The White Chapel of Senusret I, also known as the Chapel of Anubis or the Jubilee Chapel of Senusret I, is a finely crafted limestone structure built during the reign of King Senusret I of the Twelfth Dynasty of ancient Egypt (circa 1971–1926 BCE). Originally constructed at elsewhere Karnak, within the precinct of Amun-Re at Thebes, the chapel served as a barque shrine—a small, roofed, open-sided sanctuary designed to house and receive the portable sacred barque of Amun during festival processions. The monument is distinguished by its exceptional limestone reliefs, well-preserved hieroglyphic inscriptions, and precise architectural proportions, making it one of the finest examples of Middle Kingdom craftsmanship. Although dismantled during later periods, its blocks were rediscovered and meticulously reassembled in the Open-Air Museum at Karnak, where the chapel stands today as a key source of information on Middle Kingdom art, religious practice, and royal ideology.
White Chapel of Senusret I is made of limestone. Its columns hold reliefs of a very high quality, which are hardly seen elsewhere at Karnak, and depicts Pharaoh Senusret being crowned and embraced by gods Amun, Horus, Min and Ptah.
Now located in the Open Air Museum at Karnak, its original location within the Karnak temple complex is still a matter of debate. The building was oriented on a North-South direction, with a stepped ramp on each side.
During the reign of 12th Dynasty kings Amenemhat III or Amenemhat IV, the white chapel was converted into a bark shrine. Despite this change in function during the 12th dynasty, the shrine probably remained in its original location, later subsumed within the festival hall of Thutmose II.
Amenhotep III (reigned 1390 BCE to 1352 BCE) dismantled the white chapel during his renovation of the area around the festival hall of Thutmose II and used it as fill in his newly constructed Pylon III. Between 1927 and 1930 all of the pieces were carefully removed and assembled into the building that is seen today.
circa 1950 BCE
Plan
The building is an almost square (6.8 x 6.45 metres) platform with a shallow staircase with a central ramp at either end. The sunk relief scenes on the east and west sides of the chapel’s base depict personifications of the river Nile, lakes and other chapels. The shrine has four interior pillars surrounded by a peristyle of twelve pillars. The columns all measure 2.6 meters height and are 0.6 meters across and 0.6 meters deep. The platform on which the columns rest is 1.2 meters high and almost square at 6.8 meters by 6.5 meters.
circa 1950 BCE
Barque Pedestal
The altar within the chapel today is of rose granite and probably dates to the time of Amenemhat III or Amenemhat IV. At first it was assumed that it was a barque shrine, where the boat carrying the statue of the god would rest temporarily, and it has been restored with a pink granite pedestal of the appropriate height. However, the pedestal is inscribed with the names of Amenemhat III and Amenemhat IV who reigned a century or more after Senwosret.
circa 1950 BCE
Relief Decorations
Traces of red, blue, and white paint can still be found on the columns and hieroglyphs. Its decoration records the jubilee (heb-sed) festival of Senusret I in raised relief. The pillars are decorated with relief work of exceptionally high quality, typical of the Senwosret’s works. The central theme in the decoration of the pillars involves the pharaoh and Amun who takes the form of the fertility god Min. He wears a double feather crown on his head and carries a flail, a symbol of kingship.
circa 1950 BCE
Senusret I, the original builder of the White Chapel, was the second pharaoh of the Twelfth Dynasty of Egypt. He ruled from 1971 BCE to 1926 BCE (1920 BCE to 1875 BCE), and was one of the most powerful kings of this Dynasty. He was the son of Amenemhat I. Senusret I was known by his prenomen, Kheperkare, which means "the Ka of Re is created". Senusret I dispatched several quarrying expeditions to the Sinai and Wadi Hammamat and built numerous shrines and temples throughout ancient Egypt and Nubia during his long reign. He rebuilt the important temple of Re-Atum in Heliopolis which was the centre of the sun cult, including this White Chapel.
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The Madain Project is an online archive of Abrahamic History and Archaeology.
Abrahamic History & Archaeology is the study of history and archaeology with respect to the three Abrahamic Faiths without considering the religious and theological aspects. The goal of Abrahamic History is to understand how and why the religious doctrines and behaviours have evlovled and changed over time. Searching for patterns in the evolution of significant cultural events such as the development of farming, the emergence of cities, or the collapse of major civilizations for clues of why and how these have influenced the three major Abrahamic religions.
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