UNESCO Archives Film Collection: "The World Saves Abu Simbel", 29', 1972.
Summary
TLDRThe script narrates the historical and architectural significance of the Abu Simbel temples, carved in the 13th century BC by Pharaoh Ramesses II. It details the temples' rediscovery in 1813, their astronomical alignment, and the intricate reliefs depicting Ramesses' military triumphs. The script also documents the temples' relocation in the 1960s to save them from the Aswan High Dam's flooding, showcasing an international effort led by UNESCO. The temples' reconstruction and the preservation of their cultural heritage symbolize a global commitment to safeguarding history while advancing technologically.
Takeaways
- 🗿 The rock-cut temples of Abu Simbel were rediscovered in 1813 by Swiss explorer Jean-Louis Burckhardt and are located near the Sudanese border on the Nile's bank.
- 🏰 The smaller temple is dedicated to the goddess Hathor, while the larger one is dedicated to Pharaoh Ramesses II and his wife Nefertari.
- 🗽 The temples were carved around 1260 BCE by Ramesses II during Egypt's Golden Age and showcase his grandeur and military victories.
- 🌞 The Great Temple of Abu Simbel was designed to align with the sun's rays twice a year, illuminating the inner sanctuary and three gods, except for the god of the underworld.
- ⛓ The construction of the Aswan High Dam threatened the temples, leading to a UNESCO-led international effort to save them, involving over 50 countries.
- 🔨 The temples were dismantled into blocks weighing 20-30 tons each, then moved to a site 200 feet higher to protect them from flooding.
- 🏗️ The relocation process was complex, involving the construction of a cofferdam, sandbagging the facade, and shoring the interior with steel scaffolding.
- 🚜 The temples' blocks were transported without jolting, ensuring their integrity, and were stored in a manner akin to organizing books in a library.
- 🌄 The temples were reassembled with precision, and the landscape around them was reconstructed to match the original, showcasing the skill of modern technology.
- 🌐 The project represents a successful example of international cooperation to preserve cultural heritage and balance it with modern development.
Q & A
When were the rock-cut temples of Abu Simbel discovered again after being buried for centuries?
-The rock-cut temples of Abu Simbel were rediscovered in 1813.
Who is the smaller temple at Abu Simbel dedicated to?
-The smaller temple at Abu Simbel is dedicated to the goddess Hathor.
What significant event is depicted on the facade of the Great Temple of Abu Simbel?
-The facade of the Great Temple of Abu Simbel is adorned with figures portraying Pharaoh Ramesses II and his wife Nefertari, symbolizing the greatness of the Pharaoh.
Why were the temples at Abu Simbel carved out of rock during the reign of Ramesses II?
-The temples were carved out of rock around 1260 BCE to demonstrate the power and grandeur of Pharaoh Ramesses II during Egypt's Golden Age.
What is the unique astronomical feature of the Great Temple of Abu Simbel?
-The Great Temple of Abu Simbel was designed so that twice a year, in February and October, sunlight penetrates the temple's inner sanctuary to illuminate the statues of three gods, demonstrating the ancient Egyptians' knowledge of astronomy.
Why was it necessary to relocate the temples of Abu Simbel?
-The temples needed to be relocated due to the construction of the Aswan High Dam, which would have flooded the area where the temples were located.
How did UNESCO and the international community respond to the threat of the monuments of Nubia being destroyed?
-UNESCO launched an international campaign to save the heritage of Nubia, with more than 50 countries agreeing to share the financial burden of relocating the monuments.
What was the method used to protect the temples during the construction of the Aswan High Dam?
-A cofferdam was constructed to protect the temples from flooding while the temples were being dismantled and relocated.
What were the challenges faced during the relocation of the Abu Simbel temples?
-The relocation faced challenges such as the remoteness of the site, harsh climate, and the need for precise dismantling and reassembly of the temples to preserve their integrity.
How were the statues and reliefs of the temples protected during the relocation process?
-The statues and reliefs were covered with fine sand to protect them from falling stones, and steel scaffolding was used to shore up the interior of the temples during the relocation.
What was the final outcome of the Abu Simbel temples relocation project?
-The temples were successfully relocated to a site 200 feet above their original location, and the landscape was restored, preserving the ancient monuments for future generations.
Outlines
🏰 Discovery and Significance of Abu Simbel Temples
The script begins with a historical account of the discovery of the rock-cut temples of Abu Simbel in 1813 by the Orientalist, Your Hunt. These temples, dedicated to the goddess Hathor and Pharaoh Ramesses II, were carved in the 19th dynasty during Egypt's Golden Age. The temples' facades feature colossal statues of Ramesses II, symbolizing his greatness and the respect he commanded. The script also describes the temples' unique astronomical alignment, where sunlight illuminates the inner sanctum on specific days, showcasing the ancient Egyptians' architectural and astronomical prowess.
🌱 The Challenge of Preserving Abu Simbel Temples
The second paragraph discusses the challenges faced in preserving the Abu Simbel temples due to the construction of the Aswan High Dam. The dam's reservoir threatened to submerge the temples, prompting an international effort led by UNESCO to save this heritage. The script outlines the complex process of dismantling the temples, protecting them with sand, and relocating them to a higher location. It also highlights the logistical difficulties, such as the remote site's inaccessibility and the need for international cooperation to fund and execute the rescue operation.
🔨 The Detailed Process of Dismantling and Relocating the Temples
This paragraph delves into the intricate process of dismantling the temples. It describes the use of steel scaffolding, the careful removal of rock surrounding the temples, and the precise cutting of the rock into blocks. The script emphasizes the meticulous work required to ensure the temples' safe relocation, including the use of synthetic resin to strengthen the rock and the construction of a cofferdam to protect the temples from flooding. The paragraph also details the transportation and storage of the dismantled temple blocks, highlighting the precision and care taken to preserve the monuments.
🏗️ Reassembly and Restoration of the Abu Simbel Temples
The fourth paragraph focuses on the reassembly of the Abu Simbel temples at their new location. It describes the construction of a new rocky landscape to support the temples and the precise reassembly of the stone blocks to recreate the original structure. The script also discusses the use of steel shoring sections to reinforce the temples' interior and the careful handling of the stone blocks to avoid damage during the reassembly process. The paragraph concludes with the successful relocation of the temples, ensuring their preservation for future generations.
🌅 The Final Stages of Reconstruction and the Legacy of Abu Simbel
The final paragraph discusses the final stages of the reconstruction project, including the reassembly of the 22-meter high statues and the restoration of the temple's facade. It highlights the engineering and architectural achievements in relocating the stone temple and the creation of a unique rocky landscape around it. The script concludes by emphasizing the global cooperation and determination to preserve cultural heritage, as exemplified by the Abu Simbel project, and the temples' significance as a testament to both ancient civilization and modern technological prowess.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Abu Simbel
💡Nubian Desert
💡Pharaoh Ramesses II
💡Astronomical Knowledge
💡Aswan High Dam
💡UNESCO
💡Relocation
💡Cofferdam
💡Architectural Feat
💡International Cooperation
Highlights
The rock-cut temples of Abu Simbel were rediscovered in 1813 by the Orientalist, Your hundred feet brought hunt.
The temples are located on the bank of the Nile near the Sudanese frontier.
The smaller temple is dedicated to the goddess Hathor and features over thirty feet high statues of Pharaoh Ramesses II and his wife Nefertari.
The temples were carved out of the rock around 1260 BCE by King Ramesses II of the 19th dynasty during Egypt's Golden Age.
Ramesses II is portrayed four times in front of the Great Temple, each colossal figure over 70 feet high.
Reliefs on the outside walls depict the life of man three thousand years ago and the union of Upper and Lower Egypt.
The temple facade has symbolic statues representing the might of Ramesses II and the respect he commanded among his enemies.
Inscriptions on the temples relate the military exploits of Ramesses II's reign.
The Great Temple of Abu Simbel was designed to make dramatic use of sunlight, with a biannual illumination of the inner sanctuary.
The temples were threatened by the construction of the Aswan High Dam, leading to an international campaign to save them.
UNESCO launched a campaign to save the heritage of Nubia, with over 50 countries contributing to the financial burden.
The plan to save the temples involved constructing a cofferdam, shoring the interior, and dismantling the temples into blocks for relocation.
The Abu Simbel project was a difficult assignment due to the climate and remoteness of the site.
The temples were dismantled and reassembled on a site 200 feet above the original location.
The relocation of the temples was a race against time and the rising waters of the Nile.
The final phase of reconstructing the 22-meter high statues was a significant engineering achievement.
The temples now bear witness to the Supreme genius of an ancient civilization and the miraculous skill of modern technology.
The project also involved the reconstruction of a unique rocky landscape around the temple according to the original.
The temples of Abu Simbel now stand as a testament to international cooperation in preserving cultural heritage.
Transcripts
[Music]
for many centuries the rock-cut temples
of Abu Simbel lay abandoned at the edge
of the Nubian desert a great temple long
buried beneath the sand was not
discovered again until the 1813 by the
Smiths Orientalist
your hundred feet brought hunt
the temples are located on the bank of
the Nile not far from the Sudanese
frontier the smaller one is dedicated to
the goddess Fatah and it's facade is
adorned with figures over thirty feet
high portraying the pharaoh ramses ii
and his wife nepeta
[Music]
[Applause]
[Music]
temples were carved out of the rock in
about 1260 before Christ by this famous
king of the 19th dynasty in the latter
period of Egypt's long Golden Age
ramasees is also portrayed four times in
front of the Great Temple each of these
colossal figures is over 70 feet high
members of the royal family are dwarfed
by the giant image of therapy
[Music]
the reliefs on the outside walls show us
something of the life of man three
thousand years ago two deities of the
Nile unite the lily and the papyrus to
symbolize the union of the kingdoms of
Upper and Lower Egypt
[Music]
apart from the figures of Ramsey's wife
Nefertari and her favorite children the
temple facade has symbolic statues which
represent the monix greatness and the
respect he commanded among his enemies
[Music]
the inscriptions relate the exploits of
his reign
[Music]
long rows of tethered Nubians on both
sides of the entrance portal reveal the
success of military campaigns the Great
Temple of Abu Simbel was designed to
make dramatic use of sunlight a supreme
example of the astronomical knowledge of
the ancient Egyptians and of the skill
of their architects twice a year in
February and October the sun's rays
shining through the narrow entrance way
of the temple through the giant pillared
Hall 60 feet deep penetrate to the inner
sanctuary which at other times is in
darkness the images of three gods Amon
raha Ricci and the Pharaoh himself are
illuminated only the fourth day attempt
our god of the underworld remains in the
shadows
the figures in the pillared hall each of
them 25 feet high also portray Pharaoh
but with the attributes of the god
Osiris colored wall reliefs glorify the
Kings deeds in the air 1285 BC in Syria
Rama C is the second proved himself a
great warrior by conquering the Hittites
would invade it as well these
representations of the power and glory
of the great Pharaoh bear witness to
gain comfortable artistic skill today
[Music]
[Music]
[Applause]
[Music]
[Music]
[Music]
after conquering his enemies
ramasees ii is seen on other reliefs as
a wise ruler receiving the thanks of his
subjects issuing decrees and paying due
tribute in the form of sacrifices and
act the veneration to the gods to whom
he dedicated the temple
[Music]
today more than 3000 years later the
descendants of Pharaoh are confronted
with problems which he would have had
difficulty in understanding the area in
which this rapidly growing people can
live and grow its food is limited to the
narrow strip of fertile land on either
bank of the Nile Egypt's famous granary
has now become too small the
construction of the study Ali dam meets
a vital need of the people of the United
Arab Republic an enormous reservoir the
waters of the Nile will extend far south
into the Sudan it were they possible to
irrigate much more land and greatly
increase agricultural production the
vast new supply of electric power will
help new industries to grow of course
the building of the dam has had its
drawbacks hundreds of thousands of
people had to be resettled irreplaceable
monuments of the Golden Age of Nubia
would have been destroyed if something
had not been done at the last moment to
salvage them the threat to the monuments
of Nubia alarmed the world the United
Arab Republic appeal to UNESCO for help
UNESCO launched an international
campaign to save this heritage of the
past and more than 50 countries agreed
to share the financial burden a race
against time and the rising waters began
many ways of rescuing the Abu Simbel
temples were suggested the plan
ultimately agreed upon is this
construction of a cofferdam to protect
the temples from flooding while building
work is in progress the facade
to be banked up with sand to protect the
statues of Rama says
shoring of the interior of the temple
with steel scaffolding the removal of
the rock surrounding the temple until a
wall thickness of two and a half feet is
reached dismantling the temples in
blocks of 20 to 30 tons and removal to a
safe storage area reassembly of the
temples on a site 200 feet above the
original location restoration of the
landscape
in November 1963 the joint venture Abu
Simbel an international group of
building contractors from five countries
received the contract for the removal of
the temples the Abu Simbel project has
been a difficult assignment the climate
and especially the remoteness of the
site have made things more difficult
aswan the nearest town is a hundred and
seventy-five miles downstream
[Music]
there are no roads along which building
materials machines and food supplies can
be transported consignment from Europe
take five months to arrive from Cairo
one must count on a month or two
[Music]
yet there is no time to lose
even before living quarters can be set
up for the crews work has to start on
the construction of the copper day first
of all a steel piling wall is erected
the crest of the cofferdam must be 80
feet above the riverbed
[Music]
in a beginning of november 1964 a
critical stage was reached in the race
against time and water because of heavy
rain in ethiopia the river rose to a
level about six and a half feet below
the crest of the dam work was already in
full swing on either side of the company
before dismantling of the rock figures
to begin the statues as well as the
entire facade had to be covered with
fine sand as a protection against
falling stone at the more sensitive
spots it is applied by hand
[Music]
excavation work when special machines
start from the top on the rock cut off
that had been prepared
a guard over the facade prevents large
rock fragments from striking the layer
of sand the rock material removed from
above the temples is used for the
construction of the dam at the end of
February 1965 the bulkhead is completed
and the facade of the temple is once
again concealed beneath the sound as it
was before its discovery the inside can
now be reached only through a steel pipe
[Music]
the reinforcement of the interior is now
almost complete 240 tons and steel
sections were needed for the shore
[Music]
so as not to damage the honour mentation
on the walls and ceilings the steel
supports are padded with felt mats and
plastic foil
[Music]
[Applause]
[Music]
[Applause]
[Music]
all steel supports are numbered for
reassembly of the temples in the same
sequence the really critical work starts
with the removal of the rock above the
temple
at first the rock is attacked with stone
soaring strands and giant blocks a
cutter
[Music]
Jib stars are brought into use for the
minute the song this is only a kind of
dress rehearsal so long as they're
cutting only the wall of rock around the
temple fine precision is not yet
required and they can work with broader
cuts at the sides the rock is broken off
piece by piece
[Music]
pneumatic drills can be used only on the
outer sector
the vibrations are constantly measured
inside the temperature more and more of
the rock material over the temples is
removed to dellux are already waiting to
take away the sauna blocks to cavities
in the massive rock face show when the
temples are located now comes the most
difficult part of the work the finest
cuts on the surfaces can be made only by
hand the rock is so brittle that contact
with water would make it crumble each
individual block must be carefully
marked so that it can easily be assigned
its right position when the monument is
reacted at a 1047 temple blocks and 7700
blocks of other rock with an average
weight of between 20 and 30 tansy
for the safe transport of the heavy
blocks special truss rods had to be made
the drill holes which accommodate the
anchor trusses are filled with synthetic
resin to withstand any strain possible
during transport
the largest and heaviest clocks were
those from the heads of Pharaoh statutes
here the engineers wanted to make as few
cuts as possible
the fostering starts the cutting
services are protected with plastic foil
[Music]
[Music]
when the phases of the figures were cut
work had to proceed continuously day and
night if there'd been any interruption
in the soaring the staff trot
interspersed with hard scenes might have
crumbled due to changes in tension
[Music]
[Music]
[Applause]
and this is the moment the journalists
and press photographers have waited for
all night
[Music]
[Music]
King ramasees gives one last majestic
looked at the bear Passau before the
special low load transport vehicle
carries him to the storage place
[Music]
the two storage sites are located on a
plateau near the spot where the temples
are to be redirected
[Music]
the position and number of each block is
registered just as if it were a book in
a library
[Laughter]
from his temporary resting place the
great Pharaoh can look out on the wrong
roofs of the houses note for a thousand
workers
[Music]
he may even cast a longing gaze over the
swimming pool whose waters must seem
like a mirage in the desert
[Music]
the Nile has now risen above the base of
the original site but the cofferdam has
stood the test the monuments are being
saved in time as the days pass the hand
sawing the blocks and their removal to
the storage site becomes routine each
block is transported without jolting
maintained in its original position this
ensures against breakage as a result of
a sudden change in stress the work
advances father and father into the
interior at the temple every day new
artistic masterpieces are brought for
the first time into born Dana
[Music]
the divine Pharaoh seems somewhat
fearful as he looks out on his new
technological age an age which saves him
from crumbling with the help of
injections of synthetic resin
[Music]
the supporting gutters are dismantled by
means are very fine cuts here work is
done with extreme care these services
which have been exposed to the elements
are particularly brittle now even if the
water were 1200 the cofferdam ahead of
schedule the most it could do would be
to cover the leg stumps affair
[Music]
[Applause]
[Music]
the last of the wall reliefs is ready
for transport by coincidence it bears
the motto under which the salvage
project is being carried out the union
of the upper and lower Nile as the
symbol of wealth and fertility
while the dismantling web proceeds
preparations for reaction are made on
the platter large-scale leveling
operations have been completed the axis
has been precisely calculated to produce
the same biannual miracle of sunlight a
reconstruction of the temple interior
can begin the same steel shoring
sections which serve for dismantling are
used
[Music]
the reassembly of the sections of the
first facade reveals the precision in
which the temple had been dismantled
the powerful blocks are easily put
together the original site has now been
completely abandoned the Nile covers it
at last
[Music]
but in their new location the monuments
come to life again and each block is
restored to its rightful place in chat
[Music]
[Applause]
[Music]
[Applause]
[Music]
[Applause]
[Music]
[Applause]
[Music]
the final phase of reconstructing the 22
meter high statues begins
[Music]
Ferro lives again an exciting moment now
comes the final gist when of the statues
will look the same as the fault
[Applause]
a great engineering achievement of
relocating the stone temple is not the
end of the work however a unique rocky
landscape around the temple must also be
reconstructed according to the original
a 12,000 square meter area it must be
real and scaped
cement domes are first constructed above
the temple locations for placing the
stones the dome above the large temple
has a spread of over 60 metres the
individual cement segments are 1.8
metres thick at the apex and two point
three meters at the base some 10,000
cubic meters of cement are involved in
this giant construction the height of
the cover above the apex is more than 10
meters and will have to support more
than 20 tons of stone per square meter
the entire stone covering of the surface
is estimated to be 350 thousand cubic
meters
[Music]
the dome above the small temple as a
spread of 25 meters requiring more than
3,000 cubic meters of concrete
the last of the blocks comprising the
facade of the smaller temple are set in
place more than 7,700 stone blocks must
be rearranged between the temples
now the finishing touches restoration
work on the larger temple is necessary
the facade is made crack and
weatherproof it must withstand many more
centuries
[Music]
when the seams have been closed it will
no longer be evident that the temple was
once sawed into individual blocks
thus the temples of Abu Simbel when
again reached the Rising Sun they will
bear witness bus to the Supreme genius
of an ancient civilization and to the
miraculous skill of modern technology
they will also bear witness to the
determination of the world as a whole to
preserve the best of the past while
building the future and to apply
International Cooperation for the
achievement of these great purposes
[Music]
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