Photo : Holger Uwe Schmitt — CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Luxor · Deir el-Bahari, west bank
Temple of Hatshepsut
Three white terraces set into the cliff, and the queen's name chiselled out everywhere.
Hatshepsut's funerary temple, Eighteenth Dynasty, built around 1470 BC at the foot of the Deir el-Bahari cliff, with the Valley of the Kings immediately behind. Three colonnaded terraces climb to a sanctuary cut into the rock itself — a terraced form taken from the much older temple of Mentuhotep II next door. The portico of the middle terrace tells the story, in relief, of the expedition to the land of Punt: the ships, the myrrh trees carried home in pots, the queen of Punt receiving the party. After Hatshepsut's death her images and cartouches were erased methodically, and the chisel marks are still there to read.
The extra bit
The temple faces east: the façade is in full light early and against the light thereafter. Go up to the top terrace first, if it is open that day, as it is the only one with shade between its columns, then come down to read the Punt reliefs.
Know before you go
The rock amphitheatre throws the heat back: by eleven the lower court is an oven, and the walk from the ticket office to the temple is entirely in the sun (a small shuttle covers it). The cruise coaches arrive late morning, all at once.
