SATELI

TEI
MAGEOFTHELOCATI
ON

THEGREATTEMPLEOFABUSI MBEL
WASCOMMI SSI
ONED BY
RAMSESIIABOUT1264B.
C.AND WAS
FI
NISHED ABOUT1244B.
C.
,
COINCI
DING MOREORLESS
WITHRAMSES’S30-YEARJUBI
LEE.

THEANCI
ENTMAPOFEGYPT

THEIRPURPOSEWASTO I MPRESSEGYPT'
S
SOUTHERNNEI GHBORS,AND ALSO TO
REINFORCETHESTATUSOFEGYPTI AN
RELIGIONI
NTHEREGI ON.WI
THTHE
PASSI
NG OFTIME,THETEMPLESBECAME
SI
TEPLAN COVERED BYSAND.
•ALREADYINTHE6THCENTURYBC,
THESAND COVERED THESTATUESOF
THEMAINTEMPLEUPTO THEI RKNEES.
THENITWASREDI SCOVERED LATER.

THECLIMATESHOWS
THATTHEWI ND
SPEED AND THE
SUNTEMPARATURE
MAI
NLYCAUSED
THESAND GATHERI
NG.
 THETWO TEMPLES
WEREBUI LT
CARVING THE
SAND STONES
HILLS.SO I
THAD
ANATURALCAVE
FELLINGSINIT.

THELARGE
COLOSOLOF
SI
TEPLAN RAMESIS
I
NFICATED
HISPOSITI
ON
AMOMG THE
GODS.ASIT
WASHIGH THEPLANOFTHEGREAT
HALLAREA RAMESI
STEMPLEI
I
ENOUGH
THANRES
OTHERSTRUCTURE.
COLOSOLS
ASTHETEMPLEWASREDI SCOVEREI TWASALSO
ENDENGERD BYTHENI LE,SO THEWHOLETEMPLE
WASLIFTED TO THEHI
GHERGROUND WI TH
ADDITI
ONALSTRUCTURE
THEPLANOFLI
ITLETEMPLEOFNEFRI
TITI

SNADSTONEHI
LL

HALLAREA

ELEVATI
ONOFLI
TTLETEMPLE
THI
STEMPLEHAD LESSERHIGHTTHAN THEOTHER
TEMPLE.THOUGH THECOLOSOLSWEREOF
SAMEHIGHTTO SHOW THATTHEYHAD SAMEIMPORTANCE.
SAND STONEHI
LL

SAND STONEHI
LL REMASTERD PLANOFGREATTEMPLE
FROM THOSESECTIONSWECAN UNDERSTAND THATTHE
HIGHTOFTHECOLOSOLSOLSWASAPPX 40 MTTHENOT
ONLYDEFI NEHUGENESSBUTALSO CREATESAN EXTRA
VACENTSPACE ATTRACTI
ON MATERI
AL.

SAND STONEHI
LL

SECTI
ONOFREPLANED GREATTEMPLE
CHAMBERS HALL
WHEN THETEMPLEWAS
SHIFTED THECONCRETE MAI
N CHAMBER
DOMEWASMAD TO PROTECT
I
TFROM FURTHER
COROTION ,AND ASTHE
SAND STONEWASALSO ASCARCI
TY
SECTI
ONOFGREATTEMPLE
 THELI
TTLE
TEMPLE
OFNEFRITI
TI

STONE
CURVATIOR
HYAROGLYFI
CSIN BOTH THETEMBLE‘
SMATERI
ALI
SSAME
BOTH ARESAND STONEROCKCUTTEMPLE.

ELEVATI
ONTHEGREAT
TEMPLEOFRAMESI
S LARGEPI
WITH THE
LLARHALL
ASTHEMAI NMATERIALWAS
PI
LLARLES
CURVED AS
SANDSTONE,THEH YAROGLYFICS
RAMESISIN WE REWR I
TTEN WI
TH DIFFERENT
SECTI
ONAL OSAI
RI SFROM. COLOURAND GOLD.
ELEVATI
ON I
NNERSMALLERPI
LLARHALLHAD MORE FORMALPI
LLAR

LI
GHTTRAJECTORY
I
N3D VI
EW

I
NNERSANCTUAM
HAD THREE
NORMALEGYPTIAN
DEYTIESAND
ANOTHERWAS
RAMESISHI
MSELF
ONLYSETH LI
GHT
SOURCE
WASDERIVED
LI
GHT
OFLIGHTASHE SOURCE
WASTHEGOD OF
UNDERWORLD.
LI
GHTTRAJ
ECTORY
I
NPLAN

THETEMPLEWASCONSTRUCTED INSUCHAWAYTHATTHESUNSHI NESDIRECTLY

ONALLFOURSTATUESDURI NG TWO DAYSOFTHEYEAR, FEBRUARY20AND
OCTOBER20.
•THESEDATESAREALLEGEDLYTHEKI NG'
SBIRTHDAYRESPECTIVELY,
BUTTHEREIS
NO EVI
DENCETO SUPPORTTHIS.
•DUETO THEDISPLACEMENTOFTHETEMPLE, ITI
SWI DELYBELI
EVED THATTHIS
EVENTNOW OCCURSONEDAYLATERTHANI TDID ORIGI
NALLY.
 SITESECTION
A
SHSOWING THE
POSI
IBLENEW
AREA

PRIVETZONEOR
INACCESEBLEZONE
ACCESEBLEZONEORPUBLI
CZONE
THEMOVEMENT
PROCEDURE
MOVEMENTPROCESSAND
\
ZONESINGREATTEMPLE

I
N1 959AN INTERNATIONALDONATIONSCAMPAIGN TO SAVETHE
MONUMENTSOF
NUBIABEGAN:THESOUTHERNMOSTRELI CSOFTHISANCI ENTHUMAN
CIVI
LIZATI
ON
WEREUNDERTHREATFROM THERI SI
NG WATERSOFTHENI LETHAT
WEREABOUTTO
RESULTFROM THECONSTRUCTI ON OFTHEASWAN HIGH DAM.
•THESALVAGEOFTHEABUSI MBELTEMPLESBEGAN IN1 964,
AND COST
SOMEUSD $80 MILLI
ON.
•BETWEEN 1 964AND 1968,
THEENTIRESITEWASCUTINTO LARGE
BLOCKS,
DISMANTLED AND REASSEMBLED I
N ANEW LOCATI
ON –65 M HIGHER
AND 200 M BACKFROM THERIVER.

THETEMPLESOF
ABUSIMBELWERE
BUILTTO COMMEMOR
ATETHEVI CTORY
OFPHARAOH
RAMESSESII
AGAINSTTHE
HITTI
TESATTHE
BATTLEOFQADESH.
BUTSOON ISWAS
ABONDEND DUETO
I
T’SLOACATION AND
CLIMATEAND COVERED
BYSAND

ASGAINITWAS
REDI COVERED AND
AGAINITWAS
THEFRONTFACCADE RELOCATED ON
WASCUTAND DIVIDED HIGHERGROUND I N
I
NTO SEVARELPEI
CESAND MORDERNDAYS, I
T’S
RELOCATED AND THEN MAINFUNCTIONISASA
AGI
AN JOI
NED BACK HISTORICAL
MONUMENT.