Aswan’s Philae Temple is a sight to see.

The towns of Luxor and Aswan are undoubtedly two of the most gorgeous and wonderfully intriguing places to visit in Egypt, and they should not be missed.

In addition to being easily accessible by a Nile Cruise 2020, these two towns on each side of the Nile River are brimming with the finest archeological discoveries Egypt has to offer, such as the Valley of the Kings and the Karnak and Luxor temples, among many more.

The Amazing Philae Temple in Aswan, Egypt, is one of the most breathtakingly beautiful sites on the planet to see.

It is the crowning achievement of Aswan’s tourist attractions.

With its aura of mystery surrounding it, a slew of concerns has been raised concerning the temple, which we shall address in this piece.

  • The location of the temple, as well as when and who constructed it.
  • The history of the Temple of Philae

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The Philae Temple is nowhere to be found.

As implied by the name, the philae temple is situated on Agilkia Island, a beautiful island located in Aswan’s low dam reservoir, downstream of Lake Nasser and the Aswan Dam.
The Philae temple is open to the public and may be visited daily.

However, the aforementioned site was not the original location of the Philae temple since the whole structure was relocated to the nearby Agilkia island due to the continual flooding the region was experiencing. This relocation was carried out as part of a UNESCO campaign initiative to safeguard the temple and other comparable structures before the installation of the Aswan High Dam.

One thing that distinguishes the Philae islands is their unrivaled archeological and architectural riches, with the majority of the sites in near-perfect condition. Among such constructions, the Philae temple, also known as the “Isis Temple,” is considered the most ancient.

It is thought to have been constructed during the reign of Nectanebo I, somewhere between 362 and 389 BC.

The other significant constructions are located near the southern end of the archipelago on the smaller islands, with the majority of the other remains reflecting a more significant Roman influence.

The Philae Temple’s historical development:

There are many periods in which the cycle of events on the island in general and the temple in particular may be followed, with the histories correlating and interweaving one another over history.

When the island was known as “Boundary Island” during the Pharaonic Era, it was maintained in excellent condition by the Egyptians, who used it as a garrison due to the island’s location as a southern frontier, with the Greeks and Romans following in their footsteps.

The shrine created by Pharaoh Tahraqa, which was most likely dedicated to the Deity Amun, would have been the oldest tower at the time.

Also on the island was a little kiosk constructed by prismatic II of the 26th Dynasty, which was the earliest evidence of Isis worship on the island.

Now we’ll go on to the Ptolemaic period.

Two-thirds of the still-standing temples were constructed during this period, making the Island a significant and well-known pilgrimage site for Egyptians and people traveling from Greece, Anatolia, and other parts of the world.

Additionally, it was around this period that the Island got additional parts from the Nubian monarch, Armani.

While various Roman emperors contributed to the many existent relics on the island throughout the Roman period, the island and the Philae temple were neglected.

Even the previous pilgrimages were no longer considered to be a repeating event.

After stagnation, the island gained popularity in the 1873-1874 period, thanks to the efforts of various foreign novelists, including Amelia, Adware, and Egyptologists such as Joseph Bonomi the Younger, who described the beauty of the location.

Finally, during the 1990s and far into the twentieth century, the Philea temple remained to draw attention to Edgehill, even after the building of the Aswan low dam was completed.

In the years before the Dam, practically the whole island would be drowned whenever a flood came, prompting the UNESCO Campaign to conserve the temple and other monuments on the island, which began in 1960 and is still ongoing.

To summarize, the Philea temple and the island are more than just a piece of land filled with and brimming with historical significance.

It is a story of love, appreciation of history, and variety, and it is narrated by the Philae temple, one of the most beautiful sights in Aswan known to man at the time of writing.

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