The Complete Temples of Ancient Egypt

by Richard H. Wilkinson

The temples of ancient Egypt include the largest and perhaps most splendid religious monuments the world has ever known. This book traces their development from earliest times through their period of glory and ultimate decline to their rediscovery and study in modern times. All of Egypt's surviving temples--from the gargantuan temple of Amun at Karnak to minuscule shrines such as the oasis Oracle of Siwa, where Alexander went to hear himself proclaimed god--are discussed and illustrated with factfiles, photographs, plans, and specially commissioned perspective views. * "Houses of Eternity" considers the historical origin and development of Egyptian temples, describing their role in ancient Egyptian society, their later Christian and Muslim use, and their modern rediscovery. * "Buildings Fit for Gods" looks at how the temples were built, decorated, expanded--and sometimes destroyed. * "Worlds Within Worlds" examines each part of the sacred structures in detail--from the massive pylon towers, colossal statues, and obelisks that fronted many temples to the darkened sanctuaries and mysterious crypts of their inner depths. * "Between Heaven and Earth" discusses the temple's relationship to the pantheon of Egypt's gods, along with the roles and rituals of pharaohs and priests, and the sacred rites and festivals enacted there. * "Temples of Gods and Kings" is the most extensive catalogue of Egyptian temples yet published in one volume and serves as a guide to the ancient sites. The book's format follows the highly successful, visual style of the other volumes in Thames & Hudson's best-selling "Complete" series, creating both an authoritative reference book and an entertaining guide for everyone fascinated by the eternal mysteries of ancient Egypt.

Genres: History, Egypt, Egyptology, Nonfiction, Religion, Architecture, Archaeology

256 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 2000

Reviews

[Little Timmy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very nice book detailing these sites. Wonderful pics throughout. Recommended

[D.J. Butler · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you're looking for a primer on Egyptian temples, check this one out. The first half of the book synthetically treats Egyptian temples as a whole, discussing their architecture, evolution, and function. The second half is a run-down of archaeological sites by region. The book is profusely illustrated throughout with photographs of art and ruins, drawings of the same, and maps.

[Les Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

An enjoyable and a very informative book. Will have to read again as it is too informative for me to take in in one reading.

[Carmen Imes · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very helpful guidebook to ancient temples in Egypt, their design and purpose.
Great pictures.

[DAJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Most Thames & Hudson books I've read aim to cover all the major aspects of the topic, and this one is a prime example. Chapters describe how temple design evolved throughout ancient Egyptian history; the process of construction; the "standard" temple layout that developed in the New Kingdom and afterward; the symbolism that permeated temple design (a particularly strong element of the book, because symbolism is Wilkinson's specialty); and the temple's religious functions. The last and largest section is a catalogue of temple sites, moving north to south from Alexandria to Jebel Barkal, with side trips to the western oases and the sites in the Sinai region. As a result, the book can double as a guide to most Egyptian archaeological sites, including the pyramids, because every pyramid had a temple at its base.

The downside of this approach is that if you have space limitations you can't cover everything in much detail. The catalogue of sites treats all but the most important and well-preserved temples very briefly, and it leaves out a few of the most minor temple sites. The treatment of general subjects like rites and festivals is also rather cursory. I'd particularly like to see more coverage of priests and the temple's economic significance. However, Egyptian temples are a very big subject, and it's hard to fit all that information into 256 pages. To get a general understanding of their evolution, construction, design, and cultural significance, there is no better book than this one. Its major rivals are Temple of the World, which discusses only selected sites but gives good descriptions of the activities performed there, and Temples of Ancient Egypt, which discusses a handful of limited topics but gives an impression of how temples functioned in different eras.

Many other books can supplement this one; the further reading section is an excellent guide to those published earlier than 2000. Some of the most important are The Complete Cities of Ancient Egypt, which covers archaeological sites more thoroughly; Anatomy of a Civilisation, which gives some interesting but often idiosyncratic insights into the evolution and social significance of temples; The Priests of Ancient Egypt; and The Encyclopedia of Ancient Egyptian Architecture.

[Arthur · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Complete Temples of Ancient Egypt is structurally impressive. Wilkinson assembles a meticulous inventory of temples — their locations, layouts, chronological developments, and architectural principles. It’s especially strong in mapping spatial hierarchies and symbolic axes, offering detailed explanations of pylons, courtyards, sanctuaries, and their alignment to celestial or ritual logic. The visual documentation is abundant, and for architectural comparison, it’s highly effective.

And yet, something’s missing.

The book treats temples as formal systems, not as lived or sensed environments. The textures of stone, the acoustics of hypostyle halls, the temperature shifts between thresholds — none of this enters the analysis. Wilkinson breaks down structure after structure with admirable clarity, but without attending to the bodily or atmospheric experience of these spaces. The temples remain abstract — diagrams more than places.

I found myself cataloguing rather than connecting. There’s no exploration of how these buildings shaped attention, awe, or ritual embodiment. The reader is told what the temples are, but rarely how they functioned as emotional or sensory matrices.

This is a deeply useful reference — highly legible, logically constructed — but it engages more with order than with presence. A guidebook of immense value, though one best supplemented with more immersive sources.

[Layla Ren · Rating 4 out of 5]

This illustrated volume was very helpful for traveling in Egypt. I was especially struck by the cosmology underlying temple architecture. I found myself drawn more to the practical dimensions: the discussion of building materials was fascinating, and I learned that temples also functioned as scriptoria, libraries, and healing centers—roles I had not been aware of while visiting. I was also intrigued by the growing power of the priestly class in the late New Kingdom, though this is not explored in much detail in the book.

One regret concerns the section on the rediscovery of temples, which largely takes European explorers as the default point of reference. I found myself more curious about how Islamic societies understood temples and ancient Egypt more broadly, beyond the practice of incorporating mosques into temple complexes.

[PRJ Greenwell · Rating 4 out of 5]

The blurb above quotes the word "comprehensive" and that's precisely what you get here. Every Ancient Egyptian site is listed, from pre-Dynastic times to the Greco-Roman period. It's well illustrated throughout with both photographs and drawings, and for any student of this fascinating subject, this would be a great addition to your library. To the mildly curious though, this would be a little heavy going, and probably light on the material one normally associates with Ancient Egypt, i.e the mummies, the Great Pyramids etc.

[Joeri Ryckaseys · Rating 5 out of 5]

Een super degelijk standaardwerk over de Egyptische tempels. Van de relatief jonge, goedbewaarde toeristische trekpleisters als Edfu, Philae... tot Luxor en Karnak... tot de minder bekende Nubische tempels, de tempels in de Fayoem en Nijldelta en de sites die amper bewaard zijn gebleven maar die uitermate belangrijk waren in de Egyptische geschiedenis. Ik heb zéér veel bijgeleerd uit dit werk. Een aantal van de sites wil ik toch wel zeker eens bezocht hebben, maar hiervoor zal ik niet terecht kunnen bij reguliere touroperators vrees is :p

[Garurumon3d · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book that gives an overview of egyptian temples and has a catalog of some of the most important temples. Its language is clear and easy to understand and for anyone who wants to explore egyptian temple architecture deeper it has a good bibliography.

[Julia Herdman · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good introduction.

[Stephen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is AWESOME.

[Carole · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent introduction to this topic. Have dipped into this book before but just read it cover to cover and got so much more from it.

[Oneirae · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one I MUST buy! It has everything on the temples my current library lacks complete with pictures and floor plans. Looks like it can be found fairly affordable, too! I'll be checking it out a lot from the library for reference until I buy it. It's such a relief to find something good after a string of bad books on Egypt!

[Bettie]

pdf - read on computer

[James F · Rating 3 out of 5]

Descriptions of nearly all the existing temples from Ancient Egypt; heavily illustrated coffee-table book.

[Fady Alamer · Rating 3 out of 5]

sehr gut