The kiosk of Taharqa with colossus of Ramses II in the first court of Amon, Karnak, Egypt

"The principal monument of the time was the kiosk in the Bubastide court of the Amun temple at Karnak, a daring feat of engineering that surpassed all earlier kiosks in size. It consisted of two rows of gigantic columns with open papyrus capitals. One scholar has suggested that the columns were freestanding and used as pedestals for statues." [Arnold D., 1999: Temples of the Last Pharaohs. Oxford University Press]. "The second pylon was fronted by two striding colossi of Ramesses II, of which only the feet of one remain. In front of these is a third, standing statue of the king -with the diminutive figure of the princess Bent'anta standing between his feet- which was later usurped by both Ramesses VI and the priest king Pinudjem I." [Wilkinson R., 2000: The Complete Temples of Ancient Egypt. Thames and Hudson]. "A village on East bank of the Nile in Upper Egypt; with Luxor, Karnak is on the site of ancient Thebes; location of temple of Amen, considered one of the finest examples of early New Kingdom religious architecture; also has many Middle Kingdom remains." [The J.P.Getty Fund: Thesaurus of Geographic Names]. This photograph was taken when Eliot Elisofon was on assignment for Life magazine and traveled to Africa from January 8, 1947 to end of June 1947.