Abu Simbel actually presents us with several milestones. Probably completed by Year 24 in the reign of Ramesses II, the rock-cut temples left an awe-inspiring statement of power and permanence 140km south of Elephantine in the peripheral territory of Wawat (Lower Nubia). The Great Temple – with its imposing façade of four 20m- high colossi – celebrated Ramesses-Meryamun as a solar deity. Twice a year, the rising sun penetrated far into the cavernous interior of the monument, illuminating the innermost sanctuary where his statue shared equal status alongside seated figures of Amun-Ra, Ra-Horakhty, and Ptah. About 90m to the north, the smaller temple was dedicated to Queen Nefertari and Hathor of Ibshek (the name of the locality).
The first milestone occurred in 1813, when the temples were first seen by a Westerner in the modern era. The discovery is generally credited to the Swiss traveller Johann Ludwig Burckhardt, who had travelled widely in the Middle East under the guise of ‘Sheikh Ibrahim ibn Abdallah’.
The second milestone was the first entry into the Great Temple in the modern era.
A matter of health