Back on the boat for dinner, we sail off to see temple at Kom Ombo.
The temple is unique in that it has two identical entrances, two linked hypostyle halls, and twin sanctuaries dedicated to two different gods: Sobek and Horus the Elder. It is perfectly symmetrical along the main axis.
The next day we took the optional tour to Abu Simbel, an hour flight south on Egypt Air. This visit was an added expense, but is not to be missed.
The Great Temple at Abu Simbel, which took about twenty years to build, was completed around year 24 of the reign of Ramesses the Great (which corresponds to 1265 BC). It was dedicated to the gods Amun, Ra-Horakhty, and Ptah, as well as to the deified Ramesses himself.It 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. There are two temples, the Great Temple, dedicated to Ramesses II himself, and the Small Temple, dedicated to his chief wife Queen Nefertari. Construction of the temple complex started in approximately 1264 BC and lasted for about 20 years, until 1244 BC.
Between 1964 and 1968, in an effort to save the temples from the rising waters of Lake Nasser the entire site was carefully cut into large blocks (up to 30 tons, averaging 20 tons), dismantled, lifted and reassembled in a new location 65 metres higher and 200 metres back from the river, in one of the greatest challenges of archaeological engineering in history. (Wikipedia)
It is believed that the axis of the temple was positioned by the ancient Egyptian architects in such a way that on October 22 and February 22, the rays of the sun would penetrate the sanctuary and illuminate the sculptures on the back wall, except for the statue of Ptah [figure on left], a god connected with the realm of the dead, who always remained in the dark. People gather at Abu Simbel on these days to witness this solar event. (Wikipedia)
