The
Greater Temple
Close-up of one of the colossal statues of Ramesses II, wearing the double
crown of Lower and Upper Egypt.The greater Abu Simbel temple is generally considered
the grandest and most beautiful of the temples commissioned during the reign
of Ramesses II, and one of the most beautiful in Egypt.
The facade is 33 meters high, and 38 meters
broad, and guarded by four statues, each of
which is 20 meters high. They were sculptured
directly from the rock in which the temple
was located before it was moved. All statues
represent Ramesses II, seated on a throne and
wearing the double crown of Upper and Lower
Egypt. The statue to the left of the entrance
was damaged in an earthquake, leaving only
the lower part of the statue still intact.
Several smaller figures are situated at the
feet of the four statues, depicting members
of the pharaoh's family. They include his mother
Tuya, Nefertari, and some of his sons and daughters.
Above the entrance there is a statue of a
falcon-headed Ra-Harakhte, with the pharaoh
shown worshipping on both sides of him. Below
the statue there is an ancient rebus, showing
the prenomen or throne name of Ramesses: Waser-ma'at.
The facade is topped by a row of 22 baboons,
their arms raised in the air, supposedly worshipping
the rising sun. Another notable feature of
the facade is a stele which records the marriage
of Ramesses with a daughter of king Hattusili
III, which sealed the peace between Egypt and
the Hittites.
One of the eight pillars in the main hall
of the temple, showing Ramesses II as Osiris.The
inner part of the temple has the same triangular
layout that most ancient Egyptian temples follow,
with rooms decreasing in size from the entrance
to the sanctuary.
The first hall of the temple features eight
statues of the deified Rameses II in the shape
of Osiris, serving as pillars. The walls depict
scenes of Egyptian victories in Libya, Syria
and Nubia, including images from the Battle
of Kadesh. The second hall depicts Ramesses
and Nefertari with the sacred boats of Amun
and Ra-Horakthy.
The sanctuary contains four seated statues
of Ra-Horakhty, Ptah, Amun and Ramesses. The
temple was constructed in such a way that the
sun shines directly on all four statues during
two days of the year, February 20 and October
20. These dates are allegedly the king's birthday
and coronation day respectively, but there
is no evidence to support this. Due to the
displacement of the temple, it is widely believed
that this event now occurs one day later than
it did originally. |
