Birket Qarun - Qasr Qarun
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At the southwest end of the Birket Qarun is the site of Qasr Qarun, most conveniently reached on a moderately good road (22mi/36km) from Medinetel-Fayyum via lbshawai and El-Shawashna.
Qasr Qarun is a reasonably well preserved temple of the Late Ptolemaic period, surrounded by the remains of an ancient city, probably Dionysias, on the extreme western verge of the Roman province. From here there was a caravan route to Bahriya, then known as the Oasis Minor. A circular foundation wall marks the position of an ancient cistern. The Temple, 63ft/19.20m wide across the facade and 89ft/27m long, is built of carefully dressed blocks of extremely hard sandstone. Like almost all the temples in the oases, it was dedicated to the ram headed Amun-Khnum, of whom there are two representations at the top of the rear wall of the open top storey. Above every doorway of the temple is a winged sun. There are no ancient inscriptions.
Qasr Qarun is a reasonably well preserved temple of the Late Ptolemaic period, surrounded by the remains of an ancient city, probably Dionysias, on the extreme western verge of the Roman province. From here there was a caravan route to Bahriya, then known as the Oasis Minor. A circular foundation wall marks the position of an ancient cistern. The Temple, 63ft/19.20m wide across the facade and 89ft/27m long, is built of carefully dressed blocks of extremely hard sandstone. Like almost all the temples in the oases, it was dedicated to the ram headed Amun-Khnum, of whom there are two representations at the top of the rear wall of the open top storey. Above every doorway of the temple is a winged sun. There are no ancient inscriptions.
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