See Sami Magdy and Ahmed Hatem
LUXOR, Egypt (AP) — Egypt on Sunday unveiled the renovation of two massive statues of a prominent pharaoh in the country’s southern city of Luxor, the latest in government-led archaeological events aimed at attracting more tourists to the country.
The giant alabaster statues, known as the Colossi of Memnon, were reassembled in a renovation project that lasted about two decades. They represent Amenhotep III, who ruled ancient Egypt about 3,400 years ago.
“Today, in fact, we celebrate the completion and erection of these two huge statues,” Mohamed Ismail, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, told The Associated Press before the ceremony.
Attempts to revive a prestigious temple
Ismail said that these two statues are of great importance to Luxor, a city known for its ancient temples and other monuments. It is also an attempt “to revive what this funerary temple of King Amenhotep III looked like a long time ago,” Ismail said.
Amenhotep III, one of the most prominent pharaohs, ruled during the New Kingdom, a 500-year era that was the most prosperous of ancient Egypt. The pharaoh, whose mummy is displayed in a museum in Cairo, ruled from 1390 to 1353 BC, a peaceful period known for its prosperity and grand buildings, including his mortuary temple, home to the two giant statues of Memnon, and another temple, Soleb, in Nubia.
Muhammad Ismail, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, said that the two statues fell due to a strong earthquake around 1200 BC, which also led to the destruction of the funerary temple of King Amenhotep III.
It was fragmented and partially removed, its bases scattered. Some of its blocks were reused in the Karnak Temple, but archaeologists returned them to rebuild the giant statue, according to the Ministry of Antiquities.
In the late 1990s, an Egyptian-German mission, headed by German Egyptologist Horig Sorozian, began work in the temple area, including assembling and renovating the two statues.
“This project has in mind…saving the last remains of a once prestigious temple,” Sorouzian said.
Pharaoh faces the sunrise
The statues show Amenhotep III sitting with his hands resting on his thighs and his face facing east, towards the Nile and the rising sun. They wear the monmes headdress crowned with double crowns and the pleated royal skirt that symbolizes the divine rule of the pharaoh.
There are two other small statues at the feet of the pharaoh, representing his wife Tiye.
The two giants – measuring 14.5 meters (48 ft) and 13.6 meters (45 ft) respectively – overlook the entrance to the king’s temple on the west bank of the Nile. The 35-hectare (86-acre) complex is believed to be the largest and richest temple in Egypt and is often compared to the Karnak Temple also in Luxor.
The two statues were carved from Egyptian alabaster from the Hatnub quarries in Middle Egypt. They were installed on large bases bearing inscriptions explaining the name of the temple and the quarry.
The ministry said that unlike other monumental sculptures from ancient Egypt, the two statues were partially assembled from separate carved pieces, which were mounted on the main monolithic alabaster core of each statue.
Eye on tourism
Sunday’s opening in Luxor came just six weeks after the opening of the Grand Egyptian Museum, the centerpiece of the government’s attempt to boost the country’s tourism industry and bring money into the economy. The huge project is located near the famous Giza Pyramids and the Sphinx.
The tourism sector, which relies heavily on Egypt’s rich Pharaonic antiquities, has suffered for years of political turmoil and violence following the 2011 uprising. In recent years, the sector has begun to recover after the coronavirus pandemic and amid Russia’s war in Ukraine, with both countries being major sources of tourists visiting Egypt. “This site will be a point of interest for years to come,” said Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Sherif Fathi, who attended the opening ceremony. “There are always new things happening in Luxor.”
A record number of tourists visited Egypt in 2024, amounting to about 15.7 million tourists, contributing about 8% of the country’s gross domestic product, according to official figures.
Minister Fathi said that about 18 million tourists are expected to visit the country this year, while the authorities expect 30 million visitors to arrive annually by 2032.
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Magdy reported from Cairo.
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This story was translated from English by an AP editor using a generative artificial intelligence tool.