On the east bank of the Nile 100km south of Luxoris one of the oldest settlements of Upper Egypt. The ancient town of Nekheb was called Eleithyiaspolis in classical times and comprises of monuments spanning periods of Egyptian history from Predynastic through to Ptolemaic. El-Kab and its sister site of Hierakonpolis on the west bank of the river were the home of Nekbet, the vulture goddess of Upper Egypt.  Driving south along the road between Luxor and Aswan the visitor comes first upon the huge mudbrick walls of the town enclosure, 12m thick, which still contain within them the ruins of temples, cemeteries and a sacred lake. The central temple is the oldest of the remains, with its origins possibly dating to the Early Dynastic Period. Of the two ruined structures remaining today, the Temple of Thoth was begun by Amenhotep II in Dynasty XVIII and enlarged by later New Kingdom pharaohs. A contiguous monument, a larger Temple of Nekhbet built during the Late Period, part...