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Veronica Czyzewski
Ancient World
May 15, 2015
Worshipping God Powerfully: The Temple of Dendur
The Temple of Dendur, a very famous temple from Ancient Egypt is an important
historical object, currently in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, NY. It is in
honor of the Egyptian sun god, Aten, and during 10-15 BCE, it was constructed when Caesar
Augustus had his reign over Egypt. It is a very symbolic replication of Egypt, since it includes
the well known Egyptian hieroglyphics. The Temple of Dendur is true for the eternal truth of
power leads to innovation in the Ancient World because during the ancient Egyptian period, it
inspired the work of the temple, the Egyptian period and time was significant in the production
of temples, through the the Great Hymn to Aten by Akenhaten, and due to the modern culture of
construction and innovation of technology in the world.
During the Roman Empires peak, the emperors had conquered a ton of land that allowed
them to spread their culture and traditions throughout a vast area. During Caesar Augustuss
reign, he had power over the Egyptian Empire and because of this, had decided to spread his
culture from home throughout Egypt. The people had accepted his customs and had worshipped
and honored the Egyptian gods. Throughout Egypts history, the pharaohs had a very strong
connection with the gods and used religious faith in order for their guidance. The Temple of
Dendur is truly a collaboration of Roman and Egyptian culture in the Ancient World.
To begin with, the Temple of Dendur is true for the eternal truth of power leads to
innovation in the Ancient World because during the ancient Egyptian period, it inspired the work
of the temple. This temple is about 24 meters, 60 centimeters from the gate to the rear of the

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temple. It was built in Nubia, Egypt and is made of Aeolian sandstone. It was constructed in 10
BCE during the Roman Period of Egypt when Caesar Augustus had power over Egypt. 1 This
temple brings the most attraction and pride to its visitors, since it is the most accurate
representation of Egyptian culture. Also, it demonstrates the dedication to the Egyptian gods
during the reign of Caesar Augustus, since he had a significant Roman impact on the
construction of temples and other places of worship that the Roman Empire traditionally
contained. Today, it stands in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, NY in the
Egyptian Art gallery. The number of the temple is 68.154. 2 This artifact was given to the
museum as a gift from Egypt, in order, to spread the Egyptian history and culture throughout the
world. According to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, The temple is a major component of
tourists and visitors coming to see it, since the hieroglyphics are stunning to the eye and are very
unique in their design.3 This quote allows the understanding that the powerful aspect of
Augustus had caused innovation throughout time, since the construction of the artifact that
allows the people of the world to grow from old creations and invent new ones that are modern
and useful to society.
Secondly, the Temple of Dendur is true for the eternal truth of power leads to innovation in the
Ancient World because the Egyptian period was significant in the production and construction of

1 The Temple of Dendur." The Metropolitan Museum of Art. 1000 5th Avenue, New York, NY 10028.
May 2015.

2 "The Temple of Dendur | Roman Period." The Temple of Dendur. Accessed May 12, 2015.

3 "Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History." Temple of Dendur, The [Egyptian; from Nubia, Dendur] (68.154).
Accessed May 12, 2015.

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religious temples. The temple was built because Roman emperor Caesar Augustus had taken over
the Egyptian empire and spread his Roman religious spirit to the Egyptian culture. He did this
through the production of temples in honor of the Egyptian gods, so that the people were more
accustomed to the new emperor and would be appreciative of him. The Roman leadership was
highly based off of connections between people of power. According to the Epistula ad Gaium
filium, the Latin text of a letter from the emperor to the son, You have duties ahead of you and
you can conquer your fears only when you have power.4 This quote signifies the forced
necessity of power and success that Caesar Augustus needed to have and he strategically used his
power to change the Egyptian empire to a more modern and innovative world for the people.
Caesar Augustus was capable of taking over the Egyptian empire because In 41 BCE, Caesar
Augustus had a romantic relationship with Cleopatra, the queen of Egypt. After constant fights
with Octavian, Cleopatra returned to Egypt and committed suicide, giving Caesar Augustus the
right to emperor.5 This rare occurrence had allowed Caesar Augustus to completely take over
Egypt and allowed him to expand his empire greatly and maintain it for 1500 years. The new
position of power for the Roman emperor had allowed new inventions and creations to arouse
throughout the world, especially in the Roman and Egyptian empires.
Today, the Egyptian culture is spread throughout the world in different museums that help honor
and celebrate the unique habits of the culture. According to Metropolitan Museum historians,
The temple of Dendur is actually a very early Roman Period temple built during the rule of

4 Emperor to Caesar Augustus, 8 BCE, Epistula ad Gaium filium.

5 "Augustus." History.com. Accessed May 13, 2015.

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Augustus who ruled Egypt between 30 BC and 14 AD, but like the Greeks, the Romans built in
accordance with local traditions, both religious and esthetic.6 The temple is a unique
combination of two completely different cultures, the Egyptian and Roman, but there is stunning
beauty and attractions that allow people to experience the world of power and the creations that
aroused from it. Having a new position of power constantly allows the new ruler to use his own
ideas and concepts to create a successful empire.
In addition, the Temple of Dendur is true for the eternal truth of power leads to innovation in the
Ancient World because of the strong religious attention presented by Akenhaten to Aten and
Augustus, the Roman Emperor. Akenhaten, a pharaoh of Egypt, had worshipped Gods presence
in his life to the point where he would see himself having less power than that of God. According
to the Hymn to Aten by Akenhaten, Thou appearest beautifully on the horizon of heaven, Thou
living Aton, the beginning of life! When thou art risen on the eastern horizon, Thou hast filled
every land with thy beauty.7 This quote signifies the true respect, trust, and commitment all
people, including the ones with immense power, had towards the Egyptian gods. The Gods were
figures that enlightened peoples lives and made them communicate with the spirits, allowing
them to have a powerful faith. Akenhaten had been originally named Amenhotep IV, but had his
name changed in order for his name to mean He who is of service to Aten.8 Once this action
6 "Temple of Dendur in It's Current Location within the Metropolitan Museum." Temple of Dendur in It's
Current Location within the Metropolitan Museum. Accessed May 13, 2015.

7 "Tour Egypt :: The Great Hymn to the Aten." The Great Hymn to the Aten. Accessed May 13, 2015.

8 "Akhenaten." Discovering Ancient Egypt. Accessed May 13, 2015.

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was done, he created an empire that dominated Palestine, Phoenicia, and Nubia.9 The actions of
Akenhaten prove his dedication to wanting power and afterwards, he built an empire that was
very large and powerful. Power is a necessary aspect of having the opportunities to expand and
create a new and better lifestyle for all people.
Augustus had wanted to make his empire have a strong passion for religion. He had created the
Temple of Caesar after the Senate had deified Julius Caesar after his death. It was constructed in
August 18th, 29 BCE. It was built in an Italian style and was in honor of Julius Caesar after his
death where he was buried.10 Prior to the construction of the Temple of Dendur, Augustus had
experience in supporting religious beliefs and had people worship a faith. Due to his amount of
power, he was capable of not only spreading the Christian religion throughout his own empire,
but to spread the Egyptian religion throughout its empire. His willingness to create new
establishments had allowed the religions to both spread throughout the community very quickly.
Both figures had immense power and because of this, had created a variety of ways to worship
and honor the gods, which lead to the construction of the Temple of Dendur.
The Temple of Dendur is true for the eternal truth of power leads to innovation because todays
modern culture constantly changes power in order to innovate and improve. In todays times,
there are many growing and prosperous cities and countries that develop into a completely new
world. According to Sheikh Mohammad,
We in the United Arab Emirates, led by my brother, UAE President His Highness Sheikh
Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, are continuing the work begun by the late His Highness
Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan and our father the late His Highness Sheikh
9 "Akhenaten (Amenhotep IV)." Ancient Egypt Pharaohs:. Accessed May 13, 2015.

10 "Temple of Caesar." , Forum Romanum (Photo Archive). Accessed May 13, 2015.

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Rashid
towards forming

bin Saeed Al Maktoum in the early 1970s, when they took the first steps
our blessed federation.11

This quote signifies the very strong foundation that the United Arab Emirates has formed
throughout the years. Sheikh Mohammad has a strong belief in the power that comes from
people working together in a successful manner. His creative and very modern ways of thinking
and creating new things had allowed for the UAE to become one of the most modern countries
on the planet. There are many new cities, more art, and architecture from the new leadership of
the society. There is an abundance of beauty and there are new creations that are arousing from
the new power of Sheikh Mohammad. His technique involves looking back to the mistakes and
victories of previous Sheikhs and understanding the different ways he can improve the society.
The cities of the modern world today all have a distinction that they contain new, developed, and
interesting concepts and construction for people to enjoy and appreciate. Today, there are only a
few cities that have this aspect of being modern and the main reason for this occurrence is the
actions of the people in power. According to Explorra, Chicago, Toronto, Barcelona,
Copenhagen, Sydney, Berlin, Beijing, Dubai, Tokyo, and Paris are considered to be the most
modern cities worldwide, since the government and other sources of leadership and power have a
concept of seeing things in a different way12, which explains that power leads to innovation. The
minds of the people of power have a way of wanting to create a new lifestyle and explore the
things that people have not yet seen. The cities thrive off of tourism, since the architecture and
other creations are entirely new to the human population. Sheikh Mohammad is a significant

11 "Quotes." His Highness Sheikh Mohammad Bin . Accessed May 14, 2015.

12 "Top 10 Best Cities for Modern Architecture." Explorra. Accessed May 14, 2015.

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inspiration to all of the creations he has composed throughout his country, the UAE. The
government officials of all of these countries have a similar way of thinking that allows them to
have their countries grow and become more modern.
The United States is known to be a very modern and bright country, having many opportunities
for its citizens and a very busy and adventurous lifestyle for the people. President Barack Obama
constantly announces new ideas and concepts to help improve the way of living and tries to
accomplish this through a more modern way. He announced about the New Public-Private
Manufacturing Innovation Institute and said that he wanted that North Carolina lead a
manufacturing innovation for the next generation power electronics. 13 This is a new innovation
that the United States has come up with that will produce a newer, cleaner, more interesting
products for the world. All of the modern countries of the world succeed today due to their
people that are in power and that want to innovate and produce a more elaborate and successful
way of living.
And so, the Temple of Dendur is true for the eternal truth of power leads to innovation in the
Ancient World because during the ancient Egyptian period, it inspired the work of the temple, the
Egyptian period and time was significant in the production of temples, through the the Great
Hymn to Aten by Akenhaten, and due to the modern culture of construction and innovation of
technology in the world. The temple is a very significant piece of work from Ancient Egypt that
allows the world today to understand the culture and belief of the ancient Egyptians. The Temple
of Dendur stands in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, NY today and many
visitors come to see it in order to experience and learn about the passionate faith that the

13 "President Obama Announces New Public-Private Manufacturing Innovation Institute." The White
House. Accessed May 14, 2015.

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Egyptian pharaohs and people had in their time. This piece worships the sun god Aten, and
because of this, is extremely sacred to the Egyptian culture. Caesar Augustus had a big impact on
the creation of the temple, since it was constructed during his reign of Egypt after Cleopatras
death. In todays times, it is a significant explanation of the desire of innovation through the
power people have in them. The Temple of Dendur is an artifact that shines with innovation,
since it has lead to new creations that have inspired the world in religious and governmental
ways.
This assignment has been completed in accordance with the Newark Academy Honor Code:

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"The Temple of Dendur | Roman Period." The Temple of Dendur. Accessed May 12, 2015.
The Temple of Dendur." The Metropolitan Museum of Art. 1000 5th Avenue, New York, NY 10028.
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"Top 10 Best Cities for Modern Architecture." Explorra. Accessed May 14, 2015.
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