Dendera Temple and other Ptolemaic-era temples are special for having formerly secret texts displayed prominently on the walls. Ptolemy VIII and Queen Cleopatra II built it, and then later, Roman Emperors continued to decorate it and honour the Goddess Hathor Emperor Nero, who saw himself as a god, added his likeness to the temple walls. Detail of the colossal carving of Cleopatra VII Philopator (51-30 BC) and her son Ptolomey XV Caesarion (44-30 BC) before the gods, on the south exterior wall of Temple of Dendera. The temple of Hathor was constructed over a period, we believe, of thirty-four years, between 54 and 20 BC. The Dendera temple of Hathor, surprisingly intact after more than 2,000 years, is a superb example of Greco-Egyptian temple architecture. The temple at one time was hidden by sand but was cleared during the 1800s. .....In the summer of 47 BCE, having symblicallly 'married' her younger brother Ptolemy XIV (about 10yrs old a common tactic to keep power in the dynastic family) Cleopatra embarked with Caesar for a two-month trip along the Nile. An early winter sun rises above the grounds of the Hathor Temple at Dendera, here seen from its enclosure wall. Dendera Temple complex (Ancient Egyptian: Iunet or Tantere; the 19th-century English spelling in most sources, including Belzoni, was Tentyra) is located about 2.5 kilometres (1.6 mi) south-east of Dendera, Egypt. It lies around 2.5km south-east of Dendera (known to the ancient Egyptians as Iunet or Tantere) the sixth Nome of Upper Egypt.The whole complex extends to around 40,000 square metres and is surrounded by a large mudbrick enclosure wall. and Ptolemy XV Caesar [Caesarion; 36-30 C.E. The large goddess on the right, the first of a procession of deities not included in the photograph, is Hathor. Dendera Temple Complex Egypt & Secrets Temple of The Goddess Hathor In Qena.. The temple complex of Dendera (Denderah) is one of the best preserved complexes in Egypt. The large goddess on the right, the first of a procession of deities not included in the photograph, is Hathor. This main temple of this complex is the Temple of Hathor, in which numerous smaller shrines / chapels may be found. Buried under sand until the 19th century, the vast Temple of Hathor remains remarkably intact. This meant that much of the temple … The Temple Of Hathor. Dendera is said to mark an old holy place, even by the standards of the ancient Egyptians. The sculptured Dendera zodiac (or Dendera Zodiac) is a widely known Egyptian bas-relief from the ceiling of the pronaos (or portico) of a chapel dedicated to Osiris in the Hathor temple at Dendera, containing images of Taurus (the bull) and the Libra (the scales). Detail of the colossal carving of Cleopatra VII Philopator (51-30 BC) and her son Ptolomey XV Caesarion (44-30 BC) before the gods, on the south exterior wall of Temple of Dendera. The main temple was built by Ptolemy XII and nearly completed by Queen Cleopatra VII, around 54 to 20 BCE. ], Cleopatra… See a photo of a relief of Cleopatra on a temple wall in Egypt by George Steinmetz, from National Geographic. Reliefs of Cleopatra VII and her son by Julius Caesar, Caesarion at the Dendera Temple.

It seems that the remainder of the temple was build during the twenty-one year reign of his successor, Queen Cleopatra VII. The exterior walls of the Temple of Hathor are covered with sunk relief carvings dating from the late Ptolemaic and Roman Periods. The Temple of Hathor is largely believed to be the best preserved temple of its kind in all of Egypt. The official interpretation of the strange image is of a pillar and lotus, but there are theories about it being an ancient light bulb. When Ptolemy XII died in 51 BC, the temple was, after four years of building activity, still in its early stages, although it did contain some underground crypts. The western corner of the south wall is notable for its representation of Cleopatra VII Philopator (51-30 C.E.) Discover Secrets Reason for Building Hathor Temple Light Bulb, Stairs, Ceiling, Melted Steps, Zodiac and History, Facts, Plan… History of the construction of the Temple of Hathor, the most important preserved ancient Pharaonic temples in Qena, ancient Egypt. Seldom-seen images of Cleopatra … [EGYPT 29504] 'Dendera Temple seen from its enclosure wall.' In front of the actual temple lies the rectangular basin of the sacred lake, from the bottom of which rises a grove of palms.