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Introduction

The chapel of king Hakoris was a small rectangular chapel located outside the Amun temple's first pylon. Two doorways opened to the small building's west and to the north. Open papyrus form columns with low screen walls composed the western half of the chapel, while the eastern side was fully enclosed to the ceiling. A wooden architrave supported stone cavetto blocks.

Measurements: The chapel measured 10.2m across and 18m deep, with a reconstructed height of 5.62m. The western side had a wide opening of 4.88m, while the northern door was much smaller: 2.2m. The western architrave was made from an 8.25m wooden beam.

Phase: Hakoris

The chapel was used to house the portable bark of Amun-Ra on its processional journey outside the temple. The ingenious design of the chapel allowed the bark to be moved directly from the river (prow to the north) into the shrine via the northern door, and removed again) through the western door (prow still to the north) without changing the bark's orientation as it entered into the temple precinct. A small granite platform in the rear of the chapel would have allowed the priests to rest the bark while they themselves changed position.

Construction materials: sandstone, black granite, wood

About the reconstruction model of this phase

Image resource: Rendering of Chapel of Hakoris, by UCLA

The building was reconstructed based on the plans and axial drawings of Lauffray (1995: figs. 5, 11 and 33).

A plain sandstone pattern was placed on the model of the chapel. The size of this pattern was chosen to approximate the size of the blocks shown in drawn reconstructions of the building Lauffray (1995: fig. 5).

Bibliography and Sources Used for Model Construction

Lauffray, Jean (1995), La Chapelle d'Achôris à Karnak: Fouilles, l’architecture, le mobilier et l’anastylose, vol. 1. Paris: Editions Recherche sur les civilisations.

Further reading

Traunecker Claude, Françoise Le Saout, Olivier Masson (1981), La chapelle d'Achôris à Karnak: documents, vol. 2. Paris: Editions Recherche sur les civilisations.

Traunecker Claude, Françoise Le Saout, Olivier Masson (1981), La Chapelle d'Achôris à Karnak: Texte, vol. 2. Paris: Editions A.D.P.F..