File:Seti I, Abydos.jpg

English: Seti I, Abydos

Abydos dates back to the dawn of Ancient Egyptian civilisation when it was established as the cult centre of the god of the Netherworld Osiris and the burial site for a number of the earliest kings. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abydos,_Egypt

Over the centuries several temples were constructed at the site on the edge of the desert, the Great Osiris Temple being at the heart of the god's cult but little remains of this structure. What visitors come to Abydos to see today are the far more substantial remains of the New Kingdom temples built by Seti I and his son Ramesses II.

The Temple of Seti I is the glory of Abydos, an impressive complex that originally comprised two large forecourts with towering pylons followed by a succession of pillared halls and chapels beyond. Today the forecourts and pylons are so ruined that only their lower parts remain, but beyond this the heart of the temple remains almost intact, and its many chambers, walls and pillars bear some of the very finest relief decoration in all of Egypt.

The interior is somewhat gloomy and takes a while to adjust to after the glare of the sun outside. The roof is largely a modern restoration in order to protect the ancient colouring that remains on much of the carving and admits little natural light. initially the decoration the visitor encounters in the first hypostyle hall is of a standard type, sunken relief from the reign of Ramesses II who fiinished his father's temple after the latter's death. It is only when one progresses into the second hypostyle halls and the group of chapels and chambers beyond that the fame of the art of Abydos becomes clear.

The relief sculpture of Seti I's reign are without parallel in the New Kingdom, the pinnacle of artistic achievement in the surviving temples of Egypt. The figures are all in raised (rather than the easier sunken) relief and the carving is of such delicacy that one can only assume that Seti must have placed great emphasis on the quality of the decoration he commissioned during his fifteen year reign (evidence of this can be seen in other projects commissioned by the king, but none more so than his temple at Abydos). The survival of much of the ancient colouring in many areas simply adds to the magic, with some scenes in pristine condition. Luckily the sort of vandalism that afflicted many temples during the post-Pharaonic period was only confined to one or two rooms and most decoration remains intact.

At the rear of the second hypostyle halls is a sequence of seven chapels dedicated to six major deities along with the pharaoh himself. Beyond these lie further sumptuously decorated rooms connected to various rituals of Osiris.

To the rear of the temple is a wing with further chambers accessed via a corridor inscribed with the famous Abydos 'King's List', which bears the cartouches of all the Pharaohs up to Seti's reign (with a few notable omissions). The corridor also leads out to a separate structure behind the temple known as the Osireon, a sunken monolithic chamber erected as a cenotaph to the god Osiris.

Some distance to the north of the Temple of Seti I lies the much smaller temple of his son Ramesses II (who decided to add his own temple in addition to finishing his father's). This is much less well preserved, with the walls only standing up to around three metres high, but much of the relief decoration of these lower courses remains, and much of the vivid colouring is beautifully preserved.

Abydos is one of Egypt's most important sites, both historically and artistically and will richly reward the visitor.