Waset

Waset is the ancient Egyptian name for Thebes, the principal city of Upper Egypt on the Nile opposite the modern city of Luxor. It was a major urban, political, and religious center, especially during the Middle and New Kingdoms, and served as a focal point for the cult of Amun-Ra.

Geographically, Waset stretched along both sides of the Nile. The eastern bank housed large temple complexes, most notably Karnak, the great temple complex dedicated to Amun-Ra, while the western bank contained royal and funerary temples, as well as the Theban necropolis. The city grew through royal patronage and pilgrimage, with monuments rebuilt and expanded by successive pharaohs, reflecting its standing in state religion and royal ideology.

Notable features associated with Waset include the Karnak temple complex, Luxor Temple, Medinet Habu, and the Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut at Deir el-Bahri. The Theban Necropolis encompasses the Valley of the Kings and the Valley of the Queens, among other tombs and chapels. Together, these sites formed a vast religious landscape and a center of learning, administration, and ritual.

Waset’s prominence declined after the New Kingdom, though the city remained inhabited under subsequent Egyptian, Persian, Greek, and Roman authorities. In modern times, the site has been recognized for its archaeological and cultural significance; it was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site as Ancient Thebes with its Necropolis in 1979. The name Waset is primarily used in Egyptology and ancient texts, while the Greeks called the city Thebai and the contemporary city is now Luxor.