Egyptian History Continues to inspire the Best Supernatural Books

The Abu Simbel Temple is actually two individual temples, both rock cut structures, and both built during the reign of King Ramses II sometime in the 1200 B.C. time period. One temple is dedicated to King Ramses II, and the second temple is dedicated to his beloved wife Queen Nefertari. She was his first and principal wife, and he cherished her above all other. Many ancient Egypt temples were built because of devotion in this fashion. We also had to cross the desert at four in the morning in coach convoy, to avoid hijackers just to see this amazing structure. The desert was eerily quiet, no birds singing. Not a peep! The carvings and artwork that decorate both structures of the Abu Simbel Temple are incredible. Hand carved pillars, wall paintings, carvings, statues, and much more delight anyone who sees them. This artwork is thousands of years old, and very delicate. In 1964 the two structures of Abu Simbel Temple were cut into many different pieces, and both temples were moved further away from the rising water of Lake Nasser. The structures were moved to a location sixty five meters above the original spot, and two hundred meters further back from the shoreline.

The Sofitel Legend Old Cataract Hotel, also known as the Old Cataract Hotel, is a historic British colonial-era 5-star luxury resort hotel located on the banks of the River Nile in Aswan, Egypt. It was built by Thomas Cook. Its guests have included Tsar Nicholas II, Winston Churchill, Howard Carter, Margaret Thatcher, Jimmy Carter, Princess Diana, Queen Noor and Agatha Christie, who set portions of her novel Death On The Nile at the hotel. The 1978 film of the novel was shot at the hotel, one of my favourite films.

Dam is an embankment dam built across the Nile at Aswan, Egypt between 1898 and 1902. The High Dam was constructed between 1960 and 1970, and has had a significant effect on the economy and culture of Egypt.to control floods, provide water for irrigation, and generate hydro-electricity were seen as pivotal to Egypt's industrialization

Before the dams were built, the Nile flooded every year during late summer, when water flowed down the valley from its East African drainage basin. These floods brought high water and natural nutrients and minerals that annually enriched the fertile soil along the flood plain and delta; this had made the Nile valley ideal for farming since ancient times. Because floods vary, in high-water years the whole crop might be wiped out, while in low-water years widespread drought and famine occasionally occurred. As Egypt's population grew and conditions changed, both a desire and ability developed to control the floods, and thus both protect and support farmland and the economically important cotton crop. With the reservoir storage provided by the Aswan dams, the floods could be lessened and the water stored for later release.

Our Captain navigating the cruise boat through the Nile.

On the Falooka's little children row up to the boats and sing songs for a few pennies from the tourists in the boats. The trip to Elephant Island, so called because the huge stones look like elephants. We also had a peaceful sail through the reeds around the Nile gave up a wonderful scene of local birds and wildlife. We drifted past the edge of the sahara desert with my feeling trailing in the Niles very cool and refreshing water. Apparently dangling your feet over the side of a Falooka boat with your feet in the water is supposed to bring you good luck and a healthy and happy life. So that's good to know.

Nubian House -The Nubians are a non-Arab Muslim population who lived in the geographical region known as Nubia in southern Egypt and northern Sudan. One hundred and twenty thousand Nubians were relocated beginning in 1964 because their villages were inundated by the Aswan High Dam Lake. Some argue that the name Nubians derives from a word in the Nubian language meaning slaves, but others say that the ancient Egyptian word nab meant gold and that the Ancient Egyptians used that term to refer to the Nubian Valley because of the gold mines nearby. 

The Temple of Edfu is an ancient Egyptian temple located on the west bank of the Nile in the city of Edfu which was known in Greco-Roman times as Apollonopolis Magna, after the chief god Horus-Apollo. It is one of the best preserved temples in Egypt. The temple, dedicated to the falcon god Horus, was built in the Ptolemaic period between 237 and 57 BC. The inscriptions on its walls provide important information on language, myth and religion during the Greco-Roman period in ancient Egypt.

Egyptian Market at Luxor takes up several streets near the Luxor temple. It is a joy to walk through, as it is mostly pedestrian and is a welcome respite from the horse and carriages on the main streets. This market really feels like an old souk and the visitor is taken back in time. It is covered with a wooden trellis, shading people from the sun. Many of the shops offer the same items, so the wise buyer shops around and looks for the best price. One can often bargain better after going to several stores.

Elephantine Island and beyond the Edge of the Sahara Desert.

Horse and carriage ride up to Edfu was frightening, having to ride through the city and be harassed by street sellers whilst trapped in the huge traffic jams.The temple of Edfu is the largest temple dedicated to Horus and Hathor of Dendera, Goddess of the sky, dance, love, beauty, joy, motherhood, foreign lands, mining, music and fertility. It was the centre of several festivals sacred to Horus. Each year, Hathor travelled south from her temple at Dendera to visit Horus at Edfu the event marked their sacred marriage was the occasion of a great festival and pilgrimage.

The bright colours of a gift shops can draw you in and once you find a merchant you like, sit down, have some tea, and begin the game of bargaining. It can feel like you are becoming a part of the family. Buying something as simple as a cotton galabeya can take several hours, as you try on almost every single galabeya in the store, and then move on to items that they think you may want as gifts for friends and family, but sometimes the bartering can become tiresome and annoying.

Isis Temple at Aswan.

Another example of a Nubian House near Aswan

Outside of how a Nubian house looks. Most of the houses have no roofs  except for the odd area behind the security walls, like the sleeping areas , which have some shelter from the rare occasion there is rain, but when walking around there is a distinct feeling of sleeping and living in the open air with surrounding walls to keep predators and warring enemies.

Old 1930's boat used to film Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie. I loved that film more than all the other Agatha Christie adaptations of her novels and although we weren't able to go and look around this traditional paddle river boat, the interior of our modern Nile boat was decorated very much with the feel and style of the art deco 30's. Lovely.

Sahara Desert from the plane.The Sahara is the world’s largest hot desert and one of the harshest environments on the planet. It is third largest desert overall after Antarctica and the Arctic, which are cold deserts.At 3.6 million square miles (9.4 million square kilometers), the Sahara, which is Arabic for "The Great Desert," engulfs most of North Africa. The desert covers large sections of Algeria, Chad, Egypt, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Niger, Western Sahara, Sudan and Tunisia. In other words - ITS BIG!!!

Alison's Website:http://www.alisonkershaw.com/book_lycan_lamia.php

More Egyptian History to Inspire The Beyond Series of Supernatural Novels

 the week tour of Egypt via a beautiful River boat decorated in an English 1930's Art Deco style was just the tip of the iceberg on this amazing trip down the Nile in 2013. I visited many of my favourite historical sites that I've read about since I was old enough to read. Medinet Habu is the Mortuary Temple of Rameses III situated on the West Bank of Luxor with relief's and carvings depicting the wars defeating the "Sea Peoples" and was the place of worship specifically for the sun god Amun Ra.

 Amun Ra is the ultimate god of the entire ancient Egyptian deity system. Ancient Egyptians considered him as the God of Kings and the King of gods. He is the oldest and most worshipped deity and this photo show Rameses III paying homage to the ultimate sun god and a Pharaoh was considered the Son of Ra and the creator of all life. Whilst other Egyptian deities came and went in popularity throughout the civilisations lifespan, but Amun-Ra was the constant "super god" that was always worshipped. You can see the two distinct feather plumes on his head.

On the opposite side of the temples main gates is a relief of Rameses paying homage to another major god - Horus.
was a sun god and the king of the gods. “The living Horus” was one of the Pharaohs titles and emphasized his right to rule Egypt like Horus ruled the gods. His emblem was the falcon and he was one of the five Osirian gods along with Osiris, Isis, Set and Nephthys. One of the most well known symbols associated with Egypt is the Eye of Horus, which symbolized power.

Rameses II at Karnack: The Karnak Temple Complex, commonly known as Karnak, comprises a vast mix of decayed temples, chapels, pylons, and other buildings. Building at the complex began during the reign of Senusret I in the Middle Kingdom and continued into the Ptolemaic period, although most of the extant buildings date from the New Kingdom. The area around Karnak was the ancient Egyptian Ipet-isut ("The Most Selected of Places") and the main place of worship of the eighteenth dynasty Theban Triad with the god Amun as its head. It is part of the monumental city of Thebes. The Karnak complex gives its name to the nearby, and partly surrounded, modern village of El-Karnak,

Colossi of Memnon Statues also known as Whistling Statues as they are known to sing, usually an hour or two after sunrise. They are two massive stone statues of Pharaoh Amenhotep III, who reigned during Dynasty XVIII. For the past 3400 years (since 1350 BC) they have stood in the necropolis at Thebes, west of the River Nile from the modern city of Luxor.

 The Sphinx on the road to Karnak: The familiar depiction of the sphinx of ancient Egyptian culture is a creature with the body of a lion and the head of a man. Historians interpret this mixed form as a symbolic joining of a lion's strength and dominance to a king's intelligence. Although the sphinx's heads down the Pharaohs roads to Karnak also have different animal heads to represent and pay homage to various deities. For instance a sphinx with a rams head is the depiction of the king of Gods Amun-Ra.

 Sacred Lake at Karnak is the largest of its kind and was dug by Tuthmosis III (1473-1458 BC). It measures 393 feet by 252 feet and is lined with stone wall and has stairways descending into the water. The lake was used by the priests for ritual washing and ritual navigation. It was also home to the sacred geese of Amun (the goose being another symbol of Amun) and was a symbol of the primeval waters from which life arose in the ancient Egyptian’s idea of creation. It was surrounded by storerooms and living quarters for the priests. There was also an aviary for aquatic birds.

Amenhotep's Red Granite Sacred Scarab beetle monument located close to the Scared Lake is a huge tourist attraction, especially for the singletons of this world. The belief is that you walk seven times anti clockwise around the beetle wishing for your soul mate and you will receive a marriage proposal. I was unmarried at the time and oddly was proposed to in the local cafe after leaving the tourist attraction. The cynical person I am decided the canny cafe owner knew this so asking any lady seeming to be alone would gain extra business. However, just weeks after this trip I was proposed to by my boyfriend who is now my loving husband. So maybe the myth and magic of the Ancient Egyptians does work sometimes.

 Our huge boat had to pass through the locks heading towards Aswan Dam these little rowing boats would dangerously attach themselves to the huge tourist boats (I can't call them ships because they just weren't big enough) and sail along the side whilst attempting to throw table cloths and other souvenirs to the tourists sunbathing on the pool decks. As we entered the locks these two nutters rowed in with our enormous barge. In the UK it would have turned into a governmental Health and Safety Publicity Circus.

Osiris, Geb and Nut: Osiris was the god of the dead and resurrection. He was the ruler of the Tu'at and people would appeal to him to care for their departed ancestors. Osiris was the king of the gods until his brother killed him. Ancient Egypt held the goddess Nut (Osiris's Mother) as one of the most loved goddesses. Known as the sky goddess, she held the title of “she who gives birth to the gods.” From birth to death, Nut played an important role in Egyptian mythology as the barrier between the order of creation and chaos. Geb was Osiris's father and the god and personification of the earth. He was unusual because he was a male earth deity, while most ancient cultures regarded the earth as female.
At the moment you may be wondering what this all has to do with my books, but over the next couple of blogs, all will become clear. My fourth book in Lycan Lamia in The Beyond Series also makes everything become clear with my characters epic journey through the supernatural world.
Alison's Website: www.thebeyondseries.com

Egypt - The Ultimate Beyond Series Writing Inspiration

Egypt has held a fascination for many people over the centuries. A lost civilisation resurrected by a handful of archaeologists from our more recent past uncovering the secrets of an ancient world that is still not completely given up all of it's historical treasures yet. I just love the magical and mystical of this ancient land, with its own unique religion and hierarchy, social structure just screams to be explored and written about in endless historical non fiction and fictional books. And I'm no different, turning to this archaic and hidden world to explore the supernatural world of my Beyond Series of novels.

 One of my favourite deities is Anubis. Depicted as half human half canine or dog the Anubis was the protector of death, the embalming and rebirth of the corpse. And I just thought this would work well as my were-wolves in Demon Lupus - Second Book in The Beyond Series only became immortal when they created their first 'pup' they could also take on the form of the Egyptian God Anubis. The history of my supernatural creatures in my series if very closely connected to Egypt and their various deities.

 Madinat Habu Temple has some of the best preserved frescos in the original paint so one can get a great idea of just how bright and colourful the temples were. This is a photo of a ceiling that is depicting The Goddess Isis' feathered white wings of protection. As a goddess of health, marriage and wisdom, she is also represented as a sycamore tree, cobra, vulture, or in human form she carries the Ankh a symbol of life and wearing either a throne shaped crown or a sun disk in a set of cow horns (symbol of Hathor Goddess)

 This was one of the first wondrous sites I saw of Egypt as we boarded our boat for the week long Nile cruise, starting from Luxur and heading down to Aswan and back again. These are Falooka Sail Boats at Sunset, little fishing boats, which I did sail on later on the trip. But this view was just so awesome, I could look at this photo all day long and conjure up stories of this mystical land.

The first day we headed out to Karnak Temple in Luxur and at the back of the temple was Hatshepsut's Obelisk. She was the wife of Thutmose II and reigned jointly with her husbands son Thutmose III, who was conceived by a secondary wife. When he was made Pharaoh as a young child she took over leadership of Egypt was considered the most successful female Pharaoh. This gets complicated now as the Royal Dynasties liked to 'keep it in the family', so Hatshepsut was the first daughter and classed as the Kings Daughter by Thutmose I primary wife - Thutmose II (who became her husband and Pharaoh) was also Thutmose I cgild, but was born to a secondary wife. So I guess Hatshepsut figured she was more entitled to the throne than her 'half-brother-husband and her step-son-nephew!! Incest was rife and it gets better as we travel through the dynasties, but more of that later. This is the tallest standing Obelisk in the world, there were two, but that broke in two and toppled.

This is the temple dedicated to Hatshepsut at Deir el-Bahri. I love the idea of Queen depicted as a Goddess and the incestual relationships behind closed doors from the major part of the Egyptian population, a subject I wanted to explore in my first book of the Beyond Series - Didikai Witch in which the coven of Romanian Gypsies close their castle gates to the rest of the world. Instead of the inbreeding creating anomalies and disfigurements it made the bloodline and powers stronger until the clan created a super-witch in the form of Amethyst.

This is Rameses II paying homage to Isis who was the first daughter of Geb, god of Earth and Nut, goddess of the Sky. She married her brother Osiris and was instrumental in his resurrection when he was murdered by his brother Set. She used her magical powers to restore Osiris's body parts back together as they had been separated and flung around the world to prevent him having an afterlife, which was incredibly important to the Egyptians. She represents the mother of Gods, birth and immortality, which I thought very apt for immortal creatures in The Beyond Series

 Temple of Kom Ombo is an unusual double temple built in Ptolemaic dynasty, 180-47 BC it has an unusual, symmetrical 'double' design that meant there were courts, halls, sanctuaries and rooms duplicated for two sets of gods. The southern half of the temple was dedicated to the crocodile god Sobek, god of fertility and creator of the world with Hathor and Khonsu and the northern part of the temple was dedicated to the falcon god Haroeris, also known as Horus the Elder.

 Lion Goddess Sekhmet at Hatshepsut Temple. She was a warrior goddess whose breath created the desert. As a solar deity she was considered the fiercest goddess of war, love, fire, dance and medicine. I loved looking at the feline deities like Sekhmet and Bast or Bastet, from Egypt for my Lycan Cat Pride in Lycan Lamia - the fourth book in The Beyond Series as the deities are all half human, half animal I thought it was a great way to explain the beginning of the immortal supernatural race on Earth and the religion and society that developed around worshipping them thousands of years ago.

Karnak Temple of Amun entrance lined with hundreds of Lion Headed Sphinx statues that line the main road from this temple at Luxor (in ancient times known as Thebes). The Royal road ran from Coptos to Syrene (Aswan) cutting through this Karnak temple.

Abu Haggag Mosque is situated on some ruins of part of the Karnak Temple. The mosque was actually built on top of the ruins before the Ancient Egyptian Temple was discovered under the earth and sand in the late Nineteenth Century.
A Sufi Shaykh, Abu Haggag is classed as Luxor's main saint and lived in luxor for much of the ninety years of his life. Although building on such an important historical site was be frowned upon today, I still like the idea of past and present religions being built on the same site.




At the Kom Ombo Temple there are lots of these mummified crocodiles dedicated to the God Sobek, God of Nile, Military, Army and fertility. Sobek was a violent, but protective God and although I haven't yet written about a were-crocodile I do love the idea and would like to research further into various predatory creatures who could be half human. Something to watch out for I think.

 The Kom Ombo Temple was used mainly by  the Ptolemy Dynasty who weren't Egyptians at all and were in fact Romans behaving like Egyptians so that the populace would accept their rule. On this fresco It depicts Horus with Ptolemy VIII who married his Sister Cleopatra II and later his niece and daughter of Cleopatra II and his other brother Ptolemy VI. I hope that makes some sense, but you can see how incestuous the ancient civilisations were and amazed there weren't more birth defects, but I've read before there was a lot of madness amongst the Royal Romans!


There is so much for me to write, I've decided to do this blog over several instalments so tune in next week for the next exciting chapter.
Alison's Website http://www.alisonkershaw.com/book_didikai_witch.php