Thebes (1 Viewer)

[goosiegoo]

This may be an incredibly stupid question... but i'm a confused. I'm doing an assessment on the building programs of Ramesses II in Abydos, Nubia and Thebes, and i can't figure out what is actually counted in thebes. That is, i know the Valley of the Kings is, but what about Karnak and Luxor (the Temple of Karnak and Luxor Temple in particular)? Everyone keeps giving me different answers. Sigh.

 

[xeuyrawp]

I have no idea why I never saw this post...

Thebes is a generic term. It would be like saying 'greater Sydney'.

That is, i know the Valley of the Kings is, but what about Karnak and Luxor (the Temple of Karnak and Luxor Temple in particular)?

They are all in Thebes.

Everything in Luxor is also in Thebes. Luxor (with its temples and tombs) is a part of Thebes, like a suburb of Sydney. The Temple of Karnak is in Thebes; but not in Luxor.

It's difficult to understand, but Thebes refers to a strip of the Nile, and all the buildings in the general area. Thus the Theban necropolis is the Valley of the Kings, Dra Abu el Naga, the tombs at Deir el Medina, Abd el Qurna, etc.

But as you know, it's not just tombs. Pretty much anything from Seti I's temple to Malkata is considered Theban, including Deir el Medina and some of the Middle Kingdom stuff.

wiki article on it is pretty good.