Deie El-Bahri

Deir El-Bahri is an ancient Egyptian burial complex made from carving into the side of a hill. It is built in the west bank of the Nile river east of the Valley of Kings. The site has three main structures in it; the first being the Temple of Mentuhotep II. The second is the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut, and the third is a complex that was built by Hatshepsut’s nephew/stepson Thutmose III.

Mentuhotep was the first pharaoh of the Eleventh Dynasty and also reunified Egypt after the first intermediate period. When building his mortuary temple, Mentuhotep decided to use a different design than what was used before. There was a 150 foot causeway that connected a small temple with a tree lined court of the temple that was surrounded by walls on three sides. Many relics from other royalties of Egypt were also found inside of this temple. Some being statues of the Twelfth Dynasty king Senusret III. Unfortunately most of the temple was destroyed due to natural causes and the extant portions are only the remains of what it used to be.

The second large structure in Deir El-Bahri was the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut, the fifth pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty. Hatshepsut is recognised as one of the most successful pharaohs in history and as the first female pharaoh. Although some of these claims have been challenged. She was an unrivaled builder. Her temple was much larger than Mentuhotep’s temple. The outside of the temple consisted of three terraced courtyards. Inside the right side of the terrace there is the Birth Colonnade, which tells the story of Hatshepsut’s divine origins. Past the Birth Colonnade is the Chapel of Anubis which is decorated with columns and murals. The left side of the terrace contains the Punt Colonnade which is followed by the Chapel of Hathor at the end of it. The third structure on the site is a temple built by Thutmose III, which was discovered during a Polish archaeological mission.

The site of Deir El-Bahri is a very popular tourist attraction in Egypt. People visit to see the ancient site from all over. So much so that it was the site of a terrorist attack in 1997 by Al-Gama al-Islamiya, killing over 60 people who were mostly tourists. This led to more security and less freedom of exploration in the site. Despite things like this, the site is still a very popular tourist attraction, with an introduction of new lights that illuminate the structures at night.

Works Cited:

Brand P. 2010. Usurpation of Monuments. In: Wendrich W, editor. UCLA Encyclopedia of Egyptology. Los Angeles: UCLA.

Brovarski E. 1976. Senenu, High Priest of Amun at Deir El-Bahri. The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 62:57-73.

"Dayr Al-Bahri." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 02 Oct. 2016.