# Shrine of Taharqa > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Shrine_of_Taharqa > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Shrine_of_Taharqa.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shrine_of_Taharqa > Source revision: 1319240716 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) Egyptian shrine The Shrine of Taharqa in the Ashmolean museum viewed from the south east corner The **Shrine of Taharqa** is an Egyptian shrine commissioned by the pharaoh [Taharqa](/source/Taharqa) in the early part of the 7th century BC. It was located in [Kawa](/source/Kawa%2C_Sudan), which falls within the borders of present day Sudan, but since 1936 has been kept in the [Ashmolean Museum](/source/Ashmolean_Museum) in [Oxford](/source/Oxford), England.[1][2] ## Description The shrine was originally built within a large temple dedicated to [Amun-Re](/source/Amun-Re).[3] It appears to have been constructed at the same time as the rest of the temple.[4] The shrine has four outer walls engraved with images of Taharqa interacting with various gods.[4] On two of them he is depicted with Amun-Re along with the gods of [Gematen](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gematen&action=edit&redlink=1) on the western side and [Thebes](/source/Thebes%2C_Egypt) on the eastern side.[4] The depiction of Amun-Re on the western side was painted blue, as was typical of the period, whereas the depiction on the eastern side was not.[4] The southern side depicts gods associated with [Heliopolis](/source/Heliopolis_(ancient_Egypt)) while the northern side carries depictions of gods associated with [Memphis](/source/Memphis%2C_Egypt).[4] The shrine is 2.3 meters tall and about 4 meters by 4 meters.[5] ## History The Shrine in situ at Kawa The shrine was built in or shortly after 684 BC under the rule of the pharaoh [Taharqa](/source/Taharqa).[3][6] A neighbouring shrine was added in the 6th century BC under the rule of the pharaoh [Aspelta](/source/Aspelta).[4] Westerners became aware of the broader temple site in the late 19th century.[2] Small digs were carried out in 1929 and 1930 and an extensive excavation began 22 November 1930.[2] These digs exposed the remains of the buildings to the weather and they started to decay.[7] The carved walls of the shrine along with the Wall of Aspelta were removed from the site in 1936 with the permission of the Sudanese government while other carvings were transferred to [Khartoum](/source/Khartoum) with the aim of protecting them from further decay.[7][3] The blocks were removed by building sand ramps up the side of the shrine and then moving them to the ground on rollers.[7] They were then coated in a solution of [nitrocellulose](/source/Nitrocellulose) in [amyl acetate](/source/Amyl_acetate) and [acetone](/source/Acetone), as a lacquer to help preserve the blocks' surface integrity, before being transported to the Ashmolean Museum in 233 cases.[7][3] This process took about a month to complete.[7] ### At the Ashmolean The north wall of the shrine Once at the Ashmolean a further layer of nitrocellulose was applied to the stones.[3] A brick structure was built to cover the interior faces of the shrine.[3] It was then plastered with the plaster being coated with black paint.[3] The shrine was protected from rising damp by a layer of bitumen.[3] By the 1960s the nitrocellulose had started to decay and in 1968 it was removed from most of the shrine and replaced with a layer of [paraffin wax](/source/Paraffin_wax).[3] The remaining nitrocellulose was removed in the 1980s with the paint being stabilised with [Paraloid B-72](/source/Paraloid_B-72).[3] Prior to the 2000s rebuilding work the interior of the shine was used for storage by the museum.[8] Due to the shrine's weight, it was not moved when the gallery housing it was rebuilt and, since November 2011, the shrine has been on display to the public in the museum's refurbished Egyptian and Nubian galleries.[1][9] It is displayed with a sculpture of Taharqa loaned by the Southampton museum service visible inside.[8] ## References 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-guner_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-guner_1-1) Guner, Fisun (25 November 2011). ["Art Gallery: Egyptian and Nubian Galleries, Ashmolean Museum"](https://theartsdesk.com/visual-arts/art-gallery-egyptian-and-nubian-galleries-ashmolean-museum). *The Arts Desk*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20240518113532/https://theartsdesk.com/visual-arts/art-gallery-egyptian-and-nubian-galleries-ashmolean-museum) from the original on 18 May 2024. Retrieved 18 May 2024. 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Kirwan200_2-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Kirwan200_2-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Kirwan200_2-2) Kirwan, L. P. (1936). "Preliminary Report of the Oxford University Excavations at Kawa, 1935-1936". *The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology*. **22** (2): 200–211. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.2307/3854627](https://doi.org/10.2307%2F3854627). [JSTOR](/source/JSTOR_(identifier)) [3854627](https://www.jstor.org/stable/3854627). 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Hanna_3-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Hanna_3-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Hanna_3-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-Hanna_3-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-Hanna_3-4) [***f***](#cite_ref-Hanna_3-5) [***g***](#cite_ref-Hanna_3-6) [***h***](#cite_ref-Hanna_3-7) [***i***](#cite_ref-Hanna_3-8) [***j***](#cite_ref-Hanna_3-9) Hanna, Seamus; Norman, Mark (1990). "The cleaning and removal of surface coatings from a seventh century BC sandstone shrine from Nubia". *Studies in Conservation*. **35** (sup1): 23–27. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1179/sic.1990.35.s1.006](https://doi.org/10.1179%2Fsic.1990.35.s1.006). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0039-3630](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0039-3630). 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Armstrong_4-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Armstrong_4-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Armstrong_4-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-Armstrong_4-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-Armstrong_4-4) [***f***](#cite_ref-Armstrong_4-5) Armstrong, Caroline H (2015). "The Two Non-Blue Amuns of the Shrine of Taharqa at Kawa". *The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology*. **101** (1). SAGE Publications: 177–195. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1177/030751331510100109](https://doi.org/10.1177%2F030751331510100109). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0307-5133](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0307-5133). 1. **[^](#cite_ref-Ashmolean_5-0)** ["Shrine of Taharqa"](https://www.ashmolean.org/collections-online#/item/ash-object-746340). *ashmolean.org*. Ashmolean Museum. Retrieved 24 March 2025. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-Macadam61_6-0)** Macadam, M. F. Laming (1955). *The Temples of Kawa II. History and Archaeology of the Site*. Oxford University Press. p. 61. 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Kirwan210_7-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Kirwan210_7-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Kirwan210_7-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-Kirwan210_7-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-Kirwan210_7-4) Kirwan, L. P. (1936). "Preliminary Report of the Oxford University Excavations at Kawa, 1935-1936". *The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology*. **22** (2): 210–211. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.2307/3854627](https://doi.org/10.2307%2F3854627). [JSTOR](/source/JSTOR_(identifier)) [3854627](https://www.jstor.org/stable/3854627). 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Kennedy_8-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Kennedy_8-1) Kennedy, Maev (23 November 2011). ["Ashmolean returns Ancient Egyptian mummies to public view in £5m show"](https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2011/nov/23/ashmolean-returns-ancient-egyptian-mummies-public-view). *The Guardian*. Guardian News & Media Limited. Retrieved 28 March 2025. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-Atkinson_9-0)** Atkinson, Rebecca (24 November 2011). ["New galleries planned at Ashmolean"](https://www.museumsassociation.org/museums-journal/news/2011/11/24112911-further-redevelopment-planned-ashmolean/). *Museums Journal*. Retrieved 13 August 2024. ## External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to [Shrine of Taharqa](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Shrine_of_Taharqa). - [Ashmolean museum catalogue entry](https://www.ashmolean.org/collections-online#/item/ash-object-746340) [51°45′19″N 1°15′38″W / 51.75525°N 1.26064°W / 51.75525; -1.26064](https://geohack.toolforge.org/geohack.php?pagename=Shrine_of_Taharqa¶ms=51.75525_N_1.26064_W_) --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Shrine of Taharqa](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shrine_of_Taharqa) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shrine_of_Taharqa?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.