The Hidden One and King of the Gods
Amun's distinction is his "hiddenness": he is the wind, the unseen breath of life, impossible to depict whole. When the princes of Thebes unified Egypt, this local god was raised to the head of the pantheon and merged with the most illustrious sun god Ra — an "unseen god" and "the brightest god" combined into Amun-Ra, at once behind all things and high in the zenith. Egyptian theology was skilled at merging rather than replacing: a new god need not overthrow an old one, only fuse with him, stacking two authorities into one.
The Stone Forest of Karnak
The Temple of Karnak dedicated to Amun-Ra was enlarged continuously over two thousand years, and the hundred and thirty-four giant columns of its Great Hypostyle Hall stand like a forest of stone, the tallest over twenty meters, their capitals wide enough to hold dozens of people. Successive pharaohs vied to add obelisks, pylons, and statues, to show their devotion to Amun — and their own power. The scale of the temple is the measure of the priesthood's wealth and influence: as pharaohs gave most of their spoils to Amun, the balance of power between god and king was quietly tipping.