The Temple of Opet (Ipet, Apet) in Luxor , Egypt

An older photo of the Temple of Opet at Karnak

The small, but apparently important temple dedicated to the hippopotamus goddess, Opet (Apet, Ipet, Ipy) is located immediately to the west of the temple of Khonsu at Karnak on the east bank at Luxor (ancient Thebes). Opet was venerated as a helper of women in Childbirth, and her rather odd temple was primarily built during the Greek Period by Ptolemy VIII Euergetes II, and represents one of the last cult buildings erected at Karnak during this period.

The Courtyard of the Cachette in the Temple of Amun at Karnak in Luxor , Egypt Part II

The statues unearthed in the Karnak Cachette provide a remarkable compendium of Egyptian statuary, and form a sort of art history of sculpture throughout Egypt's history. Objects in the cachette date from the Old Kingdom through the late Ptolemaic Period, covering the spectrum of ancient Egyptian history. Prominent are statues and objects from the New Kingdom, the Third Intermediate Period and the 25th Dynasty, periods when Thebes was most active, while fewer objects are found from the Old and Middle Kingdoms. Also in the 26th Dynasty, the kings transferred central power to the north once more, and this is reflected in a noticeable decline in the number of statues from that period. The number of statues once again increased during the 30th Dynasty and during the entire Ptolemaic Period. Most of the material dates to the last four centuries BC.
The material clearly reflects the rise and decline of Thebes. During the New Kingdom and until the beginning of the 26th Dynasty, not only kings set up their statues in the Temple of Amun at Karnak, but also high-ranking priests, as well as civil and military officials, in order to show their devotion to Amun. After the seat of power switched back to the north, mostly only temple staff continued to erect more statues in the temple.
Even though the Old Kingdom is poorly represented, Legrain unearthed the lower part of a striding statue of the 5th Dynasty King, Niuserre in the cachette, the upper part of which is now in the National Museum of Beirut. Statues from the Middle Kingdom are more numerous, and include royal statues of Senusret I, Senusret III and Amenemhet III, very significant figures of the 12th Dynasty. Most of these were true masterpieces. There are even objects from the Second Intermediary Period, though limited and lacking originality.
During the 18th Dynasty, royal statuary from the cachette is well represented. The reign of Tuthmosis III was a high point in this dynasty, and evidenced by no fewer than nineteen statues of the king, some so masterful they are considered to be some of the grandest works of Egyptian art history.
The Ramesside Period is less well represented than the 18th Dynasty, with a relatively small number of true works of art. There were eight statues of Ramesses II, and another two upright statues of Ramesses III, including one of colossal size. Afterwards, only Ramesses VI is represented by two notable statues that are rather stylized and conventional. Statue from the periods after the 18th Dynasty are often executed in a rather cold manner, lacking sensibility.
The following statuary (click on a picture for a larger view), is as chronologically ordered as possible.
 

Statue of Amenemhet III	Statue of Ramessunakht, High Priest of Amun-Re	Statue of the Father of the Vizier, Ankhu	Statue of Amenhotep II
Statue of Amenhotep II with Meretseger	Head of a Statue of Amenhotep III	Statue of Amenhotep III	Statue of Senenmut with Neferure
Block Statue of Senenmut with Neferure	Statue of Isis, Mother of Tuthmosis III	Sphinx of Tuthmosis III	Statue of Tuthmosis III
Head of a Statue	Colossal Statue	Statue of Ramesses III as a Standard-Bearer of Amun-Re	Statue of the Priest Priest of Amun, Ramessunakht, with the Theban Triad
Standard-Bearer Statue Usurped by Sheshonq	Statue of the Vizier Hor	Block Statue of Nakhtefmut	Block Statue of Hor, Son of Ankhkhonsu
Block Statue of Hor	Block Statue of Irethorru, Son of Nesineheret	Statue of the Scribe Nespaqashuty	Statue of Montuemhet
Statue with Stela	Statue Group of Montuemhat and his Son, Nesptah	Statue of Petamenhotep as a Scribe	Block Statue of Ahmes, Son of Pakharkhonsu
Statue of Pakhnum	Statue of a Ptolemaic Queen

The Khonsu Temple at Karnak in Luxor , Egypt

The Temple of Khonsu at Karnak is located in the southwest corner of the precinct of Amun in Luxor (ancient Thebes). It provides an excellent example of a small but complete New Kingdom temple.
The Harris Papyrus provides that:

"I built a house for thy son, Khonsu in Thebes, of good sandstone, red gritstone, and black stone (granite). I overlaid its doorposts and doors with god, (with) inlay figures of electrum like the horizon of Heaven"

Thus it was Ramesses III who makes claim to the construction of this temple, even though only seven small chapels that surround the four columned hall located behind the sanctuary of the barques (Hall of the Barque) bear his cartouches. Elsewhere, we find the names of Ramesses IV and Ramesses XI. According to their dedications, it would also seem that the High-Priests Herihor and Pinedjem constructed the first court and the pylon.
The temple dedicated to the moon god Khonsu at Karnak consists of a peristyle court which is bordered by a portico of twenty-eight monostyle columns divided into four groups. Two of these groups contain eight columns that border the court, while the other two groups contain only six columns that rest upon a slightly elevated platform.  There is also a hypostyle hall with four companiform columns in the middle and two monostyle columns on each site. This hypostyle hall then communicates with a sanctuary of the barque, in which chapels open to the left and right and where, to the east, a staircase leads to the roof.
The sanctuary of the barque in turn leads to a kind of pronaos that provides access to three sanctuaries located to the north and four small lateral sanctuaries. The one in the northeast corner contains a representation of the dead Osiris lying on a stretcher between the goddesses Isis and Nephthys.
Fronting the temple of Khonsu's pylon are the bare remnants of a colonnade of a type similar to that which proceeds the "upper gate" of the great Temple of Amun. It is bordered on the outside by a row of sphinxes. The pylon itself measures 34.5 meters in length, 7 meters wide and 18 meters high. On its facade are four grooves meant to house masts with banners. Under the torus of each wing of the pylon is a dedication that informs us:

"the first high priest of Amun, master of the rites, Pinedjem, son of the first high priest of Amun, Piankh, has made this very great and august pylon for his father Khonsu-in-Thebes-Neferhotep on the front of his temple"

The bas-reliefs that cover the two wings of the pylon represent ritual scenes of worship performed by the first high priest, Pinedjem. However, the divine wife of Amun, Maatkare, is represented alone on the east wing and Maatkare and Henuttawy worship Hathor on the west wing. Henuttawy was the wife of Pinedjem, while there were several Maatkare during this period and she is more difficult to identify, though this rendering may be of a daughter (and perhaps wife) of Pinedjem. Nevertheless, the importance of women during the 21st Dynasty is clear.
Champollion recorded this temple in his time, and observed that the antae pillars of the portico bore the inscription of the High-Priest Herihor. He also observed that:

"Cornice decorated by an anaglyph bearing under the curve of the 'annary' scepter the captions of Ptolemy. This portion of the doorway is therefore modern and replaces a more ancient doorway cap from which two end stones remain. These, being employed under the tori of the two massifs of the pylon, could not be disengaged without danger. It is there in the curve of the annary scepters that the first high priest of Amun, Pinedjem maa kheru can still be read, in the place of the Ptolemaic inscriptions. The rest of the cornice bears more modern inscriptions because the stone have been renewed."
Champollion, Notices descriptives, vol. 2, pp. 219-24

In the colonnade of the west portico of the peristyle court, we find on the architraves, the abaci, the capitals and the shafts of the monostyle columns, the complete royal titulary of Herihor, the High-Priest of Amun who ruled southern Egypt during the latter part of the reign of Ramesses XI. He inscribed within the two royal cartouches both his name and his priestly title. Herihor is also depicted, not as a priest with a shaven head and robes, but with the headdress and other royal attributes.
On the architraves to the east and west of this court, the Horus name of the high-priest is up into relationship with Amun, his Two Goddesses name with that of Mut, and finally his Golden Horus name with Khonsu. It is again specified there that he created this large columned hall as a work for eternity, "with the hand of Ptah who provided the blueprint". Towards the rear of the peristyle court are columns that are presumed to have been taken from the great funerary temple of Amenhotep III on the west bank, which is interesting considering that the High-Priest was commissioned with protecting the funerary monuments on the West Bank at ancient Thebes (modern Luxor).

Left: Colonnade of the west portico in the peristyle court in the Temple of Khonsu
Right: Columns in the portico of the peristyle court in the Northeast Corner

At the rear of the peristyle court is a doorway of Ptolemy IV Philopator that opens onto the hypostyle hall. Within, the hypostyle hall consists of three naves and two aisles. The roof of the central nave was supported by four massive companiform columns that stand around seven meters high, while the two later bays are configured on one side by companiform columns and on the other by monostyle columns that are about 5.5 meters tall, surmounted by an architrave, torus and cornice similar to that of the great hypostyle hall in the Temple of Amun.
All of the dedicatory texts on the architraves of both the large and small columns are the same, naming Menmaatre Setepenamun (Ramesses XI), who is said to have built this hall called "'Wearer-of-Diadems'... Live the Good God [Neter-nefer]... the monument builder, plentiful in wonders, whose every design comes to pass (immediately) like his father Ptah-South-of-His-Wall". On the base of the wall of the hypostyle hall, we see "High-Priest of Amun-Ra, commander in chief of the armies of North and South, Herihor" inscribed, and told that he worked at the enlargement of the house of Khonsu, exalting it with electrum, precious stones and offering tables in silver and gold.

Columns in the hypostyle hall in the Temple of Khonsu

Towards the doorway leading to the courtyard (the front of the temple), Herihor presents a new title, that of Overseer of the granaries and viceroy of Kush (part of ancient Nubia). However, a very ruined inscription tells us of a miracle produced by Khonsu for him with the approval of Amun. Very regrettably, most of this inscription cannot be made out, but it may pertain to his elevation as ruler of southern Egypt.
Centered through the doorway at the rear of the hypostyle hall is the Hall of the Barque. In its center are the remains of a barque sanctuary. The upper block and walls of this room are inscribed in very deep sunk relief with the throne name, Heqamaatre Setepenamun (Ramesses IV).
Just inside the doorway to this room on the inside wall to the right, we find the king holding the censer and presenting a table of offerings to the Theban triad consisting of Amun, Mut and Khonsu. This scene is superimposed over an older one. The original ground line of this older image can be found at the level of the king's knees on the newer depiction. The older figure of the king, which has been hammered out, is outlined in silhouette on the table of offerings, with his feet resting on the heads of the ducks, while his head is over the fifth and sixth lines of the ten-line text inscribed above. This texts reads:

"Offering that the king gives to Geb, to the Great Ennead, to the Small Ennead, to the neters (gods) of the itr.t of the south and of the itr.t of the North and of all the neters, presented by your son whom you love, the master of the Two Lands, Heqamaatre Setepenamun, the master of the crowns, Ramesses-shu-Maatimri-Imn; ten hundredweight of bread, ten hundredweight of pitchers of beer, ten hundred weight of beef, ten hundredweight of fowl, ten hundredweight of alabaster vessels, ten hundredweight of vestments, ten hundred weight of resins, ten hundredweight of jars of oil, ten hundredweight of bouquets of flowers, ten hundredweight of bouquets of flowers, ten hundredweight of viands, ten hundredweight of everything good and pure, ten hundredweight of everything good and sweet, that is to say, what the sky provides for you, what the earth creates for you, what the Nile brings for you from its cavern. May the hand give the flood purify, and the master of the Two Lands, Heqamaatre Setepenre, the master of the Crowns, Ramesses-shu-Maati-mri-Imn, make an offering to his father, Amun-Ra, the master of the thrones of the Two Lands. I know [the gods] who are in the sky, I know [the gods] who are on the earth, I know [the gods] who surround Horus; I know [the gods] who neighbor Seth. I satisfy Horus by returning his eyes to him, I satisfy Seth by returning his testicles to him. It is I, Thoth, he who satisfies the gods and puts things in their proper place."

The last three lines identify the king with Thoth, asserting his knowledge of everything that exists in heaven and on earth, in Horus and Seth, and also makes an allusion to the myth of the struggle between these two gods in which Seth gouged out the eye of Horus, who in turn tore off Seth's testicles. It was Thoth who arbitrated between these two adversaries, and restored the two gods. Interestingly, in Abydos, there is a similar texts, though there it is Thoth who speaks the first part of this texts before the king.
The entire lower part of the west wall of the Hall of the Barque remained free of any bas-relief, save for a Christian cross, and only the dedicatory frieze is carved, in the name of Ramesses IV, beloved of Khonsu-Neferhotep.
Taking a look at the east wall of this hall, on the lower register, to the right, we see the hand of the king making an offering to Amun-Re and Mut, who are both standing. On both sides of the cartouche on the lintel, the king is wearing the blue war helmet, and making an offering to a seated, Falcon-headed Khonsu, who's head is surmounted by a disk within a crescent.
Above the lintel in the second register, Khonsu offers the palm tree of the years and the sed-festival symbol, while Isis breast-feeds the young king who wears the white corwn of the south. On the right is the god Shu, who is wearing the ostrich plume that is his symbol. He receives two vessels from the hands of the king.
The Frieze above this register is composed of the anaglyph of Ramesses IV's royal name, Heqamaatre Setepenamun, and his Son of Ra name, Ramesses Maatmeryamun, in which the hieroglyph "mes" is replaced by the king wearing the braid of the crown prince. The term "mes" implies, according to its determinative, "to be born", "birth", or "born of".
To the right, on the bottom register of the east wall, the king is first purified by Thoth and Horus, before making his "royal ascent". Further right on the east wall, we discover Ramesses IV offering the first fruits of the season to a falcon headed Khonsu.
Across from the east wall on an outside block of the barque sanctuary is a fine image of Khonsu, wrapped in white linen over which two ribbons cross. He holds all of the scepters in his hand with the exception of the wadj. The hek and nekhakha scepters frame the djed scepter, from which the ankh and was emerge. The top of Khonsu's chest is encircled by a large necklace made up of multiple rows of pearls, on which is hanging the menat necklace of Hathor. He wears the blue headband of Ptah, and the braid of the crown prince under the royal band, from which also emerges the uraeus crowned with a disk in a crescent.
At the rear of this small hall without columns, on the north east rear wall, on the bottom register we find the king, blessed by a lion-headed Mut, making an offering of a vessel crowned with a falcon head and the disk within a crescent to a standing Khonsu-in-Thebes-Neferhotep, who is bearing the disk of Re encircled by a serpent. Upon the offered vessel is the same symbol as that of the god to whom it is offered. Above, the king, protected by Isis, makes the offering of his anaglyph to Khonsu, who now wears the feathers that are more characteristic of Montu. These two register are surmounted by another frieze.
The extant jambs and double lintel of the doorway at the back of the Hall of the Barque leading to the pronaos were constructed during the Ptolemaic period. On the upper lintel, two groups of eight gods (neters) are depicted worshiping the moon disk, symbol of Khonsu, which is set within a thin crescent. On the lower lintel, the king is depicted while presenting two vessels of wine to a falcon-headed Khonsu, who wears a headdress of the disk in the crescent. Next he is shown making an offering of Ma'at to Amun, followed by Khonsu who is wearing the braid denoting a crown prince (on the right), and to Amun followed by Mut (on the left).
To either side of the Hall of the Barque are small chapels, with a stairway situated in the southeast corner that leads to the roof, and a sun chapel, which provides a fine view of the surrounding area. Here, atop the temple, one finds footsteps etched into the stone. Pilgrims often traced the contour of their feet to piously mark their journey to such sanctuaries.
Beyond the Hall of the Barque, the pronaos has four columns of the polygonal type but which are slightly fluted on the top sections, except at their perfectly cylindrical bottoms. The base and the beginning of the shafts are carved from one block. Various chapels open to the north, with two lateral chapels to each side.
About the temple is an enclosure wall with a gate built by Ptolemy III known as Bab el-Amara.
The frequent appearance of blocks with unmatching and inverted decorations, such as an upside-down chariot above the top of the stairs leading to the roof, shows the extent to which stone from earlier buildings was used in this temple. Begun under Ramesses III, the temple continued to be renewed up into the Roman era.
This temple, located in one of Egypt's most frequently visited tourist areas, is well worth a visit. Notably, the roof with its sun chapel provides an excellent panorama of Karnak which was captured in a well-known drawing by the 19th century artist, David Roberts.

The Sacred Lake and the Monumental Scarab at The Temple of Amun at Karnak in Egypt

To the south of the girdle wall of Ramesses II at the Temple of Amun at Karnak in ancient Thebes (modern Luxor) is a rectangular Sacred Lake, dug by Tuthmosis III. It is the largest of its kind, that we know of, and is lined with stone and provided with stairways descending into the water. It measures some 120 meters (393 feet) by 77 meters (252 feet). We believe that most temple precincts included a sacred lake. Water from the lake, filled with groundwater, was used by the priests for ritual ablutions and other temple needs, and was also home to the sacred geese of Amun. However, it was symbolically important in the ancient Egyptian's concept of creation, representing the primeval waters from which life arose. Like all the monuments at Karnak, according to Legrain, it to has its legend:

"On certain nights, a golden barque emerges from the waters of the lake, as resplendent as in days of yore, and the king who steers it is in pure gold, and his sailors are of silver. And when the moon shines, the barque sails, leaving behind a long wake of precious stones. At times it comes to the dock, as well, and then if some brave soul with a heart thrice bound in bronze comes forth to dare the great adventure, he climbs aboard the phantom ship, then, victorious, returns to his home laden with fabulous treasure; but everyone knows that if he makes the slightest sound, the merest sigh, the fairy barque, the gold king, and the silver sailors will sink immediately below the waves of the lake, which will engulf the foolhardy one forever....
However, the appearances of the mysterious boat are becoming more and more rare; for more than thirty years no one can boast of truly seeing it... It is not, alas! soon to reappear, for my storyteller added that it would not be seen again until there was no longer a liar or a thief within the country."

At the northern corner of the lake between it and the Osirian Temple of Taharqa was located a huge granite statue of a scarab dedicated by Amenhotep III and, according to A. Varille, brought from his West Bank mortuary temple. However, others believe that it actually came from Kom el-Heitan, where another funerary temple of Amenhotep III was built. The front face of the cylindrical pedestal on which the scarab rests has been flattened to form a stela, and is carved entirely in sunk relief. On it, the kneeling king makes an offering of two nu vessels to Atum of Heliopolis. The solar disk set between the two extended wings that crown the text forms part of the name of Nebmaatre that is inscribed in the vertical axis of this stela. The text carved on the side of the stela explicitly states that it concerns "Khepri who rises from the earth". 
Among the most significant restoration projects, and being achieved totally by Egyptian restorers, is the consolidation and removal of Amenhotep III's red granite scarab, which has now been relocated to the lake's western side in order to make more space for the influx of tourists inside the temple. Before the removal comprehensive consolidation and cleaning took place. As a side note to this structure, the local guides tell tourists that if one walks around the scarab seven times, he or she will never again have love problems. So it is common to see the tourists making laps around the scarab.
The lake's rough-hewn stone edging is punctuated on the southern side by the opening of a stone tunnel through which the domestic geese of Amun were released into the lake from the fowl-yards a little further to the south. However, geese were not the only birds that adorned the surface of this lake, for a variety of ducks were also included in the aviary.
On the sacred lake is also the remains of the priests' homes, which now lie beneath the seating erected for the sound and light show. These ruins are located on the eastern side of the lake, and have been the subject of excavations since the 1970s. Recently, archaeologists have discovered here a number of ceramic fragments, tokens, seal imprints and coins dating from the reign of Shoshenq I of the 22nd Dynasty, as well as clay pots from the 26th and 27th Dynasties.  Silver ingots and two silver coins, originally from northern Greece and dating from about the 27th Dynasty, were found at house number five. "This new discovery puts the emphasis on the wealth of its owner, and is much appreciated as giving a chronological fix, given that it places this treasure in history at the moment of the Persian debacle," Abdel-Aziz said. He added that the excavations revealed that the inhabitants of the houses were without doubt of high rank. Various titles of priests have been found, among them the priest in charge of opening the golden naos (shrine) of Amun.
The priests of Karnak probably did not purify themselves in the water of the sacred lake directly, because its waters were not pure enough for this purpose. Rather, the water was probably itself purified before being used by the priests.

The Peristyle Court of Tuthmosis III, The Naos of Philip Arrhidaeu and the Sanctuary of Hateshpsut Beyond the Sixth Pylon in the Temple of Amun At Karnak

Beyond the Sixth Pylon in the Temple of Amun at Karnak in Thebes (modern Luxor) is an inverted T-shaped area where the top of the T is made up of the peristyle court of Tuthmosis III, and the leg of the T is a barque sanctuary filled by the granite  naos of Philip Arrhidaeu, who was Alexander the Great's immediate successor for a brief period of time.
After building the Sixth Pylon, Tuthmosis III divided the peristyle court beyond the pylon into three sections, by two walls that formed a central chamber in front of the sanctuary built by Philip Arrhidaeu,  which itself replaced an earlier repository build during the reign of Tuthmosis III. On the walls of this chamber, together with the east facade of the sixth pylon and the outer walls of the sanctuary, Tuthmosis III had inscribed a record of his twenty years of campaigns abroad, resulting in the name, "chamber of the Annals", being given to this section of the temple. At one time, the chamber was covered by a roof with architraves resting on so-called heraldic pillars.
In the southern wing of this chamber, on the interior (east side) of the Sixth Pylon, to the right are the remains of the granite doorpost of the pylon's doorway. On the sandstone revetment to the left we find Amun introducing the king. Behind Amun there is a line of inscriptions recording Horemheb's restoration in this part of the temple, which is followed by the two last lines of the famous text of the Annals of Tuthmosis III on the walls of the sanctuary where he recounts the events related to the building of a fortress in Lebanon. His Majesty returned, disembarking at Thebes, and celebrated the victory feast for his first campaign of the year 23. Then, "while the majesty of that august neter [Amun] navigated his way toward Ipet of the South [Luxor]", the king deposited very large offerings of all kinds at the entrance to this temple.
In a long list of these gifts, which consisted of slaves, livestock, precious metals, gemstones as well as territories, there is a record of three cities, including Yanoam, from which he received "flocks of geese for the sacred pool", offerings for his new sed-festival temple, for his obelisks, for his statues and for the feast of Min's emergence. Tuthmosis III also tells us of the creation of a new garden "planted with all manner of pleasing trees" for the daily plant offerings.

"Thus, My Majesty has created all monuments, all laws, all regulations...To my father Amun...for great is my knowledge of his glory. I was instructed within his perfection, resting within his body..."

The final two lines here provide additional offerings, including 318 white breads, which were cakes in the shape of the pyramidian crowning an obelisk.
In the northwest corner of the chamber is a statue of Amun in profile in front of the inner wall of the north wing of the sixth pylon, and behind it is text recording the tributes received during the course of Tuthmosis III's final campaigns during the years 39 and 42 of his reign. It ends with a text that reads:

"Behold, His Majesty commanded the recounting of the victories he has won from the year 23 to the year 42, when this inscription was written upon his sanctuary..."

Legrain tells us that:

"There are two statues erected in front o the north doorway of the fore-sanctuary {Chamber of the Annals), on the east side one in the image of Amunet, on the west, Amun. These colossal statues measure around six meters in height. They are carved out of the deep-toned red sandstone."

The statue of Amun was found, but it was broken into many pieces. However, behind the feathers on his headdress an inscription provides the Horus name of Tutankhamun and over his cartouches those of Horemheb. The fragmentary body of Amunet was also discovered, but there was no head. Both statues were doubtless erected during the reign of Tutankhamun and usurped by Horemheb. They were probably destroyed during the Roman or Coptic period.
In front of his original naos that Philip Arrhidaeu built over in the sanctuary, Tuthmosis III erected two granite pillars that bear four scenes on their east and west sides and symbolic plants of the Two Lands on their north and south sides which show admirable detail. These are the only examples of their type known, and their architectural role has been the subject of some scholarly debate. On the southern pillar, the king wears the white crown and in the top register he is embraced by Amunet, while below by Amun. On the northern pillar, the king wears the red crown and is embraced by Hathor and then Amun. On the southeast corner of the southern pillar, above the plants is the cartouche of Tuthmosis Neferkhepru, and above this we see the king embraced by the Goddess, Mut. Mut once again embraces the king in the upper section on the east side of the northern pillar.

Left: The king embraced by Mut on the South Pillar;
Middle: The king embraced by Mut on the North Pillar;
Right: The King embraced by Amun

To either side of the Chamber of the Annals is the peristyle court of Tuthmosis III, where he erected a portico of fasciculate columns with sixteen cusps each. Their bases were finely worked, and they front small chapels to the far north and far south of each wing, respectively. In the north wing, on the outer southern facing walls of the chapels, are several interesting depictions. On one, the king holds the akh bird, an Ibis, in one hand and four long stakes in the other, perhaps for holding the net for a bird hunt. He makes the "great stride" before Hathor who presents him with the menat. She also holds the palm of the years. Hathor's son, Ihy, who is completely nude, is in front of her, holding a sistrum toward the inscription that provide the name of the chapel, House of Horus.
Above the lintel of one of the other northern chapels is a very curious depiction of a small individual standing in the back of a papyrus boat behind a person of larger proportions who is probably the king. The King in such a boat is not uncommon, and we find similar representations in the temple of Luxor and the tomb of Ay. However, what is so unusual about this depiction is that the legs and feet of the smaller individual are completely formed of duck heads. Thanks to an old photograph of a neighboring block which has now disappeared, we know that the smaller figure is actually that of an obscure god named Kheddw, an ancient fishing deity.
Beyond these pillars is the sanctuary and the granite barque naos of Philip Arrhidaeu that replaced the more ancient repository build during the reign of Tuthmosis III. It is divided into two halves, with an outer area where offerings were made to the gods, and the inner where the god's barque reposed. Originally, a structure stood before it with sandstone pillars that were bored with small holes at their bases, probably to hold either electrum or gold plating. P. Barquet suggests that within the structure was placed the two obelisks "of clear electrum" amounting to 2,500 talents that Ashurbanipal was said to have brought away from Thebes in 656 BC, "where they had been erected before the doorway of the sanctuary". Electrum is a blend of gold and silver, and their weight, which would have been equivalent to 37,875 kilograms, would have made their height an estimated 6.9 meters.
It is on the northern wall of this sanctuary that the annals of Tuthmosis III begin, and it has been said that this wall has in fact caused more commentary among scholars than any other area in the entire temple of Karnak. Here, Tuthmosis III holds the makes cane and the white hedj club in one hand and the sekhem scepter in the other, consecrating the wealth of offering before him on behalf of Amun.
The offerings include coffers, gold bracelets with precious stones, alabaster jars "filled with pure unguent for the divine rituals, a vessel of precious stone that His Majesty made following the intention of his own heart", and all other manner of objects, all counted and specified. There are two large masts standing between the king and these offerings, each recording a different inscription. The one on the left records the two great obelisks that were in front of the fourth pylon of which nothing currently remains but their bases. The mast on the right refers to the erection of the "great granite obelisks with electrum pyramidions", which are probably the two placed in front of the seventh pylon. One of these is now in Istanbul.
Below this immense scene that covers the entire wall from the northeast corner to the granite doorway are sixty-seven columns of text, reading from east to west, that record the king's first campaign. It tells of Tuthmosis III crossing the frontier at Tharu, in his 22nd year on the throne, to repress the rebellion of the Asians. After a short stay in Gaza, it takes him three weeks to arrive at Yehem. There, he holds a council of war after learning that the chief of Kadesh was gathering all the princes of Palestine and Syria, with their troops and horses, at Megiddo to battle the pharaoh.
Here, he discusses with his generals the route that they will take to the battle. There were three routes open to them. The first was the most direct, but also the most dangerous because from Aruna this route weaved through a narrow gorge. The other two roads were perhaps safer, but led either to the north or south of Megiddo. The generals all implored the king to take one of these safer routes. The generals argued that:

"While they (come) and say that the enemy is there waiting, (holding) the way against a multitude. Will not horse come behind (horses and man behind) man likewise? Shall our (advanced guard) be fighting while our (rear guard) is yet standing yonder in Aruna not having fought?"

The king responds:

"I (swear) as Ra loves me, as my father Amun favors me...my majesty will proceed upon this road of Aruna! Let him who will among you go upon those roads ye have mentioned, and let him who will among you come in the following of my majesty! Shall they think among those enemies whom Ra detests: 'Does his majesty proceed upon another road? He begins to be fearful of us,' so will they think"

To this, the generals submitted:

He [the king] went forth at the head of his army himself, showing (the way) by his (own) footsteps, horse behind (horse), (His Majesty) being at the head of his army.

As Tuthmosis, one of the most celebrated generals in ancient Egyptian history, hoped, the enemy was surprised by the route he took. The enemy was divided into two wings, each covering the "safer" routes. Hence, indeed as the fore guard filled the hollow of the valley pharaoh's rear guard was still in Aruna, but the enemy was unaware of this and Tuthmosis III's army was able to consolidate prior to their finding out. There, in the valley near Megiddo, the Egyptian camp was raised and orders were given for an attack on the morning of the next day, when:
"His majesty went forth in a chariot of electrum arrayed in his weapons of war like Horus the Smiter [in the center of his division], [and when those leagued against him] saw his majesty prevailing against them, they fled...in fear...".
The granite naos of Philip Arrhidaeus, which was probably not actually build by him but on his behalf by Ptolemy I, is formed from two long chambers that correspond externally to two buildings of different heights placed end to end. The western half is taller than the eastern portion. The exterior north face of the western half is adorned with an immense tableau depicting Amun-Min Kamutef, sheathed in white. He stands on a bulwark surmounting an altar which in turn is supported by a staircase. Behind the deity is depicted a large, rectangular piece of red cloth, stretched between two falcon-headed stakes and surmounted by the words, "divine shadow". The god is preceded by twelve insignia, of which two bear his name. These are the bull ka (soul) and the vulture Mut perched on the viper. This scene evokes one of the most ancient religious feasts of Egypt, the emergence of Min, which we find from the very first dynasties. 
East of this scene on the lower portion of the naos, is a depiction of the king, wearing the Atef crown, consecrating offerings. He holds the sekhem scepter and above him is wadjet, the snake-headed vulture who is the guardian spirit of the North. 
On the other, southern exterior side of the naos at the front of the structure (southwest corner), a jutting cornerstone forms the pedestal on which the naos rests. This is a reused granite block on which the Horus name of Tuthmosis II is carved. This is rather strange, for the stone is carved in a way that the framing of the name is sloped with respect to the pedestal's horizontal. An inscription in the naos provides five columns of hieroglyphs that contain the dedication of the sanctuary as a restoration by Philip Arrhidaeus of Tuthmosis III's original work. The later king tells us that the reconstruction was necessary because the structure was on the verge of falling into ruin. The granite terrace is obviously composed of blocks that came from Tuthmosis III's original structure. However this reused block probably comes from obelisks that were broken and then carved into slabs. 
The southern facade of the naos is divided into four registers and topped by a torus and cornice. The lowest part contains only on register, on which are drawn the offering of four calves, of which, one is black, another red, the third white and the last spotted. Here also is the race of the "great stride" by the king, who wears the white crown carrying the oar and the rudder.
To the left of this are three very interesting registers, They include, from left to right, the purification of the king by Thoth and Horus, who pour into a dome around the king water from two vessels. Repeated four times is the formula, "Your purification is my purification and reciprocally".  Next, Hours and Thoth crown the king so that he can fulfill his sacred office, after which the king is received by Thoth. Here, the king kneels before Amun, who sits upon a throne, though the king has his back turned to the god, looking in the same direction. The king receives life and the confirmation of his royalty, and then, with the features of a child having curly locks, receives the divine milk. 

On the naos of Philip Arrhidaeus, the scenes of purification, imposition
of the crowns and the royal accent and enthronement

Depicted in the middle register is the sacred barque leaving the sanctuary on the shoulders of priests. It is then deposited in a chapel that marks one of the resting stations, before continuing on to the second repository. On the bottom register, the barque returns, first by water and towed by the king himself who stands in a skiff, and then on the shoulders of priests, as the king purified it with incense.
The final scene depicts a quadruple purification, with the white vessels, of the sacred barque which is now returned to its sanctuary.
In the interior of the naos, we find that the ceiling was painted with gold stars on a blue background. On the interior northwest wall are four registers on which the rituals of the Daily Divine Worship of Amun under two different forms are depicted in alternation. On the third register of the southern wall near the entrance, a hunting scene with nets can also be recognized. 
Flanking the sanctuary and naos is an area known as Hatshepsut's temple. To the north, there are a few notable scenes in the southeastern most room. Here, on the interior north wall. The bas-reliefs here were once on the outside of the south wall of this same room, but were covered over by the "wall of the Annals" when Tuthmosis III made the central portion of the temple into a single room what four pillars. Legrain removed Hatshepsut's reliefs, block by bock, and remounted them in the location they are found today. 
In these scenes, Hatshepsut is taking the "great stride" in front of Amun-Ra Kamutef. Actually, the queen and her cartouches were hammered out, presumably by Tuthmosis III, but with such care that the silhouette of her red crown, her two vessels and the hieroglyphics of her name can still be recognized. However, the face and name of Amun was spared by Akhenaten, because by his reign they were hidden by the wall of the Annals. 
We also find Thoth and Horus, each standing on pedestals, purifying Hatshepsut, who has again been hammered out. Only the scarabs have been spared this destruction. 
Within the southern wing of Hatshepsut's temple, notable, is a seated statue of Amenhotep II. He holds a second figure, now completely destroyed, by the shoulder. Above the king's nemes headdress he wears the atef crown. Above the horizontal horns of Khnum rises a bouquet of long, finely carved feathers, bound at the top and framed by two ostrich plumes. This is a very fine sculpture in the round with excellent details. 
On the southern exterior wall of the south wing of Hatshepsut's temple, at the western end is recorded the "Texts of the Youth" of Tuthmosis III. The king is seated within a columned building on a terraced pedestal. Behind him, his Horus name, "Mighty Bull Shining in Thebes", is recorded. His throne is adorned with scales and plants of the North and South, bound together around the sign of union. On the pedestal, two Nile gods are linking the "Two Lands". Flanking them, looking in opposing directions, are two lions. The one on the left overlays an earlier depiction of Amun, recognizable by the vertical band behind his back, which dated from the first stages of this building prior to Tuthmosis III. This figure seems to have been intentionally left.
In front of the "royal dais" are the first twelve lines of the "Text of the Youth", of which the entire upper portion has been destroyed. Here, the king, after making a recitation of his ascension to the throne, describes the monuments that he built. These included "A divine abode" of white sandstone for which he performed the laying of the foundation rituals himself. There was also a Holy of Holies named "His Great is like the Horizon of Heaven", which was built of sandstone from the "Red Mountain". We are told that its interior was "wrought with electrum". He also names three doorways that he named and of which one is still in place. Here he also speaks of the sixth pylon and of its great cedar door. Another monument that he mentions is a sandstone chapel with doors of cedar wood that he built for his fathers, the kings who were before him. There are other monuments included in this narration and finally, he talks of a "splendid harp wrought with silver, gold, lapis lazuli, malachite, and every splendid costly stone, for the praise of the beauty of his majesty (Amun) at his appearances". 
From a historical point of view, while perhaps not the most visually spectacular sections of the Temple of Amun, this area of the temple is very significant. We learn much about Tuthmosis III, and we also deduce some of the problems between him and his stepmother, Hatshepsut. It also contains one of the very few structures attributed to Philip Arrhidaeus in all of Egypt. 

Ground Plan of this section of the Temple of Amun