Abu Simbel facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Abu Simbel temples

The Great Temple of Ramesses II (left) and the Small Temple of Hathor and Nefertari (right).
Location in Egypt Show map of Egypt Location in Northeast Africa Show map of Northeast Africa
Location	Aswan Governorate, Egypt
Region	Nubia
Coordinates	22°20′13″N 31°37′32″E / 22.33694°N 31.62556°E / 22.33694; 31.62556
Type	Temple
History
Builder	Ramesses II
Founded	Approximately 1264 BC
Periods	New Kingdom of Egypt
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Official name	Nubian Monuments from Abu Simbel to Philae
Type	Cultural
Criteria	i, iii, vi
Designated	1979 (3rd session)
Reference no.	88
Region	Arab States

Abu Simbel is a famous historic site in Egypt. It has two huge temples carved right into a mountain. These temples are near the border with Sudan, on the western side of Lake Nasser.

The temples were built a very long time ago, around 1264 BC. This was during the time of Pharaoh Ramesses II. He was a powerful king from the 19th Dynasty of ancient Egypt. The temples are known for their giant statues of Ramesses II. You can also see smaller statues of his wife, Nefertari, and their children near his feet. Inside the main temple, there are carvings that show Ramesses II's bravery in a battle called the Battle of Kadesh.

In 1968, something amazing happened. The entire temple complex was moved to higher ground. This was done to save it from being covered by the rising waters of Lake Nasser. This lake was created by the Aswan Dam. Many countries worked together to save these ancient buildings. This effort was part of the International Campaign to Save the Monuments of Nubia.

Today, the Abu Simbel temples are part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This site includes other temples from the Nubian region that were also moved to safety.

History of Abu Simbel

Why were the temples built?

During his rule, Ramesses II built many temples across Egypt and Nubia. Egypt controlled Nubia at the time. Nubia was important because it had lots of gold and other valuable trade goods.

Ramesses II built grand temples there to show Nubians how powerful Egypt was. He also wanted to spread Egyptian culture. The most famous temples are the ones carved into rock near the village of Abu Simbel.

There are two main temples. The Great Temple is for Ramesses II himself. The Small Temple is for his main wife, Queen Nefertari. Building the temples took about 20 years, from around 1264 BC to 1244 BC. People knew it as the Temple of Ramesses, Beloved by Amun.

How were the temples found again?

Over time, the temples were not used anymore. The Great Temple slowly became covered by sand dunes. By the 6th century BC, sand already covered the main temple's statues up to their knees.

Europeans forgot about the temples until 1813. A Swiss researcher named Johann Ludwig Burckhardt found the small temple. He also saw the top part of the main temple.

1840s sketch showing how sand had partly covered the Great Temple. This was about 20 years after Giovanni Belzoni cleared some sand to enter the temple.

Burckhardt told an Italian explorer, Giovanni Battista Belzoni, about his discovery. Belzoni went to the site but could not dig out the entrance. He returned in 1817 and finally managed to get inside the complex.

Moving the temples to safety

In 1959, a worldwide effort began to save the ancient buildings in Nubia. The southern parts of this old civilization were in danger. The Nile River was going to rise because of the new Aswan High Dam.

The statue of Ramses the Great at the Great Temple of Abu Simbel is put back together after being moved in 1967 to save it from flooding.

One idea to save the temples was to build a clear dam around them. This would keep the water inside at the same level as the Nile. But this idea was not chosen.

The rescue of the Abu Simbel temples started in 1964. A team of experts from many countries worked together. They were archaeologists, engineers, and heavy equipment operators. They worked under the UNESCO organization. The project cost about $40 million.

A small model showing where the temple was originally and where it is now. This model is at the Nubian Museum in Aswan.

Between 1964 and 1968, the entire site was carefully cut into huge blocks. Some blocks weighed up to 30 tons. These blocks were then taken apart, lifted, and put back together. They were moved to a new spot 65 meters higher and 200 meters further back from the river. This was one of the biggest challenges in archaeology ever! Some parts were even saved from under the water of Lake Nasser.

Today, many tourists visit the temples every day. Most people travel by road from Aswan. Others fly to Abu Simbel Airport, which was built just for the temple complex.

The complex has two temples. The bigger one is for Ra-Horakhty, Ptah, and Amun. These were three important gods in Egypt at that time. It also has four large statues of Ramesses II on the front. The smaller temple is for the goddess Hathor. It also honors Nefertari, Ramesses's favorite wife.

The Great Temple

The Great Temple at Abu Simbel took about 20 years to build. It was finished around 1265 BC. It was built for the gods Amun, Ra-Horakhty, and Ptah. It was also built for Ramesses himself, who was seen as a god. Many people think it is the most beautiful temple Ramesses II ever ordered to be built.

What does the entrance look like?

The single entrance has four giant statues on either side. Each statue is 20 meters tall. They show Ramesses II sitting on a throne. He wears the double crown of Upper and Lower Egypt.

The statue on the left side of the entrance was damaged in an earthquake. Its head and body fell off. When the temple was moved, these pieces were left at the statue's feet. This is how they were found originally.

Next to Ramesses's legs are smaller statues. They are not taller than his knees. These statues show his main wife, Nefertari Meritmut. They also show his queen mother, Mut-Tuy. His first two sons, Amun-her-khepeshef and Ramesses B, are there too. And his first six daughters: Bintanath, Baketmut, Meritamen, Nebettawy, and Isetnofret.

The front of the temple behind the giant statues is 33 meters high and 38 meters wide. It has a carved band showing 22 baboons. They are raising their arms to worship the rising sun. There is also a stone slab (stele) that tells about Ramesses's marriage. He married a daughter of King Ḫattušili III. This marriage brought peace between Egypt and the Hittites.

Above the entrance doorway, there are carvings of the king worshipping the falcon-headed god Ra Horakhty. Ra holds a special symbol and a feather in his right hand. He holds Maat (the goddess of truth) in his left. This is a secret way of writing Ramesses II's throne name, User-Maat-Re.

What is inside the temple?

The inside of the temple is shaped like a triangle. The rooms get smaller as you go from the entrance to the most sacred area. The temple has many side rooms, which is unusual.

The main hall, called the hypostyle hall, is 18 meters long and 16.7 meters wide. It has eight huge pillars. These pillars show Ramesses as the god Osiris. Osiris was the god of life and the afterlife. This shows that the pharaoh was thought to live forever.

The giant statues on the left wall wear the white crown of Upper Egypt. The ones on the other side wear the double crown of Upper and Lower Egypt. The carvings on the walls of this hall show battle scenes from Ramesses's wars. Many carvings show the Battle of Kadesh in Syria. In this battle, the Egyptian king fought against the Hittites. The most famous carving shows the king on his chariot, shooting arrows at his enemies. Other scenes show Egyptian victories in Libya and Nubia.

From the main hall, you go into a second hall with four pillars. These pillars have beautiful carvings of offerings to the gods. You can see Ramesses and Nefertari with the sacred boats of Amun and Ra-Horakhty. This hall leads to another room, and in the middle is the entrance to the sanctuary.

In the sanctuary, there are four stone statues carved into the back wall. They are Ra-Horakhty, the god-king Ramesses, and the gods Amun Ra and Ptah. These were the most important gods at that time.

The sun's special alignment

People believe that the ancient Egyptian builders placed the temple in a special way. On October 22 and February 22, the sun's rays shine into the sanctuary. They light up the statues on the back wall. Only the statue of Ptah stays in the dark. Ptah was linked to the world of the dead. Many people gather at Abu Simbel on these days to see this amazing event.

These dates are thought to be the king's birthday and his coronation day. We don't have direct proof of this. But it's likely these dates were important for some reason. It is believed that the sun's energy helped to make the king stronger. This way, the god-king Ramesses could stand with Amun-Ra and Ra-Horakhty.

Because the Earth has shifted a little over thousands of years, the dates might have been slightly different when the temple was built. Also, the temple was moved from its original spot. So, the sun's alignment today might not be exactly as precise as it was originally.

Ancient Greek writing

There is some old writing, called graffiti, carved in Greek on one of the giant statues of Ramesses II. It's on the left leg of the statue at the entrance to the temple. It says that when King Psammetichus (who was Psamtik II) came to a place called Elephantine, some people wrote this. They sailed with Psammetichus, son of Theocles. They went as far as the river allowed. People who spoke other languages (like Greek and Carians) were led by Potasimto. Egyptians were led by Amasis.

The Small Temple

The Small Temple after it was moved.

The temple of Hathor and Nefertari is also called the Small Temple. It was built about 100 meters northeast of Ramesses II's temple. It was built for the goddess Hathor and Ramesses II's main wife, Nefertari.

This was only the second time in ancient Egyptian history that a temple was built for a queen. The first time, Akhenaten built a temple for his wife, Nefertiti.

The front of the temple, carved into the rock, has two groups of giant statues. They are separated by a large doorway. The statues are a bit taller than 10 meters. They show the king and his queen. On each side of the entrance, there are two statues of the king. He wears different crowns. These are next to statues of the queen.

It's special because the statues of the king and queen are the same size. Usually, queen statues were much smaller than the pharaoh's. Ramesses went to Abu Simbel with his wife in the 24th year of his rule. Like the king's Great Temple, there are small statues of princes and princesses next to their parents.

Nefertari offering sistrums to the seated goddess Hathor. This carving is inside the Small Temple.

Inside the smaller temple, the main hall (hypostyle hall) has six pillars. These pillars are not like the ones in the Great Temple that show the king. Instead, they have carvings of the queen playing a sistrum. This was a musical instrument sacred to the goddess Hathor. The pillars also show other gods and goddesses like Horus, Khnum, Khonsu, Thoth, Isis, Maat, Mut of Asher, Satis, and Taweret. In one carving, Ramesses is offering flowers or burning incense. The top parts of the pillars have the face of the goddess Hathor.

The carvings in this hall show the king becoming a god. They also show him defeating his enemies. In these scenes, the king is with his wife. The queen is also shown making offerings to the goddesses Hathor and Mut.

After the main hall, there is another room called a vestibule. It has three large doors. On the walls of this room, there are beautiful carvings. They show the king and queen giving papyrus plants to Hathor. Hathor is shown as a cow on a boat. On the back wall, Ramesses II and Nefertari are making offerings to the god Horus and other gods.

The most sacred part, the rock-cut sanctuary, and two side rooms are connected to the vestibule. The carvings on the walls of the small sanctuary show scenes of offerings to different gods. These offerings are made by the pharaoh or the queen. On the back wall, there is a special spot where Hathor, as a divine cow, seems to come out of the mountain. She is shown as the Mistress of the temple, which is for her and Queen Nefertari.

Climate

The climate in Abu Simbel is classified as a hot desert. This means it is very hot and dry.

Images for kids

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  Inscription at the entrance to the Great Temple. Hooper Brooklyn Museum Archives

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  The Small Temple in context, before relocation. Goodyear Brooklyn Museum Archives

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  Statues in the sanctuary of the Great Temple

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  Interior of Nefertari's (queen's) temple at Abu Simbel, with graffiti

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  View of the Nile from Abu Simbel, before 1923. Brooklyn Museum Archives

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  The temple and its surroundings in 1820

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  1840s sketch from The Holy Land, Syria, Idumea, Arabia, Egypt, and Nubia

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  Westernmost Colossus, 1850 by Maxime Du Camp

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  Earliest photo, 1854 by John Beasley Greene

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  Facade of the Temple of Ramesses II, photo taken in 2007

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  Close-up of the leftmost statue at the temple of Rameses II

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  Central, inset statue of Ra-Horakhty at the Great Temple

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  View of the Great Temple from the west, photo credited to William Henry Goodyear (before 1923)

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  Facade of the Great Temple from before 1923

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  View of the rightmost statue at the Great Temple, partially excavated, with a person (possibly William Henry Goodyear) for scale

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  View of the Great Temple's colossal statues from the right, partially excavated

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  Interior of the Great Temple, before cleaning

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  Colour photo of the Great Temple from the right, partially excavated, from before 1923

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  The Great Temple from the right, from before 1923

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  Abu Simbel temple, four statues of divinities inside the inner sanctuary

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  Frieze inside the Great Temple of Abu Simbel

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  Facade of the Temple 2006

• Temple of Nefertari
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  Earliest photo of Smaller Temple, 1854 by John Beasley Greene

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  The gods Set (left) and Horus (right) blessing Ramesses in the small temple at Abu Simbel

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  Stele adjacent to smaller temple, 1854 by John Beasley Greene

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  The Small Temple in its relocated context, 1999

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  Closer view of the Small Temple, 2007

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  Ramesses offering to seated god Ptah. Frieze inside the Small Temple.

• Abu Simbel
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  Inscription at the entrance to the Great Temple. Hooper Brooklyn Museum Archives

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  The Small Temple in context, before relocation. Goodyear Brooklyn Museum Archives

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  Statues in the sanctuary of the Great Temple

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  Interior of Nefertari's (queen's) temple at Abu Simbel, with graffiti

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  View of the Nile from Abu Simbel, before 1923. Brooklyn Museum Archives

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  The temple and its surroundings in 1820

See also

In Spanish: Abu Simbel para niños