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Great Temple of Abu Simbel: Raking view of heads of the colossi, with man for comparative size

Date

Circa 1910

Creator

G. Massiot & cie
Part of: Architectural Lantern Slides of Egypt
Architecture Library, Hesburgh Libraries

Abu Simbel is a site in Egypt, on the west bank of the Nile in Lower Nubia, 280 km south of Aswan. With the construction of the Aswan Dam in the early 1960s, the temple complex was one of a number of ancient monuments saved by being moved to a new site. Having been cut into pieces and reassembled, it now stands on the shores of Lake Nasser, 64 m higher and 180 m west of its ancient site. It was already an ancient sacred site when Ramesses II (reigned ca. 1279-ca. 1213 BCE) chose it for his most grandiose, and most famous, Nubian monument. The construction of the Great and Small Temples of Abu Simbel began in the early years of Ramesses II, and they were completed by around the 25th year of his reign. The terrace of the Great Temple is lined with statues of falcons alternating with statues of the King as Osiris and as living ruler. These statues, although on a large scale, are dwarfed by the rock-cut façade of the temple (30 m high and 35 m long). The whole is dominated by four colossi of Ramesses II, each 22 m high. Over the doorway, in a large rectangular niche, a figure of the King as the hawk-headed god Re-Horakhty emerges. This large image is flanked by smaller figures of the goddess Maat and the 'was' sceptre, thus creating a rebus of the King's throne name, User-maat-Re. It is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site known as the 'Nubian Monuments', which run from Abu Simbel downriver to Philae (near Aswan).

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Metadata

Creator
G. Massiot & cie
Date
Circa 1910
Publisher
Architecture Library, Hesburgh Libraries
Material Type
photographs
Conditions Governing Access
To view the physical lantern slide, please contact the Architecture Library to arrange an appointment

Metadata

Campus Location
Architecture Library, Hesburgh Libraries
Link to Finding Aid
https://curate.nd.edu/show/c247dr29k8h
This digital collection may not include all items or all of the information available about the source collection. See the finding aid for more information.

Metadata

Contact Us

Our collection information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. If you have spotted an error, please contact Architecture Library, Hesburgh Libraries at asklib@nd.edu.


Also from Architectural Lantern Slides of Egypt

Colossi of Memnon: View of the northern colossi

Colossi of Memnon: View of the northern colossi

Mortuary Temple of Queen Hatshepsut: Northwest corner of the central terrace

Mortuary Temple of Queen Hatshepsut: Northwest corner of the central terrace

Mortuary Temple of Queen Hatshepsut: Distant context view

Mortuary Temple of Queen Hatshepsut: Distant context view

Blue Mosque, Cairo: Mausoleum on the street side

Blue Mosque, Cairo: Mausoleum on the street side

Temple of Horus at Edfu: View, looking out to the courtyard from within the hypostyle hall

Temple of Horus at Edfu: View, looking out to the courtyard from within the hypostyle hall

Blue Mosque, Cairo: Interior prayer hall, view of the minbar and qibla niche on the left

Blue Mosque, Cairo: Interior prayer hall, view of the minbar and qibla niche on the left

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