Luxor, a city on the east bank of the Nile in southern Egypt, stands on the site of ancient Thebes, the pharaohs’ capital during their peak from the 16th to 11th centuries B.C. Modern Luxor envelops two grand monuments: the elegant Luxor Temple and Karnak Temple. Across the Nile on the west bank lie the royal tombs of the Valley of the Kings and the Valley of the Queens.