The Temple of Ellesyia is an ancient Egyptian rock-cut temple originally located near the site of Qasr Ibrim. It was built during the 18th Dynasty by the Pharaoh Thutmosis III. The temple was dedicated to the deities Amun, Horus and Satis. Tuthmosis III (1479-1425 BCE) had a small temple carved into the rock at Ellesiya, not far from Abu Simbel, dedicated to Horus of Miam and Satet. The temple is only accessible from the river. The interior features an inverted T-shaped structure, consisting of a corridor and two side chambers. On the walls, scenes depict offerings made by the king to the Egyptian and Nubian gods. The figures face the back wall, where statues of Horus, Satet, and Tuthmosis III on a throne are carved in half-relief.
| Temple of Ellesyia | |
|---|---|
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| Location | Museo Egizio, Turin, Italy |
| Coordinates | 22°37′21″N 31°57′46″E / 22.622568°N 31.962662°E |
During Akhenaten's reign (1352-1336), the decorations were chiseled at various points. Rameses II (1279-1213) later restored it, remodeling the triad in the rear niche with Amon, Horus, and the king. Eventually, it became a Christian place of worship, evident from crosses and five-pointed stars engraved on the entrance portal and interior walls.
Being within the area slated to be submerged by Lake Nasser after the construction of the Aswan High Dam, the temple of Ellesiya is also part of UNESCO's mission to rescue Nubian temples. Arriving in Turin in 1967, the structure was reconstructed in the museum's wing dedicated to Ernesto Schiaparelli.
During the International Campaign to Save the Monuments of Nubia, the Nubian monument salvage campaign guided by the UNESCO in the 1960s, the temple was moved to the Museo Egizio at Turin in order to save it from being submerged by Lake Nasser.
See also
editThe four temples donated to countries assisting the relocation are:
- Temple of Debod (Madrid, Spain)
- Temple of Dendur (Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, United States)
- Temple of Taffeh (Rijksmuseum van Oudheden in Leiden, the Netherlands)
- Temple of Ellesyia (Museo Egizio, Turin, Italy)
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