Ramesses II's colossal temples by Lake Nasser
Abu Simbel's two temples were carved into a sandstone cliff by Ramesses II, the larger fronted by four seated statues of the king around twenty metres high, the smaller dedicated to Queen Nefertari and the goddess Hathor. In the 1960s, an international UNESCO campaign cut the temples into blocks and rebuilt them higher up, to save them from the waters of Lake Nasser. Twice a year, around 22 February and 22 October, the rising sun reaches the sanctuary deep inside the Great Temple.