Base inscription naming the statue of the deified Ramses II, Luxor, Egypt

"Several further pieces of evidence attest the people's presence in the peristyle court on more occasions, at least for other festivals. First, the colossi of the deified Ramesses II flanking the entrance to the Eighteenth Dynasty colonnade south of his court were, like those standing outside his pylon, ka-statues - cultic images of the king as an incarnation of the royal ka. The ka-statues outside the pylon were accessible to ordinary people, and they mediated suppliants' pleas to the great, hidden god whose sanctuary lay beyond. The colossi of the king outside the colonnade probably functioned similarly." [Lanny Bell, 1997: The New Kingdom 'Divine' Temple: The Example of Luxor. Temples of Ancient Egypt. Cornell University Press]. "With the village of Karnak, Luxor (Al Uqsur) is on the site of ancient Thebes (capital of the New Kingdom). When Thebes declined, Luxor remained the more heavily populated part of the ancient city and grew into a modern market town." [The J.P.Getty Fund: Thesaurus of Geographic Names]. This photograph was taken when Eliot Elisofon was on assignment for American Institute of Architects, directing the Egyptian portion of the documentary on Ancient Egypt, March 1965 and September 1965.