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Abu Simbel
Ancient site · Aswan, Egypt
THE STORY
Ramesses II's twin rock-cut temples
Abu Simbel is a pair of massive rock-cut temples in southern Egypt, near the border with Sudan. The Great Temple honours the pharaoh Ramesses II, whose huge figures are carved into its facade, and the Small Temple honours his chief wife, Nefertari. They are part of UNESCO's Nubian Monuments World Heritage Site.
Source: Wikipedia ↗Cut into 1,036 blocks and moved in the 1960s
The temples were carved into the mountainside in the 13th century BC. They later fell into disuse, the Great Temple mostly buried by sand, until Swiss researcher Johann Ludwig Burckhardt came upon them in 1813. When Lake Nasser, the Aswan Dam reservoir, threatened to drown them, they were cut into 1,036 blocks and rebuilt on higher ground, inaugurated in 1968.
Source: Wikipedia ↗