The twin Colossi of Memnon sit roughly 60 ft tall on Luxor's west bank, each weighing about 720 tons of quartzite sandstone quarried at Gebel el-Silsila — about 65 km to the north. They once guarded Amenhotep III's mortuary temple, Egypt's largest complex. A conservation project has pieced together thousands of fragments of additional standing colossi. Magnificent. 🗿
Colossi of Memnon: 720-ton quartzite statues transported 675 km from Cairo quarries
EgyptGeneral
Key facts
- The two seated Colossi of Memnon stand about 60 ft (nearly 70 ft with pedestal) on the west bank of the Nile near ancient Thebes.
- Each statue weighs an estimated 720 tons and is carved from quartzite sandstone.
- They originally guarded the mortuary temple of Amenhotep III, once the largest temple complex in Egypt.
- The quartzite was quarried near modern-day Cairo, roughly 675 km (420 miles) to the north.
- Additional standing colossi have been reconstructed as part of the Colossi of Memnon and Amenhotep III Temple Conservation Project, which recovered thousands of pieces.
Site mentioned
Sources
Colossi of Memnonen.wikipedia.org
the colossi reach 18 m (60 ft) in height and weigh an estimated 720 tons each. The two figures are about 15 m (50 ft) apart.
Colossi of Memnonegypt-museum.com
They measure at approximately 60ft in height, and it is thought they would weigh about 720 tons per statue. The southern statue is made of one piece of ...
Colossi of Memnon - The two massive statues ...introducingegypt.com
Each statue is 14 metres (45 feet) high, weighs 700 tons, and stands on a 4-metre-high (13 ft) pedestal weighing 600 tons. In total, the ensemble is 18 metres ...
Colossi of Memnon Facts | Egypt Tour Packagesegypttourpackages.com
Each statue reached a height of 18 meters by 60 feet, and each weighed 720 tons, with a distance of 15 meters between them. Colossi of Memnon height. Colossi of ...
Colossi of Memnon - Egyptrexby.com
They're made of quartzite stone, weigh a whopping 720 tons each, and reach a towering height of 60 feet. Legend has it that the northern statue used to ...
Was this story useful?
Keep exploring
Every site on this page sits on the globe, and the people who research them are on the Discord.
3D Globe · Sites by country · Story Archive · Research Library · Weekly Journal · Search
AI-generated text · images from the original sources · always verify with the sources.