Abu Simbel is an archaeological site located on the western bank of Lake Nasser, about 290 km southwest of Aswan. It is one of the “Nubian Monuments” sites included in the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites. Which starts from the direction of the river's flow from Abu Simbel to Philae (near Aswan).
The double temples were originally carved out of the mountains during the reign of King Ramesses II in the 13th century BC, as a permanent monument to him and Queen Nefertari, to commemorate his victory at the Battle of Kadesh. However, in 1960 the complex of facilities was moved entirely to another location, on an artificial hill made of a dome structure, above the reservoir of the Aswan High Dam.
It was necessary to move the temples to avoid them being drowned during the construction of Lake Nasser, and a huge artificial water reservoir was formed after the construction of the High Dam in Aswan on the Nile River. Abu Simbel is still one of the best areas to attract tourism in Egypt.
History.
The beginning of the twentieth century
Construction.
During his reign, Ramesses II embarked on an extensive building program throughout Egypt and Nubia, which Egypt controlled. Nubia was important to the Egyptians because it was a source of gold and many other valuable trade goods. Therefore, Ramses built many major temples there in order to impress the Nubians with the power and destiny of Egypt. The most famous temples are the temples carved into the rock near the modern village of Abu Simbel, at the second cataract of the Nile, on the border between Lower Nubia and Upper Nubia. There are two temples, the Great Temple, dedicated to Ramesses II himself, and the Small Temple, dedicated to his main wife, Queen Nefertari.
Construction of the temple complex began around 1264 BC and continued for about 20 years until 1244 BC. It was known as the “Temple of Ramses Beloved by Amun.”
Rediscovery.
Over time, the temples were abandoned and thus became covered in sand. At that time, during the 6th century BC, the sand covered the statues of the main temple up to the knees. The temple was forgotten until 1813, when the Swiss orientalist J.L. Burkhardt found the cornice of the main temple. Burkhardt spoke about this discovery with his Italian counterpart, explorer Giovanni Bellonzi, who traveled together to the site, but were unable to excavate an entrance to the temple. Belonzi returned in 1817, but this time he succeeded in his attempt to enter the complex. He took everything valuable he could carry with him. Tour guides at the site link the name to the legend of “Abu Simbel,” which is that there was a young local boy who led explorers to the site again at an early time for the buried temple that he saw from time to time in the quicksand. Eventually, they named the temple Abu Simbel after his name.
Transfer of the complex.
There is a model showing the original table, and the current location of the temple (in relation to the water level).
An international fundraising campaign to save the monument from sinking began in 1959: the ancient southern relics of this human civilization were under threat from the rising waters of the Nile River, which were about to result from the construction of the Aswan High Dam.
The rescue of the Abu Simbel temples began in 1964, and this operation cost $40 million. Between 1964-1968, the entire site was cut into large blocks (up to 30 tons and on average 20 tons), dismantled and reassembled in a new location at an altitude of 65 m and 200 m above the river level. It is considered by many to be one of the greatest works of archaeological engineering. . Some structures were saved from under the waters of Lake Nasser. Today, thousands of tourists visit the temples do every day. Convoys of buses and escorted cars leave twice a day from Aswan, the nearest city. Many visitors arrive by plane at the airport, which was built specifically for the temple complex.
Society consists of two temples. The largest is dedicated to three gods of Egypt at that time: Ra-Harakhty, Ptah, and Amun, and features four large statues of Ramesses II in the façade. 1867) (Urban Rapporteur Advisor. Delimitation of the Awlad Al-Shalih tribe, Batna District, No. 1351. The meeting of January 23, 1867, the smallest, is dedicated to the god Hathor, whose personification is Nefertari, Ramesses’ most beloved wife.
Great Temple.
Close to one of the colossal statues of Ramesses II, wearing the double crown of Upper and Lower Egypt
The construction of the great temple at Abu Simbel took nearly twenty years, and was completed in about 24 years of the reign of Ramesses the Great (which is equivalent to 1265 BC). It was dedicated to the gods Amun, Ra-Harakhty, Ptah, as well as Ramesses. It is generally considered the most magnificent and beautiful temple commissioned during the reign of Ramesses II, and one of the most beautiful in Egypt.
Four huge statues of the pharaoh, up to 20 meters tall, with the double crown of Atef on the sea and tribal sides decorate the facade of the temple, which is 35 meters wide, crowned with a cornice containing 22 baboons, and the entrance is surrounded by sun worshipers. The huge statues were carved directly from the rocks where the temple was located before it was moved. All statues represent Ramesses II sitting on a throne and wearing the double crown of Upper and Lower Egypt. The statue located to the left of the entrance was damaged in an earthquake, and only the lower part of the statue remained intact. The head and torso can be seen under the statue's feet.
Next to the legs of the colossal statue, there are other statues no higher than the knees of the pharaoh. This depicts Nefertari, the main wife of Ramesses, and the queen mother of Mutai, who had two sons, Amun-Her-Khepsef, Ramesses, and six daughters, Bintanath, Baktamut, Nefertari, Meritamen, Neptawi, and Setnofret.
The entrance itself is crowned with a small relief inscription, representing two images of the king worshiping the falcon-headed shepherd of Harakhti, whose statue stands in a large niche. This god holds in his right hand a necklace of hieroglyphs, the Egyptian Pharaonic writing art used, and a feather, while he holds in his left hand Maat, the goddess of truth and justice. This is no less than a non-flowering plant, a plant of the giant Ramesses II, and the throne name used is Maat - Re.