Nubian Monuments from Abu Simbel to Philae

When the Aswan High Dam threatened to drown Nubia's temples beneath the rising Nile, a UNESCO-led international campaign — running from 1960 to 1980 — cut apart and reassembled entire monuments on higher ground. The rescued treasures anchoring this site include the colossal rock temples that Ramses II carved at Abu Simbel and the island sanctuary of Isis from Philae. The monuments entered the World Heritage List in 1979, testament both to ancient Egypt and to modern preservation on a heroic scale.