Known locally as el-Colossat or es-Salamat, the 3400 year-old Colossi of Memnon are two gigantic stone statues in Luxor depicting Pharaoh Amenhotep III in a seated position. The statues' original purpose was to stand guard at the entrance of Amenhotep's memorial temple (or mortuary temple), a massive cult centre where the pharaoh was worshipped before and after his death. Today the Colossi of Memnon are the only remnants of the temple