The Great Temple of Ramesses II was moved to higher ground in the late 1960s.
As a kid, I was obsessed with ancient Egypt and I remember devouring National Geographic stories about Abu Simbel. The temples were hot news in the 60s, because the Aswan dam was being constructed and they were in danger of being submerged. A herculean effort was undertaken to move two temples, carved into the living rock, to higher ground (there’s a good BBC story here). It was an astonishing achievement when you consider their size, and it stuck in my imagination for decades.
In 2009, when I had an opportunity to visit Egypt, I wanted to make sure that Abu Simbel was on my itinerary. In the end, that meant a 2:00 am check-out time from my hotel in Cairo, and a short flight south — in order to be at the temples just after sunrise. But it was worth it.
The smaller of the two temples at Abu Simbel -- the Temple of Hathor and Nefertari.
There are two temples at Abu Simbel: the Great Temple, dedicated to Ramesses II, and a smaller temple dedicated to the goddess Hathor, personified by Nefertari (the most beloved of Ramesses’ wives).
I could only spend a couple of hours at Abu Simbel, but it was enough to fulfill that childhood dream of seeing the temples for myself. It was also a joy to be granted the ability to photograph the interiors — something that is not normally allowed for tourists (although I’m not sure if this is still the case, ten years later). From Abu Simbel, I traveled to Aswan and cruised the Nile toward Luxor. Along the way, I encountered lesser-known temples (at least to most Americans) that were even more astounding. There is so much to see and experience in Egypt and I am certain I only scratched the surface on that first trip.
It is truly incredible what they managed to achieve by moving the Abu Simbel temples to higher ground, but I do wish I could have seen them before, in their original setting. They do lose something being now enclosed by artificial mounds of stone, but at least you can still experience them without resorting to diving gear. The original in the original location is always best, but the original in a new location is better than nothing.
I do hope to go back to Egypt. It’s one of those places with incredible sites that you really feel you must see — but then you are even more surprised and mystified by the things you didn’t ever expect. Places that you never even knew existed. As is often the case, the well-advertised attractions are not always the most meaningful to visit.
