In 1255 BC the great Egyptian pharaoh Ramses II built the Great Temple of Abu Simbel on the banks of the Nile. This temple, along with its twin, a smaller temple, or his wife Queen Nefertari, is the finest example of ancient Egyptian engineering.
At the entrance are four colossal statues of Ramses II and smaller but still larger-than-life statues of his wives, children, and those he conquered. It is an iconic work of art that showcases the pharaoh’s gigantic ego. Little did Ramesses II know, however, that more than 3,200 years later, his temple would once again be an engineering marvel, and for entirely different reasons.
In 1952, the new Egyptian government announced the construction of the world’s largest dam across the Nile. It will improve Egypt’s economy, allowing the government to generate a steady supply of hydroelectric power, better control seasonal flooding of the Nile, and store irrigation water more efficiently. However, huge artificial reservoirs built by dams or Lake Nasser flood Abu Simbel when they reach their maximum water level. The Egyptian government then asked Unesco to help save the temples.
What happened next is considered one of the most incredible feats of modern engineering. An international team dismantled the temple, turned it into the world’s largest 3D puzzle, and reassembled it 65 meters high and nearly 200 meters inland from its original location on the banks of the Nile.
The project was officially launched in 1963 after nearly four years of intensive international fundraising. Many countries have made proposals such as building underwater aquariums for submerged temples. The idea was quickly shelved because the temple was made of sandstone, a very porous material that would erode in water over time. Sandstone also makes it impossible to use explosives of any kind. Another idea was to chisel out the entire temple at once, but since they were hewn into the cliff right where they were, it would be impossible to lift all 250,000 tons safely.
Ultimately it was Sweden who found the solution to save the temple. They proposed cutting the entire temple and entrance façade into individual blocks weighing 20 to 30 tons using hand saws, pneumatic breakers, precision compressors, and drills. Every cutting line of every block had to be carefully planned so that it was not visible when assembling the temple.
The orientation point of the temple must be the same as its location so that the sun’s rays can shine on the statues in the temple. Each block is held in place with rebar and then reassembled like a giant jigsaw puzzle. After a grueling five-year period, the project was completed in 1968, and Abu Simbel became part of the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1979.
Today, Abu Simbel is visited by thousands of tourists every day and is the second most visited monument in Egypt.
