The monuments at Abu Simbel were practically unknown in the
Egyptological world until Johan Ludwig Burckhardt visited
the site in 1813 when he saw the upper part of a temple
facade almost covered by sand. Giovanni Battista Belzoni
visited the site shortly afterwards in 1817 and discovered
the entrance door. Since that time many adventurers have
been struck by the awe-inspiring facade of the temple built
by Rameses II around 3000 years ago with its giant colossal
statues of the king sculpted from the mountain rock.
In the 1960s the new High Dam was built at Aswan which
resulted in a build-up of water which threatened to engulf
the monuments along its Nubian shores. In a dramatic race
against time UNESCO began a US$40 million rescue operation
in 1964, the like of which had never been seen before. In
the incredible salvage operation the temples were dismantled
and cut up into manageable-sized blocks, then painstakingly
reconstructed 65m higher than the original site, away from
the dangers of the encroaching water. Inside a specially
constructed mountain, two gigantic reinforced concrete domes
protect the rebuilt temples.
Visitors to the temples today are easily able to forget that
they are not in their original position. Such great care was
taken in the landscaping and orientation of the monuments
and it is only the fact that one may enter the artificial
dome to view its construction which reminds us that the site
of Rameses' temple has now vanished below the waters of the
lake. Each evening there are three performances of a Sound
and Light Show in seven different languages
The Great Temple of Rameses II
The facade of the Temple of Rameses II is dominated by four
colossal seated statues carved out of the cliff face, each
20m high and depicting the king, with Nubians carved in the
base at his feet. The faces of the statues appear to show
Rameses in different stages of his life, although it is
thought that the temple was built quite early in his reign.
The figures are immense when you are standing at their base
looking up at them. Rameses the Great obviously did not want
to be forgotten when he built this Nubian Temple.
His mother Tuya, his Chief Wife Nefertari and some of his
many children can be seen in smaller scale at his feet. The
monument is dedicated to the gods Re-Horakhty, Amun and Ptah,
as well as the divine Rameses himself. There are later
inscriptions carved on the statues. A Greek inscription by
the soldiers of Psamtek II of Dynasty XXVI is carved on the
most ruined of the colossi.
Above the entrance door the king worships the figure of the
falcon-headed sun god Re-Horakhty who is also greeted by
carved baboons on top of the wall. Inside, the temple is
conventional in its design, with the floor level rising
noticeably towards the sanctuary at the rear and in the
first pillared hall there are eight Osiris pillars in two
rows. On the left, the colossal statues depict Rameses
wearing the white crown of Upper Egypt and on the right the
king wears the double crown of the Two Lands. On the walls
of this first hypostyle hall are scenes showing the king's
victories over his enemies, usually Libyans and Nubians. The
north wall is painted with scenes of the battle of Kadesh,
Rameses' greatest victory, and on the other walls are
various depictions of the king in single combat or being`
presented with prisoners from various lands. The goddess
Nekhbet on the 'vulture ceiling' leads us inwards towards
the Vestibule.
The Vestibule is a chamber with four square columns showing
Rameses and Nefertari offering to the gods, and other
religious scenes. There are various magazines and store
rooms leading off to each side which would once have housed
the temple's cultic objects and treasures which may have
included tribute from Nubia. Beyond the Vestibule, 65m in
from the entrance to the temple, we come to the most sacred
place, the Holy of Holies or Sanctuary. Four seated statues
of Re-Horakhty, the deified Rameses II, Amun-re and Ptah are
carved from the rock of the back wall. A pedestal still
remains in the sanctuary on which the sacred barque would
have stood. The temple was aligned so that twice a year, on
February 22 and October 22, the sun's rays penetrate the
length of the temple and flood the sanctuary with light
(which may or may not be significant!).
The decoration of the Great Temple of Rameses II at Abu
Simbel serves to glorify the divine pharaoh Rameses, who is
seen adoring and making offerings to his deified image.
Perhaps it was also a monument intended to keep the wayward
Nubian population in line by showing them the might of their
great Egyptian ruler.

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