1. Amon-Re
(The Hidden One) (The Concealed One)
The three mortuary temples at Deir el Bahari were most likely built where they could stand in reverence for the simulacra images seen on the mountain. The architecture and artistry of the temples, specifically the reconstructed Temple of Hatshepsut, which the most is known about, deliberately portrays and venerates the same Egyptian deities as the mountain simulacra above the temple. This strongly suggests that the images of simulacra were indeed seen and venerated by the ancient Egyptians.
All three temples built at Deir el Bahari contain chapels dedicated to one of three forms of the deity Amon: Amon-Re (the ram), Amon the ram-headed man, and Amon Kamutef (the king as Amon). Thothmosis III’s temple was in fact named Amon-Djeser-Akhet, meaning “Amon Holy of the Eastern Horizon,” and exhibiting reverence for the mountain simulacrum of Amon, as-well as Amon’s sighting (as a simulacrum) of the eastern horizon from the elevated mountain location. The ram image of Amon-Re and Amon-Kamutef is seen on the top of the mountain horizon and overlooks the eastern horizon. The Amon simulacrum is directly above Hatshepsut’s Temple, at the top of the triangular formation that protrudes from the mountain. At the highest point on the horizon is the simulacrum image of Amon, whose shape-shifts to appear in the known forms of Amon. The two simulacra of Amon shape-shift from the man form into the ram form on the same area of the hillside. Again the image seen depends upon the lighting and the mind’s eye. The head of the ram is located at the top of the mountain and is easy to see. At other times, from a distance, the entire body of the ram is seen with the front legs facing the temple.
