Karnak temple is located on the east bank of the Nile in the city of Luxor, the ancient pharaonic capital known as Thebes. It is the second most visited archaeological site in Egypt.

History

More than thirty pharaohs contributed to the construction of this sacred temple, which beginning from the XVIII dynasty.

Karnak temple has three sacred areas that honors three gods: Amun, Mut and Khonsu, gods that make up the triad of Thebes. After becoming capital of Ancient Egypt, Thebes become very important religious center, which led to the construction of the imposing temples visited thousands of years later by visitors from all over the world.
The temple was renovated and expanded with each new ruler, which resulted in the huge religious complex that can be visited today.

Main parts of the Karnak Temple are:

Precinct of Amun-Re

It is the largest temple dedicated to the god Amun-Re,  chief deity of the Theban Triad. It also has one of the largest obelisks, weighing 328 tonnes and standing 29 meters tall.

Precinct of Mut

A bit older than Amun-Ra and located south, it is dedicated to the second divine figure of the Theban triad: the goddess Mut, wife of Amun-Ra and mother of Montu (Khonsu). It has several smaller temples associated with it and has its own sacred lake.

Precinct of Montu

Located north of the Amun-Re temple, Montu, son of Mut and Amun-Re, is the divine figure that symbolizes a warrior god and completes the Theban Triad.

The temple of Opet

Dedicated to religious festival held in the second month of the annual Nile flood, which included both the temple of Luxor and the Karnak.

The temple of Khonsu

The Temple of Khonsu is an ancient Egyptian temple located inside large Precinct of Amun-Re. It is an example of  New Kingdom temple.

It was originally constructed by Ramesses III. The gateway of this temple is at the end of the avenue of sphinxes that ran to the Luxor Temple but only the gateway now remains.

Temple of Ptah

Temple of Ptah is also located with the large Precinct of Amun-Re. It is the small temple at the north of the main Amun temple. It was built by Thutmose III, on the site of an earlier Middle Kingdom temple and later enlarged by the Ptolemies.