Abu Simbel

Situated 280 km south of Aswan, the two temples of Abu Simbel are the most magnificent temples in the world.
The first temple was built by the mighty Pharaoh Ramses II, the other for his wife Queen Nefertari.
In 1964 they were threatened by submersion in Lake Nasser due to the construction of the High Dam.
The Egyptian Government secured the support of UNESCO for the removal and reconstruction of the two temples.


The temples were dismantled and raised over 60 meters up the sandstone cliff where they had been built more than 3,000 years before.
The project completed by an international team of 3000 specialists, cut the Temple into 2000 pieces, carved the entire Temple out of the cliff and reconstructed both cliff and Temple nearby.
The project took $40 million to complete; one of the most ambitious relocation projects in history.