Medieval Egyptian scholars were fascinated with the traces of pharaonic antiquity evident in Luxor.

but it wasn’t until the 1822 decoding of the Rosetta stone, discovered by Napoleon’s troops north of modern-day Cairo in the Nile delta, that the key to hieroglyphics was unlocked, and the monuments could be understood in their true historical context.

Luxor has provided a nearly permanent home to international archaeological missions, and their discoveries have captivated generations, the best- known of which was Howard Carter’s dramatic discovery of the tombs of Tutankhamun in 1922.

Even Now, in a continually unfolding tale, amazing discoveries are being made.

Some scholars predict the 70 per cent of the glories of Luxor ancient’s past still lies buried beneath the sands.

The hot, dry climate of Luxor and the relative obscurity of these monuments for millennia has given future generations a priceless gift by helping to preserve these wonders.

at a staggering distance of thousands of years, we can still experience Luxor’s grandeur through the most diverse and abundant collection of antiquities on earth.

it’s an amazing legacy- some 450 tombs, a constellation of temples and other buildings, and rich inscriptions and paintings, some of those colours are still as fresh as the day they were painted.

preserving this priceless heritage while making it accessible to millions of annual visitors is a complicated and delicate task.

The ancient Greeks called it Thebes, the city of hundred gates, and its present name derives from al-Uqsur, the Arabic word meaning palaces- But to its ancient inhabitants, Luxor was known as waste the city, greatest of all capitals.

Home to one of the earliest flowerings of human Civilzation, at its height, Luxor’ populations reached one million, and the wealth, knowledge and technical abilities of its people made it a centre of the ancient world for more than half a millennium.

when its glories at long last began to give way to Memphis in the north, around 1085 BC, Luxor had held sway over ancient Egypt for over 2000 years.

when the Greek historian Herodotus visited in 450 BC, he told tales of fabled Thebes whose long age of glory already belonged in the past.

The ancient monuments in Luxor are scattered at both banks of the Nile East& West:

Those at the east bank include the Karnak complex(The greatest place of worship of the Whole world about 80 acers of land covered by buildings) and Luxor temple amongest the city in addition to the nearby temples like al-Tod, El- Medamod…etc. were general cult temples.

while Everything at the west bank was personal either tombs or temples because every king was supposed to have his own tombs and his own commemorating temple(where his body will be embalmed and will be a worshipped as a God after he will be buried) Also everybody whatever his class has the right to have his own tomb so more than 450 tombs were discovered so far while the discoverers still go on their missions to discover more and more. 

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