Siwa Oasis

Siwa Oasis

One of the many attractions located in Egypt, the Siwa Oasis is the home of the Temple of the Oracle, one of the most famous temples in Egypt that was dedicated to god Amun, the King of the Gods and the one the Egyptian Pharaohs represented on Earth.  The other famous temple in the Siwa Oasis is Umm Ubayda.  It was once surrounded by a grove of trees near the rock of Aghurmi and was joined to the Temple of the Oracles via a pathway, forming an integral piece of the many different rituals that were performed for the god and the Oracle.
 
Today the Temple of the Oracles and Umm Ubayda site is marked only by an area of white ground with a single wall that runs as part of the ruins.  There are massive stone blocks also in the area, most of which are inscribed by hieroglyphics with some colour intact.  The temple complex was built in the 30th Dynasty and it remained fairly well intact until an earthquake in 1811 caused massive damage to the site.  Most of the temple remained standing until 1897, when a government official blew up the temple’s foundation to collect the stone for his home and the stairs at the police station.

Thanks to early 19th century visitors, we do know how the temples must have looked during ancient times.  They mapped out the complex to give the rest of mankind an understanding of the rituals that went out there and the layout of the temple complex.  The hieroglyphic text on the remaining wall of the temple is for the rite of the ‘Opening of the Mouth’, indicating that the temple was once a mortuary temple and was the funerary temple of Wenamun, a Libyan leader who worshipped Amun who could very well be buried somewhere close by.