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الجمعة، 29 مايو 2015
The temple of Abu Simbel
The head of King Ramses II
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Not only are the two temples at
Abu Simbel among the most magnificent monuments in the world but their removal
and reconstruction was an historic event in itself. When the temples (280 km
from Aswan) were threatened by submersion in Lake Nasser, due to the
construction of the High Dam, the Egyptian Government secured the support of
UNESCO and launched a world wide appeal. During the salvage operation which
began in 1964 and continued until 1968, the two temples were dismantled and
raised over 60 meters up the sandstone cliff where they had been built more
than 3,000 years before. Here they were reassembled, in the exact same
relationship to each other and the sun, and covered with an artificial
mountain. Most of the joins in the stone have now been filled by antiquity
experts, but inside the temples it is still possible to see where the blocks
were cut. You can also go inside the man made dome and see an exhibition of
photographs showing the different stages of the massive removal project.
The
Temple of Re-Harakhte (The Sun Temple of
Ramsis II):
The main temple was dedicated to Ramsis II and to the four universal gods Ptah,
Re-Harakhte, Amun-Re, and to Ramsis II himself. Of the seven temples he built,
Abu Simbel is considered to be the most impressive.
Above the doorway in a niche
stands the sun god, a falcon headed representation of Ramsis, holding a
war-scepter which shows the head and neck of an animal which is read as user,
in his right and a figure of Ma'at in his left. This setup ingeniously creates
the Kings Throne name of User-Ma'at-Re. At the top of the facade is a row of
baboons which are thought to be greeting the morning sun and indeed the
monument looks best at that time. The sides of the thrones next to the entrance
are decorated with Nile gods symbolically uniting Egypt, while below are
prisoners, representing conquered nations, to the left, African and to the
right, Asian.
The entrance leads into a Grand
Hall which is 57 feet high and 52 feet wide and was cut from the rock. It is
supported with eight pillars with statues of Ramsis.
To either side of the Grand Hall
are smaller rooms, two to the South and four to the North. Most suggest that
these rooms were for storage (treasure rooms) but elsewhere it is suggested
that they were used for festivals related to the Kings Jubilee.
Beyond the Grand Hall is the
second hypostyle hall with its flowered pillars. Scenes in this hall show the
King and his wife, Nefertari making offerings to Amun and Re-Harakhte (the Sun
God), and beyond that is the three chapels, the central one containing the four
deities worshipped in the temple (including Ramsis II).
The sun shines on the face of
the statue on February 22 and October 22 every year,
the birthday and date of the coronation of Ramses II.
Nefertari's Temple of Hathor (Abu Simbel - Small Temple):
Hathor was the wife of the Sun
God so in a symbolic way, the two Temples, that of Ramsis II and that of
Nefertari, brings Ramsis II and Nefertari and Hathor and the Sun God together
as one. The facade of the temple is a receding Pylon, just as the larger temple
of Ramesses II. On either side of the entrance to the temple is a deified
statue of Nefertari with statues of Ramsis II on either side of her. The
statues of Nefertari are the same height as those of Ramsis, which is unusual.
Like at Ramsis II's temple, there are children depicted around their feet.
There are cobras protecting the Temple door.
This temple is much simpler than
the Temple of Re-Herakhte. It has only one hypostyle hall and the sanctuary.
Within the hall are images of Ramsis in battle with Nefertari present. Other
scenes depict Ramsis being crowned by Horus and Seith and presenting Ma'at to
Amun. On the back wall, Nefertari is before Hathor and Mut. Just behind the
Hypostyle Hall is a small chamber with images of Hathor cow framed in reeds.
Beyond that is the sanctuary with a divine cow emerging from the rear rock wall
protecting Ramsis, below her. Above the cow, vultures guard the Queens
cartouches. Other scenes show Nefertari offering incense to Mut and Hathor, and
the King worshipping before his own image and that of Nefertari.
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