, the Akhetaton temple was built of brick with stone facing. That was the reason for its poor preservation.

The residential buildings of the new capital were of great interest. As far as the archaeological finds can be judged, the residential quarters were houses of various segments of the population. The most prosperous inhabitants of Akhetaton occupied vast areas, which housed services, stables, premises for slaves and servants, grain and food stores. In addition, there was usually a garden and a small sanctuary. The house was located in the center of the site and its premises were grouped around the main front room. Houses were built of raw bricks, columns and floors were made of wood, stone was used in limited quantities. Most of the houses were whitewashed.

At a time when other peoples were still at the stage of prehistoric development, the Egyptians already possessed a high and developed art.

Features of the architecture of Ancient Egypt

The stone architecture of Egypt, as evidenced by the surviving monuments of ancient Egyptian civilization, served primarily the needs of religion. Residential buildings, including palace buildings, were built from light and short-lived materials, only the temples of the gods and tomb complexes were built of stone, were made very solidly, were built for centuries. Naturally, it is these stone structures that have stood the test of time and survived to this day, sometimes almost in their original form.

A gallery (corridor) was a characteristic feature of the architecture of Ancient Egypt. Even the courtyards were, rather, a continuation and expansion of galleries than compositional focal points of the building's layout, areas for further collection or distribution. These courtyards were rarely surrounded on all sides by covered columnar galleries. The doors of rooms and premises also sometimes faced the courtyard. Large columned courtyards and halls were of the gallery type, as evidenced by the direction of laying the beams and the direction of the murals on the supports.

The location and contiguity of individual rooms correspond to this gallery layout, which was usually linear. The interior rooms and premises followed one another in the same direction and along the same axis. In the architecture of temple structures, starting from the sanctuary, the rooms and halls became more spacious, the height of the ceilings increased, and the volume of premises increased. The building opened like a plant flower. During the construction of the pyramids, the Egyptians used the opposite concept: the end of the burial path - the pyramid - towered over all the other elements of the architectural ensemble. A rare exception is the central layout of the building. It is found only in tombs of the Old Kingdom (archaic period) and in shrines and temples of Roman times.

The external forms of the buildings were very simple: straight-sided and inclined prisms and pyramids. There were buildings that had only internal volumes (they were very insignificant), such as rock temples and tombs. These structures did not have their own separate mass. There were buildings that did not have their own internal volumes (or they were very small), among them: pyramids, facade towers and pylons at the entrance to the temple, as well as steles that stood separately and served as a vertical accent of the architectural complex or composition.

The surfaces of buildings inside and out, as a result of the simplicity of the architectural forms, were flat and even. This geometric isolation and monotony inherent in Egyptian architecture was softened by numerous wall texts, paintings and bas-reliefs. However, this wall painting as a whole did not affect the impression that the architecture of Ancient Egypt evokes in an outside observer. For the buildings of the ancient Egyptians, windows were not a characteristic element; they were extremely rare only on the facade of the building. The problem of indoor lighting was solved with the help of small terraces and areas, which were located at the very top of the building.

Sometimes the facade had columns, often it looked like a veranda overlooking the courtyard. The gaps between the columns were filled with brickwork, sometimes up to half, sometimes to the full height. This was especially true for buildings during the reign of the Ptolemies. In the latter case, a so-called pseudo-peripter was obtained. Such an architectural solution of the facade is also found in the monuments of the Ancient Kingdom, for example, in the complex of the pyramid of Pharaoh Djoser, but later it was forgotten. The sectional linear solution of the facades of the building from the time of the Old Kingdom was also forgotten in later times.

Palaces in the architecture of Ancient Egypt

Palaces of the pharaohs and nobility, as well as dwellings ordinary people, were built from fragile materials, mainly from clay bricks, dried in the sun. Unlike temples, where gods were worshiped constantly and at all times, each of the pharaohs, after accession to the throne, built a new palace for himself. The abandoned buildings quickly decayed and decayed, and therefore, as a rule, not even ruins remained from the palaces of the pharaohs. Remnants of walls and broken tiles are all that we can see on the site of the magnificent palaces.

One can only speculate about the features of the palace architecture of the Archaic period and the Old Kingdom. Likely, appearance Pharaoh's palace, its facade repeated the forms of architecture of the ancient royal tombs of that time (a perfect example of this is the tomb of Queen Mernecht). This conclusion is logical, because the tomb was considered the home of the deceased in his afterlife, and its internal layout and structure corresponded to this purpose. So, the wall of the palace could look like a wall separated by ledges of walls with figured battlements on top. The walls of the palace were decorated with bas-reliefs and ornaments. This is evidenced by the few surviving images of the palaces of the pharaohs. On the famous pallet of Pharaoh Narmer, depicting his victories, the name and title of the pharaoh are depicted against the background of the palace facade. The building foundation line is also marked on the pallet; the territory of the palace, which has the shape of a quadrangle, is surrounded by a fortress wall with towers. A similar palace façade can be seen on the tombstone of Pharaoh Jeta: on a rectangular field there are three tall towers decorated with three vertical blade lines. Between the towers you can see two recesses similar to gates.

Most clearly tell us about the palace architecture of the ancient Egyptians huge sarcophagi made of basalt or limestone. They are decorated with carved ornaments, each of the four sides of the sarcophagus depicts the facade of the royal palace. This is how the basalt sarcophagus of Pharaoh Mikerin (Menkaure), found in the depths of his pyramid, looked like. Alas, the sarcophagus was lost at sea during its transportation to England in the first half of the last century. On the limestone sarcophagus of Ravera, the high priest of the 5th Dynasty, found in Giza, palace towers with elongated niches are clearly visible, between which there are doors and windows.

From the New Kingdom, there is also a little evidence of the architectural skill of the Egyptians to this day. The best preserved are the ruins of the capital of Akhetatona. Silver, or, as it is also called, the North Palace of Akhenaten, in fact, is a palace-temple. On both sides of the courtyard, at the entrance to the palace, a sanctuary rises, other buildings also have a religious purpose. Then came the central courtyard, in the middle of which there was a pool. The menagerie was located in the northern part of the palace, the servants were placed in the southern part. The palace itself | (his living quarters) was located in the east; parts of the architectural complex. It was here that the pharaoh's apartments, the female half and guest rooms were located. There were reception rooms nearby. Inside the building there were small courtyards with verandas, around which there were living quarters, galleries, columned halls, etc.

In the center of Akhetaton, next to the large temple of Dtona, on both sides of the Royal Road, stood the large, so-called "official" palace of the pharaoh. In the eastern part of the palace there was a residential part, the western wing extended to the very waters of the Nile. This was the official residence of the pharaoh. Here was the throne room, it was possible to enter it through the huge columned hall. In addition, in the western part of the palace there were other rooms necessary for official ceremonies and a large courtyard with colossal statues of the pharaoh. Naturally, buildings of various administrative and government institutions were adjacent to the palace. The complex of buildings of the Pharaoh's palace was adjoined by the buildings of the female half and shady gardens. The eastern and western parts of the palace were connected by a covered bridge. Under it was the Tsar's Road - the main street of the city. In this passage was the bed of the pharaoh. Here he appeared before the people, showed favors and judged.

The walls of the palace were adorned with magnificent frescoes depicting figures of animals and plants. These are funny and cheerful pictures, testifying to the love of life and a high sense of beauty.

Pharaohs of the XIX and XX dynasties willingly built their palaces next to the funeral temples. The ruins of the foundation of the architectural ensemble of the palace of Pharaoh Ramses III in Medinet Abu clearly show the line of the foundation and the layout of the building. The first courtyard of the temple, which could be accessed through the gates of the first pylon, served simultaneously as a palace square. This is indicated by the unevenness of the supports on the verandas on both sides of the courtyard. The eastern columns have a shape characteristic of temple buildings, they depict the god Osiris, the capitals of the western columns are shaped like a papyrus flower. The palace façade also faced the western part of the courtyard.

Behind the colonnade, on the veranda, there was a balcony intended for the pharaoh to appear before mere mortals. The pharaoh's box was located in that part of the palace facade, which was slightly pushed forward. Both sides of this lodge were decorated with bas-relief images of the pharaoh, on which he struck enemies. Below there were bas-reliefs depicting people rejoicing and dancing. They praised the power and wisdom of Pharaoh. The palace gates opened on both sides in the middle part of the facade, on the right side there was one more (third) gate. Next to them on the wall was a picture of a pharaoh in a war chariot and a pharaoh watching his war horses. Behind the gate began a hall-vestibule, consisting of three parts, in the middle there were two columns (there was an entrance to the balcony), then a reception hall with six columns followed. Behind this hall were the pharaoh's living quarters with a bedroom and a bathroom. For the wives of the pharaoh, separate rooms were intended, each of which had a bathroom. The north side of the palace faced the square.

Residential buildings in the architecture of Ancient Egypt

Unlike tombs, the Egyptians built residential buildings from fragile materials. That is why, after millennia, little has remained of these buildings. We do not have sufficient materials to get an answer to the question in what conditions the ancient Egyptians lived.

At the end of the prehistoric period, residential buildings, it would be more correct to call them huts, had only one room, the foundation was oval or quadrangular. Samples of such structures have been found in a place called Maadi, near Cairo, and in the western part of the Delta, in Merimde beni Salam.

In later times, the residential building became multi-room. The richer and more noble his master was, the more complex and varied was the form of the foundation. Most of the houses were one-story, but there were also houses of several stories. The flat roof was used by the owners, sometimes a small additional room was built on it. The poor houses had very little furniture. The houses of the wealthy were decorated and furnished with expensive and very beautiful furniture. It was made of wood, decorated with rich carvings and ivory.

By miraculously surviving samples of furniture from the burials of the mother of Cheops, Tutankhamun and some nobles, one can make sure that the ancient Egyptian masters have already mastered all the cabinetmaker's techniques that are still used: veneering with veneer of expensive wood species, covering wood with levkas with subsequent painting, the use of hinged fasteners in folding constructions, inlay, gilding with the use of several colors of gold, figured carving, tension straps for laying soft pillows and even locks with complex keys.

The lack of sophisticated wall decor was compensated by multi-colored paintings, splendor of costumes and hairstyles, as well as precious utensils, the beauty and sophistication of which amaze today's viewer with their perfection. Along with the remarkable processing of alabaster and semi-precious stones, the Egyptians widely used colored faience and multicolored glass and, starting from the Middle Kingdom, they brilliantly mastered the technique of forgery of precious materials, from which, in fact, alchemy grew.

We can learn how the residential buildings of the time of the VI-XII dynasties looked like by studying the models of such houses found during the research of the tombs. The simplest of these layouts are a courtyard and pillared veranda, sometimes with a rooftop terrace and stairs leading from the roof to the courtyard. In later and more complex layouts, interiors and rooms are indicated, often it was a whole house with doorways, windows, internal stairs, sometimes with furniture. The interiors were usually arranged in a linear order, one after the other. There are also such models in which rooms are placed around one central hall. In the tomb of Meketri (XI dynasty), a model of a residential building with a pool surrounded by trees was found. The capitals of the columns on the veranda were shaped like a papyrus flower.

The houses of the inhabitants of the "city by the pyramids" in El Lahoun had four or five rooms. The dwellings of officials were richer and more varied in their layout. The premises were grouped around a patio with a veranda, the veranda itself and the rooms facing it looked north, because of the hot climate this was the most suitable layout. The ceiling of the central room rose above those around, through the windows thus obtained, light penetrated into the building. Rooms for women and children were located around well-lit courtyards. The walls of the living quarters were decorated with murals. Naturally, outbuildings were adjacent to the building.

The typical dwelling house of an artisan in Deir el-Medina consisted of several rooms, all enfilade, so that the room could only be entered through the previous one. An entrance hall or living room opened onto the street, and there was also a home altar in it. From the hallway it was possible to enter a living room with a high ceiling, the ceiling was propped up by a wooden column. Next came the bedroom, kitchen, pantry and cellar. Between the bedroom and the kitchen was a staircase leading to the terrace.

The homes of the craftsmen of Akhetaton were similar to those of their colleagues from Deir el-Medina, they stood along the small and narrow streets of one area of \u200b\u200bthe city.

The houses of the noble Egyptians formed whole blocks of luxurious villas. The villa stood, as a rule, in the center of a large garden, the rooms were connected to a hall decorated with columns. The garden was divided into two parts. One contained outbuildings, servants' rooms, stables, and granaries. Another part of the garden was a beautiful park, in the middle of which was built a pool with a gazebo on the shore, there was also a small chapel. Wonderful flowers and beautiful trees grew in the park.

We know much less about what the residential buildings looked like from the outside; models found in tombs and images in frescoes show mainly the interior decoration and the arrangement of rooms. Probably, from the outside, these buildings differed little from the modern houses of the Egyptians living in the countryside, i.e. from massive buildings of a blocky shape with small windows.

Fortresses in Ancient Egypt

Throughout the history of Ancient Egypt, the country's borders were guarded by powerful fortresses. A fortified bastion stood at the crossroads of roads and roads in the deserts. Fortress structures were also built inside the country. These were fortresses protecting cities, large administrative and religious centers.

The palaces of the archaic period, as evidenced by the surviving images, were fortified buildings, had fortified walls with watchtowers and bastions. The bastion in Neheb (El-Kab) was such a fortress. It was surrounded by an oval wall. A similar, but smaller, fortress was also located in neighboring Nehena (Hierakonpolis). During the reign of the dynasties of the archaic period, both cities were surrounded by a rectangular brick wall, the citadels themselves were surrounded by brick walls with towers. The ruins of such an ancient fortress were also discovered in Abydos.

The wall around the Djoser pyramid complex symbolized the white city wall of Memphis. Naturally, she was built in her image and reinforced with watchtowers with loopholes. Its construction and style show well how the fortress walls and defensive structures of ancient Egyptian cities looked.

During the Middle Kingdom, Egypt captured the territory of Nubia up to the second rapids of the Nile. A whole system of fortresses was built on these lands. These were huge brick citadels, in many cases they were surrounded by double battlements, reinforced by tower fortifications. Under the protection of the walls was a small military town where the soldiers of the garrison lived. The foundation line of the fortress took into account the features of the terrain. For example, the Shiemna fortress was in the shape of a triangle, Kuhan was in the shape of a regular quadrangle.

In the era of the New Kingdom, the number of border fortresses increased significantly, and the number of garrisons standing in them increased. The pharaoh's troops, who fought in Asia Minor, got acquainted with the structure and types of fortresses there. This influenced the planning and construction of fortifications by Egyptian builders. In Egypt, fortified tower gates and a gate system became widespread, which narrowed as the enemy moved inward. Fortress towers began to be built in several floors, equipped with loopholes for shooters. This is how the two towers looked at the gates of the palace-temple of Pharaoh Ramses III in Medinet Abu. The wall with which this palace was surrounded was 17 m high. The towers reached a height of 22 m. They were built of mud bricks and were lined with limestone slabs. They housed rooms for the guards, outside the tower were decorated with beautiful bas-reliefs.

Cities and villages in Ancient Egypt

There were many large and small settlements in the Nile Valley. Some of them appeared in prehistoric times, later most of these ancient settlements turned into the capitals of the nomes (provinces) . To meet the needs of the royal court, nobility, priests and to cover the costs of the construction and maintenance of tombs, special villages and settlements were built, the labor of the inhabitants of which covered these costs. There were military settlements and administrative centers. Cities were usually located on the banks of the river or next to it. Therefore, they were built on natural or artificially created islands. Talking about the nature of the Delta, Strabo wrote that during the flood of the Nile, the entire surrounding area is covered with water, the Delta turns into the Sea, only cities and villages stand like islands, because they are built on hills created by nature or man. This applies to large, large cities and tiny villages.

Villages of Ancient Egypt

Simple village dwellings-huts were built from reeds, sedges and clay. Larger buildings were constructed from sun-dried mud bricks. This is mainly how houses were built in cities. As we can see, light and fragile materials were used for the construction of residential buildings. For these reasons, very few traces of such buildings and structures have come down to us. We obtained information about them mainly from texts and written documents. New buildings were erected, as a rule, in place of the old ones, so the hill on which the building stood became higher and higher. Along with the cities located in open places, with their disorder of narrow streets, we know cities and settlements that were planned and built according to a single plan. These settlements are characterized by straight, parallel streets. Some settlements were surrounded by a city wall. In most cases, no special protective structures were erected.

Traces of fragile buildings have not survived, but when comparing images on ancient reliefs and the current appearance of residential buildings, barns and dovecotes in the Delta, one can be convinced that the latter generally repeat samples created about five thousand years ago. In the same way, until now, water is supplied to the fields using a water wheel rotated by a buffalo or an "Archimedean screw" rotated by hand.

Ancient Egyptian cities

At present, we use Greek names for the designation and names of ancient Egyptian cities and settlements (Memphis, Heliopolis, Thebes, etc.). This is no coincidence, because only thanks to the works of Greek scientists-travelers did we learn about their existence. However, some modern names originated from the ancient Egyptian ones, among them Abusir, Aswan, etc.

Nehen and Neheb

In the north of Edfu, on the western bank of the Nile, archaeologists have discovered the oldest capital of Upper Egypt, the city of Nehen. It existed even before the unification of Egypt into a single state. The Greeks named this city Hierakonpolis. In the city, which was surrounded by a fortress wall, there was the main shrine of the country - the temple of the god Horus. On the opposite bank of the river was another city - the twin city of Neheb. He was also surrounded by a wall. Here was the temple of the goddess Nehbet, the goddess with the body of a vulture, protector and patroness of Egypt. Both cities flourished for millennia, and Nehen was the provincial capital.

Memphis

Unlike these two ancient cities of Egypt, the date of their founding is lost in the darkness of centuries, the history and time of birth of Memphis, the capital of Ancient Egypt, are well known to us. Pharaoh Meni, who united the whole country under his rule, built this city on the border of Lower and Upper Egypt. The city was built immediately as the capital of the state. Herodotus wrote that Meni (Less), the first ruler of Egypt, judging by the stories that the Greek scientist heard from the Egyptian priests, built dams and dams and drained the land for the construction of the city. If the river breaks through these dams, the priests told Herodotus, the city would be in danger of flooding. Today we only know the place where Memphis stood. With the help of the available written documents and the complex of the pyramid of Pharaoh Djoser, which was built, as scientists suggest, like a model of Memphis, we can get some idea of \u200b\u200bwhat the city looked like.

Memphis had the shape of a rectangle (with sides 6.5x13 km), was located parallel to the current and the bed of the Nile. The capital of the state was surrounded by a white brick wall reinforced with watchtowers. In the center of the city there were artificial reservoirs and lakes, in the northern part of Memphis there were the royal palace, temples and sanctuaries. Administrative buildings towered on either side of the artificial lakes, followed by residential quarters. Later Memphis lost the status of the capital of the state, but it retained its significance as the largest trade and cultural center of Ancient Egypt. In the later period, it turned into a real world city. In Memphis, there were separate areas where Phoenicians, Jews, Greeks, Persians, and others lived. Representatives of these nationalities had the right to worship their gods and erect temples and chapels in their honor.

Cities near the pyramids

Settlements of a special character and purpose were the so-called "cities at the pyramids". These settlements were built for the permanent habitation of workers and craftsmen - pyramid builders. Both noble dignitaries and priests who served the cult of the deceased pharaoh began to live in them. Fields and lands adjacent to the town served to satisfy the needs of the ministers for the care of the royal tombs, the proceeds from them went to the worship of the dead. The ruins of this settlement were found by archaeologists next to the pyramid of Khafre. Around the lower temple of Pharaoh Senusret II in El Lahun, there was also a town of craftsmen and artisans. It was larger in size than the above city of craftsmen from the Old Kingdom. The layout of the town in El Lahoun was more orderly, with streets parallel to each other. The settlement was divided into two parts by a wall. In the working-class area there were small houses of artisans, the dwellings of administrators and overseers were slightly larger. In another quarter there were temples and a palace, where the houses of major officials and administrators were built. One such house could accommodate nearly thirty families from workers' quarters.

In the era of the New Kingdom, a small settlement in the west of the city of Thebes, next to the Valley of the Kings, played a similar role as a town at the pyramid. It was called Set-Maat (now Deir el-Medina). The people who lived here worked on the construction of the tombs of the kings and their families. They were builders, stone carvers, sculptors, painters. This small town emerged at the beginning of the 18th dynasty. At first, only one street was built, later the town was expanded, but the layout remained linear. On its territory there was a separate area of \u200b\u200bbuildings of a religious nature. A cemetery for craftsmen and artisans was located in the valley.

Thebes

From the capital of the New Kingdom, the city of Thebes, only the ruins of temples and religious buildings have survived to this day. According to the surviving documents, the city was located along the river Nile (presumably 10-12 km) and not only on the east, on the territory of Luxor and Karnak, but also on the west bank. Today we call its ruins “the city of the dead”.

In this part of the city there were the palaces of the pharaoh, noble and wealthy people lived here. Thebes was surrounded by a long wall. According to Homer and his Iliad (IX, 383), the city had a hundred gates.

Akheteton

The best-preserved ancient Egyptian city, representing a single and integral composition, is Akhetaton (modern Tell el-Amarna), the capital of Pharaoh Akhenaten. The city is located on the east bank of the Nile, halfway between Memphis and Thebes. Its buildings stretch for 10 km from north to south.

The main street of Akhetaton, the so-called royal road, passed through all parts and districts of the capital, connecting them into one whole. It must be said that the buildings here were not built close to each other, but at some distance from one another. The house of Nefertiti, the wife of the pharaoh, was in the north, in one of the residential areas. It was called the Silver Palace.

In the center were the buildings of state institutions and temple complexes. Here, next to the temple of the god Aton, was the residence of the pharaoh. Residential quarters began again south of the center. On the eastern outskirts, practically outside the city limits, there was, as in Thebes, a settlement of artisans.

After the death of Pharaoh Akhenaten and the victory of the cult of the god Amun, the city quickly fell into desolation, the inhabitants left it. No new settlements were built on the site of Akhetaton, and therefore, when archaeologists excavated its ruins, ancient city appeared before their amazed gazes almost intact.