The ancient Egyptians had a great many gods; but the greatest of all was the Sun God. His name was Amun, and this meant "the hidden or veiled one." All worship of this god was mysterious and shrouded in darkness. In that way the priests held their power over the people. It was at old Thebes that the greatest temples of the Sun God were built. For about two thousand years Thebes was the capital of the powerful Egyptian Pharaohs. It was called Weset and Nut, which means "The City." The Greeks gave it the name of Thebai. Now this once great and important city has disappeared except for its ruins. The little village of Luxor occupies the southern part of ancient Thebes. It is on the east bank of the Nile, four hundred and fifty miles from Cairo. Its name, Luxor, is a corruption of the Arabic El-Kusur, meaning "The Castles," and referring to the many-columned courts of the abandoned temples. The great king of Egypt, Amenophis III, built the temple of Amun about which Luxor has grown up. He did not finish it, and Rameses II added to it a huge columned court. But this temple was never altogether completed. Still, it measures almost 900 feet from front to rear. Rameses II also erected outside some colossal statues and a pair of obelisks. One of these obelisks now stands in the Place de la Concorde in Paris. It was taken there in 1831. The chief religious festival of Thebes was that of "Southern Opi," the ancient name of Luxor. The sacred ships of the gods, which were kept in the temple of Karnak, were then taken in procession to Luxor and back. Most of the old village of Luxor lay inside the courts of the temple. The Christians built churches within the temple. Luxor was also called Abul Haggag, from a Moslem saint of the seventh century. His tomb stands on a high heap of debris in the court of Rameses. Today Luxor is a tourist center, and several fine hotels have been erected to accommodate the many visitors to the famous ruins. Nearly all the debris has been cleared away by the _Service des Antiquités_, which took up this work in 1885. Most of the natives thereabout are engaged in the manufacture of forged antiques, which they sell to the unwary traveler. PREPARED BY THE EDITORIAL STAFF OF THE MENTOR ASSOCIATION ILLUSTRATION FOR THE MENTOR, VOL. 1, No. 42, SERIAL No. 42 COPYRIGHT, 1913. BY THE MENTOR ASSOCIATION, INC. * * * * * [Illustration: KARNAK--VIEW FROM SACRED LAKE, EGYPT] ==================================================================== _EGYPT, THE LAND OF MYSTERY_ _Karnak_ ------------------------------- FIVE ------------------------------