When: During the period 1964-5 the relocating of the temple took place.
Why: The temple was relocated to be saved from the rising waters of the Aswan High Dam on the River Nile.
How:The Two Temples were removed block-by-block and reconstruction on two artificial concrete hills capable of withstanding 10,000t. Special attention was given to reproduce their relative positions and orientation to the Sun.
Where: 65m higher and 200m further back from the shore of Lake Nasser.
Summary: The project was described by Life magazine as 'one of the greatest challenges of archaeological engineering in history', while the 'new' complex is now Egypt's second most important tourism site after the Pyramids at Giza.
Outcomes:
1) A specially built airport located 1km from the temples allows visitors to make day trips and serves 500,000 visitors per year.
2) Abu Simbel appears in the 1977 James Bond film 'The Spy Who Loved Me' as the headquarters of MI6.
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