The sun set on Thursday morning over the famous Pharaonic temples of Karnak in the historic city of Luxor in Upper Egypt, announcing the beginning of winter. The rays of the sun crept through the towering gates and columns of the temple to illuminate the darkness of the Holy of Holies of Amun Ra, “King of the Gods,” “Lord of Karnak,” and “Lord of the Offerings of the Two Lands” in Thebes (currently Luxor), the capital of ancient Egypt.
The historic astronomical phenomenon was witnessed by hundreds of foreign and Egyptian tourists, presented by Mohamed Abdel Qader, Deputy Governor of Luxor, and officials in the tourism and antiquities sectors in the governorate. The head of the Egyptian Society for Tourism and Archaeological Development, Ayman Abu Zaid, said that the phenomenon of the perpendicular sun “took place in an enchanting atmosphere, where the audience enjoyed listening to music and historical texts accompanying the sound and light shows that tell many of the secrets of the Karnak temples, the ancient city of Thebes and its great kings, who built dozens of temples and hundreds of tombs.” The inscriptions and drawings on its walls and ceilings tell the history of ancient Egyptian civilization, and the arts and sciences it knew, including astronomy, in which the ancient Egyptians excelled.”
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