Esna Temple

Only the hypostyle hall of the temple of Khnum survives at Esna, and it sits nine metres below the level of the modern town, which grew up over the buried remains, so you descend into it from the surrounding streets. It was built and decorated under the Roman emperors in the first and second centuries AD, with twenty-four columns carrying capitals of many different plant forms, no two rows the same. A conservation project completed in recent years removed centuries of soot, bird droppings and salt from the ceiling and columns, revealing painted astronomical figures, zodiac signs and cartouches of Roman emperors in colours nobody had seen for two thousand years. The result changed the reputation of a temple that had been a brief cruise-boat stop.

What you actually see

• A cleaned painted ceiling - astronomical figures recovered from under soot.
• Twenty-four varied capitals - plant forms differing column to column.
• Roman emperors in cartouches - Latin-era rulers written as pharaohs.
• The sunken setting - the hall nine metres below the modern streets.

When to go

October to April. One to two hours. Cruise boats stop here mid-morning and fill the hall; before or after that it is quiet. The hall is shaded and cool by comparison with open sites.

Honest expectations

Only the hall survives, so the visit is one room. The approach through the town market involves persistent vendors. Photography rules have varied since the conservation work. Cruise stops mean short, crowded windows.

Nearby

El Kab is south on the east bank; Luxor is an hour north.