The topic

One of Egypt’s top tourist attractions, the temple complex at Karnak ranks among the largest religious complexes in human history, with temples spread over more than 1 million square meters. Its ancient Egyptian name is Ipt Swt, meaning "the most selected of sites," and its construction and worshiping functions lasted for more than 2,000 years.

With such a rich history, it is also a priority site for archaeological activities. Various Egyptian and international missions work there, all operating under the supervision of the Supreme Council of Antiquities and the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities.

Karnak is divided into three sections: The large, main temple, in the middle, dedicated to the worship of the Theban Triad (Amun, Mut, and Khonsu); the northern section, for the temple of the god Montu; and the southern section, for the goddess Mut.

Recent work includes restoration, conservation, maintenance, documentation, and research in addition to archaeological discoveries—all of which continually enrich the history of this exceptional site. This lecture will share information about the latest archaeological projects and excavation results.

Email us at arce.dc.news at gmail dot com for a link to register for this online event.

Our talks typically last an hour—50 minutes for the lecture, 10 minutes for Q+A.

Alert: We do not allow recording or imaging of our presentations in any way.

The speaker

Salah el-Masekh is the General Director of Karnak Temples. He has headed up excavations in the Valley of the Kings and Taposiris Magna near Alexandria, and was a member of one of the archaeological teams working at Abydos. His master’s thesis was entitled “Roman Public Baths in Egypt and  Libya: Examples from Thebes and Cyrene, a Comparative Archaeological and Historical Survey.”