Dendera

Dendera (Gr. Tentyra; Coptic Tentore, probably from Tēi-n-Athor, the abode of Athor), a village of Upper Egypt, once a populous town, and the capital of the sixth nome of the 'southern kingdom,' situated near the left bank of the Nile, in 25° 13' N. lat., 32° 40' E. long., is celebrated on account of its temple, one of the finest and best preserved structures of the kind in Egypt, dating from the period of Cleopatra and the earlier Roman emperors. The temple measures 220 feet in length by about 50 in breadth, and has a noble portico or hypostyle hall supported on twenty-four columns. The walls, columns, &c. are covered with figures and hieroglyphics, among which are still to be seen the contemporary portraits in profile of Cleopatra and her son; but the beauty of the Egyptian queen is not apparent in her portrait, which belongs to almost the most degraded period of conventional art in Egypt. On the ceiling of the portico is a zodiac, in which the crab is represented by a scarab. Beyond the portico are a hall of six columns and several rooms, which once contained altars, the sacred boats, perfumes, vestments for the religious ceremonies, and offerings of first-fruits, and the like (Mariette, The Monuments of Upper Egypt). There are several other sacred buildings at Dendera, including a temple of Isis. The temples stand within a wall of unbaked bricks, 1000 feet long on one side, and in some parts 35 feet high. The people of Tentyra were peculiar for their detestation of the crocodile, which led to a violent religious war with the city of Ombos, where the reptile was worshipped.