The name of the reservoir above the Aswan Dam. Why the Aswan Dam is interesting to tourists and engineers - technical features and photos

30.10.2023

The Aswan hydroelectric power station is an engineering structure located in Egypt. This hydroelectric power station can amaze any tourist with its majestic size; the base of this structure is approximately 400 million cubic meters. The length of this dam is about 3.5 kilometers, its width reaches up to 1 kilometer, and its height is about 100 meters. The crest of the dam is 40 meters. literally in a second, the water intake of this structure is capable of passing approximately 16,000 cubic meters of water.

Why was such a large structure erected and why was it needed in this place? To get an answer to this question, let's plunge into the history of sunny Egypt.

The full-flowing Nile River flows throughout hot Egypt, making it the longest river on our planet. This great river has been the main source of life for the Egyptians since ancient times. Currently, the Nile River is an important element of this area. The Nile River contains on its banks the population of this large country; there are many large cities here, including Cairo and Luxor, and the beautiful city of Alexandria is also located here.

In ancient Egypt, in the spring and summer, the Nile River flows rapidly, causing water to overflow its banks, resulting in large floods. The height of the waves can reach almost 10 meters, thus washing away everything in their path. Thus, along with water, a lot of silt comes, it begins to settle on the fields, but it serves as an ideal fertilizer for the soil. If the Nile flood does not occur, this means that the year will be bad and without a harvest.

Creation of the Aswan hydroelectric power station

Initially, a project that would regulate the waters of the Nile River and control its overflow was created back in the 11th century, but for technical reasons it could not yet be implemented. Only at the beginning of the 20th century, engineers from Britain began to build a dam, which reaches a height of 50 meters and its length is 2 kilometers. But still, the project was not completed; it was built twice. This dam was called the Lower Dam, as it stood to protect the Nile River until about half of the twentieth century.

In the middle of the 20th century, for the first time this dam was able to reach its peak, then the question arose about the construction of a new dam, which could be located just above the Nile River itself.

The project began to be created in the mid-20th century, in the fifties, literally after the revolution in Egypt ended. But then the development of the design of this dam was postponed for quite a long time; it dragged on for many years.

The construction of the dam in Egypt pursued the following goals:

Preventive actions regarding floods.
Uninterrupted electricity supply to all homes and various objects.
Formation of a network for irrigation of the farm.
Education allows ships to sail on the Nile all year round.

This large dam took about ten years to create, but this reservoir began to be filled in the sixties. Thus, the artificially created reservoir was able to receive the name Nasser; its dimensions reach up to 500 kilometers in length and about 30 kilometers in width. The area of this reservoir is more than 5 million square kilometers. Not a single photograph can convey the scale of the reservoir that was created with the help of man.

The hydroelectric power station was equipped with twelve generators with a capacity of approximately 2000 MW. The hydroelectric power station began operating around the seventies. The ribbon that opened this facility was cut by the Egyptian President.

Ecological problems

A high dam is a creation of a structure with the help of man, but there are also minor disadvantages. The construction of this structure could cause some environmental problems that could not be eliminated, although the engineers tried their best.

Here are some important problems that the construction of hydroelectric power stations caused:

Flooding of large areas meant that residents had to be relocated.
That silt, which was so useful, began to crawl out beyond the dam, thereby the water level began to rise.
Fishing catches have decreased.
Formation of soil erosion.

The Aswan dams provide clear evidence that Egypt's fundamental problem is far more intractable than John Gunter's terse assessment suggested: “Create more land. Or reduce the number of people. Any solution will end the problem, but none of them are simple." Each dam made large areas cultivable, increasing agricultural productivity and providing electricity for industry. However, all the positive effect came to naught due to the rapid growth of the population, which once again threatens to exceed the level provided by the available resources.

This circumstance is forcing Egypt to implement even more ambitious irrigation projects. Well aware of the importance of dams, Egyptians tend to view them as a prime tourist attraction. In contrast, most foreigners see these structures only as a way to reach Abu Simbel, Philae Island and the Kalabsha Temple, which were rebuilt on a higher site after the construction of a high-rise dam. The views from the top of both dams are quite impressive, so make sure to stop here on your trip.

Directly upriver from the First Rapids stands the Aswan Dam, built by the British (1898-1902) and subsequently completed twice to increase productivity. This is one of the largest structures of its kind in the whole world, 50 meters high, 2 kilometers long, 30 meters thick at the base and 11 at the top. Driving along it, you will definitely notice 180 sluice holes, which are opened during floods, and then, as the water level in the river drops, they are gradually closed in order to at least partially preserve the natural cycle.

Now that the high-rise dam has taken over all water storage and irrigation functions, the old one specializes mainly in generating electricity for the nearby Kim plant, which produces chemical fertilizers. South of the dam you can see among the islands. At the eastern end of the dam is the former Reservoir Colony, now called Khazan. Colonial-style villas are nestled here among green gardens. Minibus taxis and pickups run here from Aswan, but at the time of writing this article they did not take foreign tourists.

In 1952, it became clear that the Aswan Dam could no longer meet the needs of Egypt and did not guarantee reliable protection against mass famine. Nasser promised to build a new high dam six kilometers upriver that would give Egypt a future, lead to the development of new industrial sectors and send electricity to every village. When, under pressure from the United States, the World Bank refused to provide a promised loan, Nasser carried out nationalization to obtain funds for the project and turned to the USSR for help.

Construction of the dam (1960-1971) continued after his death, as did the era of Soviet-Egyptian cooperation. When Egypt decided to install more powerful turbine generators in the late eighties, it bought them from America - after which it turned out that there were fewer problems with the Russians. Today, Western European contractors are being invited to implement a major new project in Toshka, which someone called “A Playground for Engineers.”

Visit to the high dam

The high dam is located 13 kilometers from Aswan. You can move along it at any time from 7.00 to 17.00. All car occupants must pay a £5 toll. They may be asked to show their passports. At the western entrance to the dam stands the Soviet-Egyptian Memorial - a giant tower in the shape of a lotus flower, built as a symbol of cooperation and the benefits brought by the dam. Both are shown on the heroic bas-relief, made in the style of socialist realism. The high observation deck, which must be reached by elevator, can accommodate only four visitors at a time.

Here you can watch how the concrete from which the dam is built crumbles and experience an attack of dizziness. Near the eastern end of the dam there is a pavilion for visitors (daily, 7:00-17:00), which the keeper will unlock after receiving baksheesh. Among the exhibits is a fifteen-meter model of the dam, plans for its construction (in Russian and Arabic) and a selection of photographs telling about the movement.

Unless you ask to be taken to the tower (burg) or model (mekat), the taxi will simply stop in the middle of the dam so you can take a quick tour. From this excellent position, the height of the dam (111 meters) is difficult to assess due to its fencing, but the length (3830 meters) and width at the top (40 meters) with a width of the base (980 meters) are impressive. From the southern end of the dam you can see beyond Lake Nasser. To the north, you can see the giant 2,100-megawatt power plant located on the eastern bank and the canals through which water flows into the Nile. There are always clouds of fog hanging over them, which are cut through by a rainbow from time to time. Further down the river, among a group of islands, lies Philae Island.

Since foreigners are prohibited from using minibus taxis in Aswan, the only public transport to the high dam is the third class train (hourly from 6am to 4pm; £1) to Saad al-Ali Station, five minutes away. kilometers from the eastern end of the causeway near the pier where the ferry to Wadi Halfa and cruise ships traveling on Lake Nasser stop. Here, tourists who come ashore are allowed to take a minibus to Aswan (stop next to the station; 1.5 pounds).

Lake Nasser and its impact on the environment

The most striking consequence of the construction of the high dam was the creation of Lake Nasser, which stretches for 500 kilometers and reaches the territory of Sudan. Depth in some places over 180 meters, with a surface area of 6 thousand square kilometers, the lake is the largest reservoir in the world and more closely resembles an inland sea. During a decade-long drought, when the Nile water level dropped to its lowest level in 350 years, it saved Egypt from the famine that was ravaging Ethiopia and Sudan.

When heavy rains in 1988 forced the Nile to overflow its banks, the high-rise dam saved Khartoum from flooding. Since the destruction of the dam would sweep most of Egypt's population into the Mediterranean Sea, protecting the dam is a top priority. Radar installations and anti-aircraft systems are located on the surrounding hills. It has not been forgotten that Israel threatened to bomb the dam during the 1967 and 1973 wars and Gaddafi in 1984.

Although the social, cultural and environmental impacts of the dam have yet to be assessed, its arrival has brought with it most of the promised benefits. Egypt was able to convert 700,000 feddans (a measure of area slightly less than an acre) of cultivated land from the ancient estuarine irrigation system to year-round irrigation, doubling or even tripling the number of harvests, and making about a million feddans of desert cultivable.

In addition, the appearance of the dam caused a 30% increase in industrial production. It generates electricity for Aswan's chemical and cement plants, Helwan Iron and Steel Works and oil refineries. Fishing and serving tourists on Lake Nasser have become profitable industries. And the new Toshka pumping station and the Sheikh Zayed Canal, as the Toshka project is implemented, should turn new areas of the desert into fertile land.

The main victims are the Nubians, whose homeland was flooded by the lake. Other aspects of the dam's impact on the environment are still being studied. The evaporation of the lake leads to fog, clouds and even precipitation over previously arid areas, and groundwater under the Sahara reaches distant Algeria. Because the dam traps the silt that once brought fertility back to Egypt's fields, farmers now rely on fertilizers. It is possible to prevent soil salinization caused by year-round irrigation only by creating an extensive drainage system.

However, this turns local lands into a source of mosquitoes and bilharzia. Ancient monuments are also exposed to salt caused by rising water levels and increased humidity. Some even believe that the dam has made Egypt more susceptible to earthquakes. Finally, without the silt deposits that regularly filled it before, it is intensively destroyed by the Mediterranean Sea along the entire coast.

According to existing calculations, the lake itself will be filled with silt within five hundred years. Some believe that by then Nubia may once again be covered with lush vegetation, as in the prehistoric period. Others fear international conflicts over water resources in the very near future. When Ethiopia recently began exploring the possibility of building a dam on the Abbay River (the source of the Blue Nile), the Egyptian government warned that any reduction in the amount of Nile water flowing into the country (according to the treaty is 59 billion cubic meters annually) would be considered a threat to national security. , and in the future even more water will be needed.

Cruises and fishing on Lake Nasser

To appreciate the magnitude of Lake Nasser and see the otherwise inaccessible monuments known as Lake Nasser, Amada and Qasr Ibrim, you must take a cruise. Cruise ships began sailing the lake in 1993 at the initiative of Mustafa al-Gindi, a Nubian born in Cairo. His first two ships were the Eugenie (reminiscent of an early 20th century hunting lodge) and the Qasr Ibrim (built in a typical 1930s Art Deco style, both operated by Belle Epoque Travel in Cairo).

There are currently five other ships sailing on the lake: Prince Abbas, Queen Abu Simbek, Nubian Sea and Tania - all five-star, with the exception of the four-star Tania. Each follows the same route, making a four-day journey from the high dam or a three-day sail from Abu Simbel. The cruise includes visits to the three monuments mentioned above, as well as Abu Simbel and the Kalabsha Temple. Most passengers are members of tour groups who reserve seats in advance before arriving in Egypt.

But participation in the cruise can also be arranged through Belle Epoque in, as well as in agencies located on the Aswan waterfront, such as Eastmar Travel (Nubian Sea) or Travco (Tania). Prices range from $120 to $190 per person per night, including meals and monument visits. Nubian Sea won the competition for best cuisine. Because drinks on ships are so expensive, some travelers choose to smuggle their own supply on board.

Lake Nasser, among other things, is a great place for fishing fans. It is home to Nile perch (the largest specimen caught weighed 176 kilograms, not far from the world record), eighteen species of giant catfish, including the legendary vundu, large tilapia and the piranha-like terapon. Because tilapia (at the bottom of the food chain) spawn in April, other fish are most abundant during the summer months. The best fishing spots are in the north, up to Amada. To the south, most of the fish serve as food for crocodiles.

Several operators in Aswan organize special tours for fishing enthusiasts. Check out African Angler, run by former Kenyan safari organizer Tim Bailey, who offer six (£600-750) and 13-night (£1,090-£1,315) trips (paid in pounds sterling and include flights from with draft on request). or Lake Nasser Adventure, founded by former Eugenie cruise ship manager Pascal Artieda and local fisherman Negrashi. A third agency, El-Temsah, run by Ala Temsah, organizes fishing, duck-hunting and bird-watching trips for small groups (£600 per person per night).

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In the United Arab Republic of Egypt, water is a critical factor for agricultural development, with the country's only source of water supply being the Nile River subject to significant fluctuations.

To control the waters of the Nile, several low-pressure dams were previously built on the river, however, significant volumes of Nile water, up to 32 billion m per year, continued to be discharged into the Mediterranean Sea. In this regard, the idea arose of building a high-rise dam on the Nile to store water, storing surpluses in high-flow years and using them in low-flow years.

In accordance with the international Agreement, the development of the Aswan High Dam project was entrusted to the Hydroproject Institute.

The chief engineer of the project was Nikolai Aleksandrovich Malyshev, deputy head and chief engineer of the institute, Doctor of Technical Sciences, corresponding member of the USSR Academy of Sciences, Hero of Socialist Labor, State Prize Laureate.

The project involved the construction of a rockfill dam on the Nile 7 km south of the site of the old Aswan Dam, built in 1905. The dam has a total length of 3,600 meters, of which 520 meters are in the riverbed. The width of the dam at the base is 980m and at the crest 40m. The height of the dam is 111m. The body of the dam consists of a clay core, a horizontal clay slab, sand prisms, and rock fill. At the base of the core, its continuation is a vertical injection curtain that secures alluvium at the base of the dam to a depth of 180 m to the bedrock, which actually represents a second underground impervious dam.

The Nile flow is diverted into a new conduit 1950 m long, consisting of two open channels - inlet and outlet, interconnected by six tunnels, each 250 m long, of a circular cross-section with a diameter of 17.0 m with a reinforced concrete lining 1.0 m thick, passed through a rock pillar under the right abutment dams.

Each tunnel, bifurcating, supplies water to the hydroelectric power station building, where 12 turbines with a capacity of 175 thousand kW are located, and to bottom spillways for the discharge of flood waters. Electricity generation at hydroelectric power stations is 10 billion kWh in an average water year, which was twice the output of all power plants in the country at that time. Above the entrance head of each tunnel there is a water intake 60 m high, equipped with flat wheeled emergency repair and sliding repair gates. Winches are used as the drive mechanism.

On the left bank of the dam there is a catastrophic spillway for releasing water if the maximum permissible water level in the reservoir is exceeded. The artificial reservoir created by the dam is one of the largest in the world. Its length is 500 km and the average width is 10 km. The total volume of the reservoir is 157 billion m3, of which 30 billion m3 is allocated for filling with sediment (over approximately 500 years), 37 billion m3 is a reserve for the accumulation of high floods and 10 billion m3 is for water losses from filtration and evaporation.

The presented project passed all examinations, incl. examination of the International Committee and was approved and was subsequently implemented in practice. January 9, 1960 is considered the date of commencement of work on the construction of the Aswan High Dam.

50 years ago, on May 15, 1964, in a solemn ceremony in the presence of the President of the UAR, the Heads of Government of the USSR, Iraq and Algeria, the closure of the Nile River was completed. Thus, the first stage of construction was completed, including a dam with a height of 47.0 m, with partial execution of the injection curtain, horizontal sections of six tunnels, six sections of the hydroelectric power station and six water intakes, not built to the full height with the placement of the drive mechanism - operational winches for the emergency repair gates and repair on a temporary reinforced concrete overpass. This solution made it possible to regulate, if necessary, the skipping of construction costs and to continue the construction of the water intake to the design levels. The chief engineer of the project N.A. Malyshev attended the ceremonial events. and Soviet specialists - participants in the construction.

During the blocking of the river, preliminary constriction of the channel was carried out by backfilling the stone banquet of the first stage dam in a pioneering way from both banks, as well as under the water with self-unloading barges. By the time the work on blocking the river was completed, within the boundaries of the dumped dam made of sorted stone, sand had been washed under the water using hydromechanization means from previously prepared sand.

Work on the final stage of closing the hole was carried out on May 13-15, 1964. During 62 hours of continuous work, 74,500 m3 of stone were dumped into the hole, including in a pioneering way from the right bank of 44,760 m, from the left bank of 21,710 m3 and from self-unloading barges 8,980 m. The highest filling intensity was: 1980 m3/h (including from barges 500 m3/h).

Simultaneously with blocking the channel, work was carried out to flood the canal and wash out the lintels. The canal was previously flooded by pumping a small amount of water into it using specially installed pumping stations. To speed up the process of initial erosion of the lintels, trenches were made in them and small explosive charges were placed for subsequent detonation.

At 12 o'clock 35min. On May 14, the upper lintel was blown up. After 20 minutes, intense soil erosion began. After 30 min. the water in the pit reached the calculated level, at the same time the lower cofferdam was blown up. A few minutes later, the pit was completely flooded, the water levels leveled out and the river flow was directed through culverts located on the right bank.

During the construction period, about 50 hydroproject workers were involved in the Hydroproject PIU for the construction of the Aswan hydroelectric complex and the Construction Department, seven of whom (L.S. Alliluyev, B.I. Godunov, V.I. Zhigunov, A.G. Mukhamedov, A. P. Pavlov, I. N. Rozhkov and V. Ya. Shaitanov) are still working. A list of Hydroproject employees - participants in design and construction is attached.

The Aswan hydroelectric complex was named an outstanding engineering structure of the 20th century by the UN Social Commission.

Head of the construction of the Aswan hydroelectric complex B.I.Godunov

List of Hydroproject employees who worked in the Hydroproject PIU during the construction of the Aswan hydroelectric complex:

Alenin O.G.	Zorin L.M.	Martsinovsky N.P.	Pakhanov V.V.
Alliluyev L.S.	Ivanov V.I.	Makeev E.P.	Pershanin E.A.
Baranov V.I.	Kolchev B.V.	Mitrushkin N.V.	Prokopovich I.A.
Buzin S.V.	Korotovskikh M.E.	Mishin Yu.K.	Rozhkov I.N.
Vaniev V.I.	Krapivin A.S.	Morozov P.N.	Romanov S.I.
Volobuev A.G.	Krasilnikov G.A.	Mukhamedov A.G.	Semenkov V.M.
Godunov B.I.	Kuznetsov L.A.

Aswan Dam (Egypt) - description, history, location. Exact address, phone number, website. Tourist reviews, photos and videos.

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The Aswan Dam is the pride of Egypt, which was designed in the 1960s. Soviet engineers. The dam allowed the country to completely switch to year-round irrigation of its lands.

But, on the other hand, the Aswan Dam brought with it troubles, in particular, the destruction of ancient monuments located in the path of the water. Some monuments were saved, such as the Tower of the Winds. They were moved to other places.

What to see

The Aswan Dam is accessible not only to specialists, but also to tourists. Anyone can come here on a tour from seven in the morning to five in the evening.

Travelers from Russia will be especially interested here. The fact is that next to the Aswan Dam there is a Soviet-Egyptian memorial. It is dedicated to the Soviet people who helped the Egyptians build the dam. The memorial is a huge tower in the shape of a lotus. The bas-relief of the building may even seem something familiar and familiar to Russians, because it is made in the traditions of socialist realism.

There is a small observation deck on the roof of the memorial that can accommodate about four people at a time. It offers stunning views of the Aswan High Dam and Lake Nasser. Such beauty is truly breathtaking.

On the eastern side, for tourists who come to see the Aswan Dam, there is a pavilion in which a gigantic model of this structure is stored - 15 m.

It is noteworthy that the plans were made in Russian and Arabic. You can probably guess why.

Stop in the middle of the dam, here you can feel the full power of the Aswan Dam: 40 meters wide and four kilometers long. Don’t be afraid to look down; because of the fence, you won’t be able to estimate the height of the dam. But you can admire the view of the Kalabsha Temple, which is located behind Lake Nasser. From here you can clearly see the huge power plant, whose power is 2000 megawatts, and the network of irrigation canals.

The Aswan Dam is not only a powerful and beautiful structure, but also very dangerous for all of Egypt.

The Aswan Dam is not only a powerful and beautiful structure, but also very dangerous for all of Egypt. If trouble happens and the dam begins to rapidly collapse, then most of the country’s territory will be washed away into the Mediterranean Sea. That is why the Aswan Dam is carefully guarded, and visiting it is possible only in organized groups and under the close supervision of police officers.

Egyptians see the Aswan High Dam as a symbol of their future. Thanks to her, Egypt got the opportunity to actively develop and become one of the recognized tourist centers.

How to get there

From Aswan to the dam it is about 12 km to the south. You can get to the attraction on your own, by taxi, or use the services of professional guides.

A taxi ride will cost you 30-35 EGP. Entrance to the Aswan Dam is also paid - 30 EGP.

You can get to Aswan from Cairo, where most Russian tourists fly, by bus or train.

If you are vacationing in Hurghada, then the Aswan Dam can be reached directly from this resort. A seven-hour trip will cost you 70 EGP.

Prices on the page are as of November 2018.

Text: Lyudmila Smerkovich | 2015-07-22 | Photo: Rita Willaert / flickr; Stuart Rankin / flickr; gil7416/dollarphotoclub; cliff hellis/flickr; unknown; Fredhsu/wikipedia; GeneralMills / flickr (“Progress thru Research,” Vol. 20, No. 3, 1966) | 11680

When construction of the Aswan Dam on the great Nile River began in the 1960s, the Temple of Abu Simbel, dedicated to Pharaoh Ramses II and his beloved wife Nefertari and built three thousand years ago, was under threat of flooding. The operation to save the temples became one of the largest international engineering and construction projects of the last century.

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Classmates

Ramesses (Ramses) II the Great was a pharaoh of Ancient Egypt who reigned approximately 1279-1213 BC. and received the honorary title A-nakhtu, which means “winner.” Among the Greeks, his name became Sesostris, the hero of legendary tales and world conqueror.

Aswan Dam

The civilization of Egypt, one of the oldest on our planet, arose in the delta and on the banks of the Nile River - willful, powerful, annually flooding a huge area, thereby bringing fertile silt and, consequently, huge harvests. Since ancient times, the Nile has been the source of wealth and prosperity in Egypt and at the same time the cause of natural disasters. In 1959, the government of Egypt (at that historical moment - the United Arab Republic) decided to build a huge dam designed to regulate the water level in the river and also produce electricity. The construction of the Aswan Dam was financed and undertaken by the USSR; about two thousand Soviet engineers, workers, and managers worked in Egypt at a time. The hydroelectric power plant project was developed and tested on a model in the Soviet Union.

The scale of the Aswan hydropower complex can be assessed from its technical passport: “Electromechanical equipment: number of units - 12. Power - 2100 megawatts, electricity generation - 8 billion kilowatt-hours per year. The complex includes a rockfill dam with a clay core 111 meters high and 3820 meters long, 520 of which are in the riverbed part. The volume of the embankment is 41.4 million cubic meters, an inlet canal 1150 meters long, an outlet canal 538 meters long, tunnel water conduits 282 meters long and 15 meters in diameter, a flood spillway in the form of a concrete spillway dam 288 meters long, a reservoir with a useful volume of 114 cubic kilometers . Under the base of the dam, a unique anti-seepage curtain with a depth of 165 meters was created, for the construction of which an original system of underwater compaction of sandy soils was specially developed.”

In addition to generating electricity, which is still enough for the whole of Egypt, the Aswan Dam gave the country the opportunity to transfer 300 thousand hectares from seasonal irrigation to permanent irrigation and to develop about 600 thousand hectares of new land using water reserves in the man-made Lake Nasser. However, in addition to the obvious economic benefits, the new hydroelectric station created several new problems that did not appear immediately - the natural balance of the movement of silt and sand along the Nile was disrupted; its delta began to gradually collapse; the lands that did not naturally receive annual fertilizer during the flood began to become salty. These problems are gradually being solved through new projects that support the ecology of the great river, and only one loss should have become irreversible not only for Egypt, but for the entire earthly civilization. The flood zone formed when the dam was launched included unique monuments of the ancient Egyptian kingdoms, in particular the temple complex of Abu Simbel, built thirteen centuries BC.

sacred mountain

Judging by archaeological data, this place was considered sacred even before Pharaoh Ramesses II decided to perpetuate his military victories and fair rule by building majestic temples. Many centuries later, when the temples were buried under tons of sand, Arab sailors called this rock Abu Simbel - “father of bread”, since one of the fragments of a stone bas-relief could be seen on the shore: a man in an ancient Egyptian apron that resembled a measure of bread.

The temples of Ramses were rediscovered only in 1813, when the Swiss explorer Burckhardt, traveling disguised as an Arab up the Nile, reached the third rapids of the great river. He drew attention to the huge heads, crowned with the crowns of the pharaohs, protruding from the sand, but the guides could not tell anything intelligible about these statues. Burckhardt reported his discovery, and the expedition of the famous adventurer and treasure hunter Belzoni immediately followed in his footsteps. Under his leadership, the temples were excavated from the sand, and although the expected treasures were not found in them, Belzoni wrote in his diary: “We entered the most extensive and most beautiful crypt in Nubia. Our surprise increased even more when it turned out that it was not only a very large, but also a magnificently decorated temple - with bas-reliefs, paintings and statues.”

In hieroglyphic inscriptions, Abu Simbel is called the “sacred mountain”, and the entire complex of buildings and fortifications is called the “fortress-city of Ramesses”. On one of the columns of the Small Temple there is an inscription carved: “Ramesses, strong in truth, favorite of Amon, created this divine dwelling for his beloved wife Nefertari.”

The temple complex of Abu Simbel really turned out to be magnificent - both from a historical and artistic, as well as from an engineering point of view. Both temples, Big and Small, are carved into a sandstone rock about 100 meters high. Both temples have beautiful bas-reliefs, wall paintings and many cryptograms and inscriptions praising the pharaoh. The large temple consists of 14 rooms penetrating 60 meters into the rock. The largest hall, decorated with eight statues of the god-pharaoh, measures 18 by 16 meters and rises to a height of 8 meters. The large hall depicts mainly battle scenes. Some paintings on the walls of the hall depict the victories of the pharaoh in Libya and Nubia, but the most significant scene is the Battle of Kadet, where the decisive battle between the Egyptians and the Hittites took place.

The temple was built in such a way that twice a year the sun rising in the morning pierces the entire suite of underground halls with its rays and illuminates the statues of the sanctuary. When the temple was moved, it was possible to restore its structure so that this property was preserved.

At the entrance to the Great Temple there are four colossal statues, twenty meters high. Crowned with crowns, with uraei on their foreheads and false beards, the colossi seated on thrones symbolize supreme power. Under their feet are the defeated enemies of the pharaoh. On the thrones of the colossi are depicted the gods of the Nile, who bind together papyrus and a lily - a sign of the unity of both lands, Lower and Upper Egypt. At the feet of the colossi there are female figures that look very fragile compared to the huge statues of the king - these are images of Nefertari, the beloved wife of Ramesses, his mother and daughters.

On the thigh of one of the statues of Ramesses, an inscription in ancient Greek was found made with knives, which historians date back to the 6th century BC: “When King Psammetichus came to Elephantine, those who came with Psammetichus, the son of Theocles, wrote this. They sailed by ship through Kerkis as long as the river allowed. Potasimto led the foreigners, Amasis led the Egyptians. Archon, the son of Amoibikh, and Pelek, the son of Udam, wrote this.” The Ionian mercenaries who immortalized themselves in this act of vandalism left behind one of the oldest examples of Greek writing.

The small temple is more elegant and feminine - it is dedicated to Nefertari, “she for whom the sun shines.” It has only 5 halls, also decorated with statues of gods and the royal couple. As the writer and traveler Jacques Christian writes in his book “In the Land of the Pharaohs”: “Ramesses is present in the sanctuary of his wife, he performs two functions there: a military leader, a conqueror of the forces of darkness, and a high priest who performs sacrifices. The columns here are crowned with the faces of the goddess Hathor, the ruler of love and joy, there are many images of flowers around, the tall silhouette of Nefertari sanctifies everything around with its noble beauty. At the entrance to the temple, the pharaoh is depicted holding out flowers to Hathor and the queen in the image of the goddess Isis. On the other side of the gate, Ramses protects Nefertari, he defeats the Nubians and Asians, imposes tribute on his enemies and pays honor to Amon-Ra and Horus."

All these cultural treasures of ancient civilization, perfectly preserved under a layer of sand, should have perished irrevocably at the bottom of Lake Nasser Reservoir. But the rescue of the temples of Abu Simbel was declared an action of global significance under the auspices of UNESCO. The hasty planning of the rescue operation began.

Moving

Several ideas have been proposed for preserving the temples of Ramses II and Nefertari - starting from the construction of a high dam to protect the territory of the temple complex from the waters of an artificial lake, and ending with a transparent cap through which tourists from river boats could admire the beauty of the ancient statues found at the bottom. The most attractive option was the project of Italian engineers, who proposed using heavy-duty jacks to lift and move the entire rock with the temples carved in it, but this idea was too expensive to implement. As a result, we settled on the project of the Swedish company Vattenbyggnadsbyran (VBB), which consisted in the fact that the temple would be cut into blocks, transported and assembled in a new location.

This project had its own risks and difficulties. Firstly, it was necessary to have time to saw and transport the blocks before water was released into the reservoir, and there was not much time left before that. Secondly, there was a risk that the cuts would open internal cracks and cavities in the stone or damage the soft sandstone so that it would be impossible to reassemble the previous structure. This problem was solved by strengthening natural stone with polymer compounds in all suspicious places. And finally, the new place for the temples was different from their native hill; the chosen site had yet to be turned into a semblance of the rock on which the temples were originally built.

Among the sculptural scenes of the Great Temple there is an image of the royal children lined up in two rows - daughters on one side, sons on the other. Below is a small inscription: “Made by the sculptor of King Piai, son of Ha-Nefer.” This signature is invaluable, since the sculptors of Ancient Egypt very rarely indicated their names.

At the first stage of preparation, the temples were measured in detail, photographed, and then the cutting lines of the stone were planned based on the drawings. The area around the old and new temple sites was also mapped in detail. Along the way, geographical and geological studies were carried out, including the properties of local sandstone and the behavior of groundwater, excavations and excavations were carried out. Since the construction of the Aswan Dam took place simultaneously, the water level in the Nile rose by several meters per year. To protect the construction site that Abu Simbel had turned into, a temporary dam was erected, but the waters of the Nile forced engineers to work faster and faster - soon the territory of the temple complex was to be flooded.

Before temples began to be divided into blocks using special thin saws used to cut marble, special safety measures were taken. Strong steel scaffolding was installed inside the temple halls, sand mounds were created in front of the facades of the temples, and protective screens were installed above the facades; All the stones lying there were removed from the slopes above the temples. By October 1965, the “roof” - the natural rock that served as their vault - was completely removed from the temples, and they began to move the statues and parts of the interior decoration. On October 10, the dismantling of the huge statues of the pharaoh in front of the entrance to the temple began. A journalist who was present wrote in his diary: “The sun rose slightly above the horizon when the crane operator received the order to begin. Slowly, slowly, the god king's face separated from his ears... It was a sight I will never forget. For a moment, I was overcome by the wild thought that modern barbarians were trying to destroy the great pharaoh. Hanging on the cable, the huge face slowly turned around its axis. It seemed that the expression on his face under the rays of the sun was transformed by the play of light and shadow... Then the pharaoh’s face was gently laid on the bed of a special trailer so that it would be taken to the platform where other parts of the temple were already stored.”

Each of the blocks was numbered in order to assemble temples in a new place without visible changes. When the internal structure of the temples was completely recreated on a specially cut out huge terrace, they were covered with a reinforced concrete cap and a hill was poured on top. During assembly, the blocks were additionally strengthened with a resinous compound, which was pumped into the drilled holes so that the fragile sandstone would not crumble after cutting, transportation and installation. When recreating temples, new questions arose: is it worth “improving” what has been destroyed by time, for example, is it not possible to return to its place the head of one of the colossi that fell in ancient times? How to mask the consequences of movement? The director of the Egyptian Archaeological Authority wrote at the time of the project's completion: “The damage done to the pharaoh will be healed. The connecting seams will be filled with mortar down to a few millimeters from the surface. We could achieve more: not only heal the wounds, but also make the stitches invisible. But will this be fair to our ancestors, to ourselves and to those who come here after us?

The relocation operation took three years, from 1965 to 1968, but until 1972 work continued to bring the landscape around the temple complex to a form consistent with the previous position of the temples.

Now the temples look almost the same as before they were moved to a new location, and the broken head of the colossus rests in the same place where it was before - at his feet. Thousands of tourists visit this place, no less popular than the pyramids of the pharaohs, although not as ancient. This monument of ancient Egyptian art today is also a monument to the glory of the talent and work of engineers and workers, people from different countries who joined forces to move the temples of Ramesses and Nefertari. Egyptian President Anwar Sadat said of the rescue of Abu Simbel: "The peoples of the earth are capable of performing miracles when they unite with good intentions."

Temples of Abu Simbel and the history of their salvation in numbers:

The facade of the temples is carved into the rock 31 meters high and 38 meters wide. Above the facade there is an ornament carved in the form of twenty-two baboons greeting the sunrise. Each of these monkeys measures about 2.5 meters.

The facade of the large temple is decorated with four statues of the pharaoh, depicted sitting on a throne. The height of these statues is about 20 meters, and the head of each sculpture reaches four meters. The weight of each statue exceeds 1200 tons.

The façade of the Small Temple is decorated with six full-length figures, each 11 meters high. Between the statues of Pharaoh Ramesses II are placed statues of his wife Nefertari. This is a rare case of the image of the pharaoh's wife in sculptures of the same size as the figures of the king himself.

More than 50 countries around the world took part in the project to move the temples of Abu Simbel.

The cost of the temple relocation project amounted to about $42 million in 1968 prices.

The cave temple complex was moved 65 meters higher and 200 meters further from the river. For transportation, the temples were cut into 1036 blocks, the weight of which reached from 5 to 20 tons.