Egypt reopened on Thursday night the Avenue of Sphinxes in Upper Egypt's Luxor Province after years of renovation works, with hopes to internationally promote the country's ancient civilization and its tourism sector. The inauguration ceremony was attended by Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi, a number of ministers and many foreign ambassadors. The 2400-year-old Avenue of Sphinxes is a 2,700-metre-long ancient walkway with 1,057 ram-headed and man-headed sphinxes lining along both sides of the road. The avenue once connected the temples of Karnak and Luxor, said Khaled Al-Anany, Egyptian minister of tourism and antiquities. The historical road was uncovered more than 70 years ago, and excavations continued during last decades. However, excavations and restoration works paused in 2011 due to political turmoil. The walkway was used once a year during the Opet festival, an annual pharaonic commemoration when ancient Egyptians paraded along the walkway, carrying the statues of Amun and Mut in a symbolic re-enactment of their marriage. As the reopening ceremony started, the ancient road and the sphinxes were lit up, revealing the beauty of the statues that were recently restored. The celebration also included an artistic performance inspired by the ancient 27-day long Opet Festival, which was celebrated by the ancient Egyptians in the second month of the Nile flood. — Agencies
