Colossi of Memnon

Why the Colossi of Memnon are special
These twin 3,400-year-old imposing statues once stood guard at the gateway of an immense temple complex.

Colossi of Memnon tips and insights
Statues in brief

• Size
  They are as high as a modern five-story building (see tourists in photo).
  
• Material
  Each was sculpted out of a single stone block quarried from afar.
  
• Condition
  They've lost their faces and much of their upper-body detail.
  
• Misnomer
  The Colossi of Memnon gained their name when ancient Greeks mistakenly thought they depicted Memnon, a non-Egyptian. He's the hero king who was famously slain in the Trojan War by Achilles.
  
  The correct subject is the powerful 14th century Pharoah Amonhotep III for whom the temple was built.

Temple status
The elements including Nile floods took their toll. So did subsequent rulers who stripped the site for construction materials for new structures. Little remains today except for the Colossi of Memnon. You hardly see more than items like headless sphinxes and scattered building fragments.

Visit length
Most visitors drop by for about 15 minutes on their way to the Valley of the Kings wonder.

Best photo time
Shoot the colossi in the low-angled, warm-toned early morning sunlight.

Location in Egypt