Photo by Galen C. Dalrymple, copyright 2024. All Rights Reserved.
In Upper Egypt (think southern Egypt) there is a town called Kom Ombo. A very unusual Egyptian temple is found there, the temple of Kom Ombo. What makes it so unusual? Read on!
The temple doesn’t date to ancient antiquity like the temple of Luxor or Karnak, but only back as far as the Ptolemaic period. It was built somewhere between 180-47 BC, though some things were added later during the Roman period.
But here’s what makes it unique as per Wikipedia: The building is unique because its ‘double’ design meant that there were courts, halls, sanctuaries and rooms duplicated for two sets of gods. The southern half of the temple was dedicated to the crocodile god Sobek, god of fertility and creator of the world with Hathor and Khonsu. Meanwhile, the northern part of the temple was dedicated to the falcon god (“Horus the Elder”), along “with Tasenetnofret (the Good Sister, a special form of Hathor or Tefnet/Tefnut) and Panebtawy (Lord of the Two Lands)”. The temple is atypical because everything is perfectly symmetrical along the main axis.
But today’s picture isn’t of the temple major, but of the sunset looking westward across the Nile. As it turned out, our group was the very last group in the temple and as we were leaving, the sun was sinking and the colors of the sky and a few remnants of pillars created a beautiful scene over the sliver river. I loved it when I first saw it and I hope you find it beautiful as well.
I will post numerous pictures of the temple of Kom Ombo in the future!
THIS DAY IN HISTORY: in 1963, Alcatraz Prison in San Francisco’s Bay closes down and transferred its last prisoners. At its peak period of use in 1950s, “The Rock,” or “America’s Devil Island,” housed over 200 inmates at the maximum-security facility. Alcatraz remains an icon of American prisons for its harsh conditions and record for being inescapable.
The twelve-acre rocky island, one and a half miles from San Francisco, featured the most advanced security of the time. Some of the first metal detectors were used at Alcatraz. Strict rules were enforced against the unfortunate inmates who had to do time at Alcatraz. Nearly complete silence was mandated at all times.
Alcatraz was first explored by Juan Manuel de Ayala in 1775, who called it Isla de los Alcatraces (Pelicans) because of all the birds that lived there. It was sold in 1849 to the U.S. government. The first lighthouse in California was on Alcatraz. It became a Civil War fort and then a military prison in 1907.
The end of its prison days did not end the Alcatraz saga. In March 1964, a group of Sioux claimed that the island belonged to them due to a 100-year-old treaty. Their claims were ignored until November 1969 when a group of eighty-nine Native Americans representing the American Indian Movement (AIM) occupied the island. They stayed there until 1971 when AIM was finally forced off the island by federal authorities.
The following year, Alcatraz was added to the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. It is now open for tourism. – The History Channel
TRIVIA FOR TODAY: Yoda’s name was originally Buffy. It was then changed to “Minch Yoda” and then to “Yoda.” Originally, Yoda was going to be played by a monkey, but after hearing how difficult monkeys were on the set of 2001: A Space Odyssey, they decided to use a puppet.
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