Colossi of Memnon

The Colossi of Memnon are two seated statues of Pharaoh Amenhotep III on Luxor's West Bank. Each is about 18 metres tall and carved from a single block of stone. They once guarded the entrance to his mortuary temple, which is now gone, so the statues stand alone in open ground. Entry is free and parking is close by, which makes this an easy stop on a West Bank route. Come early for softer light and fewer visitors, and allow a short visit, since the site is compact.

Who the statues show

The two figures show Pharaoh Amenhotep III seated on his throne. His mother, Mutemwiya, and his wife, Tiye, are carved beside his legs, so the royal family is part of each statue.

The statues were set up to face the entrance of his mortuary temple. That temple is gone today, and the two figures are what remains of it. For this reason the site is now a pair of statues in open ground, not a ruin with walls to walk through.

Greek and Roman visitors knew the statues in later centuries, and Roman inscriptions are still visible on them. These marks show that the site drew visitors long before modern tourism.

How they were made

Each statue is about 18 metres tall and was carved from a single block of stone. The stone is a hard, yellowish-brown sandstone, quarried in the hills above Edfu.

The statues have been standing for more than three thousand years. They have lasted through the centuries that followed the loss of the temple they once fronted, and their weathered surfaces show that time.

From a short distance, the scale is the first thing you notice. Up close, the seated posture and the carved family figures become clearer.