Europe wonders
Acropolis
Alhambra
Amalfi Coast
British Museum
Canals of Venice
Cappadocia
Chambord Chateau
Chartres Cathedral
Colosseum of Rome
Delphi
Dubrovnik
Eiffel Tower
Fjords of Norway
Florence Cityscape
Hagia Sophia
Hermitage Museum
Kremlin
Leaning Tower of Pisa
Louvre Museum
Matterhorn
Mezquita of Cordoba
Mont-St-Michel
Neuschwanstein Castle
Pompeii
Portofino
Prague Old Town
Santorini
Sistine Chapel
St. Basil's Cathedral
St. Mark's Basilica
St. Peter's Basilica
Stonehenge
Topkapi Palace
Uffizi Gallery
Versailles
Asia
Angkor Wat
Bagan
Bali
Banaue Rice Terraces
Borobudur
Forbidden City
Golden Pavilion
Golden Temple
Great Wall of China
Hong Kong Harbour/City
Kashmir Valley
Kathmandu Valley
Ladakh
Li River Cruise
Lijiang Shargri-La
Meenakshi
Mt. Everest
Potala Palace at Lhasa
Qin Terra Cotta Warriors
Shwedagon Stupa
Taj Mahal
Temple Emerald Buddha
Varanasi/Ganges
Yangtze River Cruise
Africa & Middle East
Abu Simbel
Baalbek
Burj Al Arab
Burj Khalifa
Damascus Old City
Egyptian Museum
Jerusalem Old City
Karnak Temple
Marrakesh
Mecca
Nile River Cruise
Ngorongoro Crater
Petra
Pyramids of Egypt
Sahara Desert
Serengeti Migration
Valley of the Kings
Victoria Falls
North America
Banff National Park
Carlsbad Caverns
Chichen Itza
Grand Canyon
Metropolitan Museum
New York Skyline
Niagara Falls
San Francisco Bay/City
Teotihuacan
Yellowstone
Yosemite
South America
Amazon Rainforest
Angel Falls
Carnival in Rio
Easter Island
Galapagos Islands
Iguazu Falls
Machu Picchu
Rio Panoramic Views
Other world areas
Antarctica Cruise
Ayers Rock
Bora Bora
Great Barrier Reef
World wonders
More
Site map
About me and my credentials
About my website
Reader testimonials
Email me your opinion
Abu Simbel
tips you can trust
Why
Abu Simbel
in Egypt is special
Abu Simbel is famous for its four imposing statues of the seated Pharaoh Rameses. Those sculptures guard his temple's entrance. They and the temple behind them were originally carved out of the same sandstone cliff, over three millennia ago.
Abu Simbel
tips & insights
Why
was
Abu Simbel built?
Pharaoh Rameses II wanted to impress his Egyptian subjects of his grandeur -- and to set fear in the hearts of his formidable Nubian enemies who threatened Egypt's southern border.
Is
it taller
than photos suggest?
Each of the seated Abu Simbel statues is as high as a five-story building. For scale, notice the statues standing between the pharaoh's legs -- they are life size.
Why
did the
Aswan High Dam
threaten Abu Simbel?
The construction of Egypt's vast Aswan High Dam across the Nile River in the 1960s posed a problem. It would have submerged Abu Simbel and therefore lost to future scholars and tourists.
What
was
the solution?
Abu Simbel was moved to higher ground. This required cutting Abu Simbel into large blocks and reassembling them on top of the cliff, safely above the rising waters. This remarkable engineering feat was accomplished by a joint Egyptian and international effort, finishing in the nick of time.
Is
there another
Abu Simbel temple?
The nearby temple of the wife of Rameses is also a part of the Abu Simbel complex. That temple is an archaeological must-visit.
Click
for more pointers
sponsored ad
Explore my
candid country, region
and other travel guides
Click links for tips & insights
WONDERS OF ... | WONDERS OF ... | CRUISE GUIDES | SAFARI GUIDES | WORLD'S TOP WONDERS |
| ||||
| OTHER TIPS & INSIGHTS | ||||
|
| |||
SPECIAL TOPICS | MORE | |||
| ||||
|
| |||
|
| |||
|
| |||
|
| |||
|
|
| ||
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
©2012 HQP - Hillman Quality Publications / hillmanwonders.com
