Egypt's Colossi of Memnon to be reunited with their twins

AFP

Towering like sentries above the necropolis of Ancient Thebes in southern Egypt, the world-famous Colossi of Memnon will see their number double from two to four from next year.

The painstaking work of 12 archaeologists and hundreds of workers is about to redefine the way visitors see and understand this mysterious site that has cast its spell over travellers for more than 2,000 years.

"It will be sensational, that's for sure!" Hourig Sourouzian, the project's enthusiastic director, enthused to AFP.

Next year two giant statues of the pharaoh Amenhotep III will begin to rise again, just a hundred metres (328 feet) behind his two existing colossi that mark the entrance to the temple.

Another two statues, still half-buried, will also be returned to their former upright position in the years to come.

Rising from green fields, the two 18-metre- (59-feet-) high stone giants seem to be watching over roads leading to the temples and pharaonic tombs built in the valleys and ochre mountains of Luxor's west bank.

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