| Centre of Attraction |
Abu Simbel Temples |
| City, Country |
Abu Simbel
Egypt |
| Nearest Airport |
Cairo International Airport
Abu Simbel Airport (domestic flights)
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| Description |
Abu Simbel Temples were built in 1257 BC, Pharaoh Ramses II (1279-1213 BC) had two temples carved out of solid rock at a site on the west bank of the Nile south of Aswan in the land of Nubia near the border of Egypt with Sudan and which are now famous as Great Abu Simbel Temples.
The temples of Abu Simbel were cut from the rock and shifted to higher ground in the 1960s as the waters of Lake Nasser began to rise following completion of the Aswan High Dam.
The Great Temples of Abu Simbel is dedicated to Ramesses II and a statue of him is seated with three other gods within the innermost part of the rock-cut temple (the sanctuary). The temple's facade is dominated by four enormous seated statues of the Pharaoh (each over 20 metres or 67 feet high), although one has been damaged since ancient times. The actual interior of the Abu Simbel Temples is inside the cliff in the form of a man-made cave cut out of the living rock (cf. The Sacred Cave). It consists of a series of halls and rooms extending back a total of 185 feet from the entrance. The most remarkable feature of the site is that the Great Abu Simbel Temples is precisely oriented so that twice every year, on 22 February and 22 October, the first rays of the morning sun shine down the entire length of the temple-cave to illuminate the back wall of the innermost shrine and the statues of the four gods seated there.
The Small Temple was probably completed ahead of the Abu Simbel Temples and is dedicated to Ramesses' favourite wife, Nefertari. At the entrance stand six 10-metre-high (33 feet) rock-cut statues - two of Ramesses and one of Nefertari on either side of the doorway.
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