Thebes, Egypt

Thebes was an ancient Egyptian city on the Nile River, in Upper Egypt's fourth nome, whose ruins now lie within the modern city of Luxor. It served as Egypt's capital during much of the Middle and New Kingdoms and was the country's leading religious center, devoted to the chief deity Amun, and by around 1500 BC it had likely become the largest city in the world, with a population of about 75,000, a position it held until roughly 900 BC; ancient Thebes and its necropolis were designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979.