The Temple of Beit el-Wali is a rock-cut ancient Egyptian temple in Nubia which was built by Pharaoh

Ramesses II Ramesses II ( egy, rꜥ-ms-sw ''Rīʿa-məsī-sū'', , meaning "Ra is the one who bore him"; ), commonly known as Ramesses the Great, was the third pharaoh of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt. Along with Thutmose III he is often regarded as ...

and dedicated to the deities of

Amun-Re Amun (; also ''Amon'', ''Ammon'', ''Amen''; egy, jmn, reconstructed as (Old Egyptian and early Middle Egyptian) → (later Middle Egyptian) → (Late Egyptian), cop, Ⲁⲙⲟⲩⲛ, Amoun) romanized: ʾmn) was a major ancient Egyptian ...

, Re-Horakhti,

Khnum Khnum or also romanised Khnemu (; egy, 𓎸𓅱𓀭 ẖnmw, grc-koi, Χνοῦβις) was one of the earliest-known Egyptian deities, originally the god of the source of the Nile. Since the annual flooding of the Nile brought with it silt an ...

and

Anuket Anuket was the ancient Egyptian goddess of the cataracts of the Nile and Lower Nubia in general, worshipped especially at Elephantine near the First Cataract. Etymology In ancient Egyptian, she was known as Anuket, Anaka, or Anqet. Her name ...

.Arnold & Strudwick (2003), p.29 It was the first in a series of temples built by Ramesses II in this region; its name Beit el-Wali means 'House of the Holy Man' and may indicate its previous use by a Christian hermit at some point in time.Oakes (2003), p.200 The temple was relocated during the 1960s as part of the

International Campaign to Save the Monuments of Nubia The International Campaign to Save the Monuments of Nubia was the relocation of 22 monuments in Lower Nubia, in Southern Egypt and northern Sudan, between 1960 and 1980. The success of the project, in particular the creation of a coalition of 50 ...

as a result of the

Aswan High Dam The Aswan Dam, or more specifically since the 1960s, the Aswan High Dam, is one of the world's largest embankment dams, which was built across the Nile in Aswan, Egypt, between 1960 and 1970. Its significance largely eclipsed the previous Aswan L ...

project and moved towards higher ground along with the

Temple of Kalabsha The Temple of Kalabsha (also Temple of Mandulis) is an ancient Egyptian temple that was originally located at Bab al-Kalabsha (Gate of Kalabsha), approximately 50 km south of Aswan. In the 1960s the temple was relocated under the Internationa ...

. This move was coordinated with a team of Polish archaeologists financed jointly by a Swiss and Chicago Institute respectively. The temple was located 50 kilometres south of Aswan.

History

The Nubian temples of Ramesses II (i.e.

Wadi es-Sebua The temples of Wadi es-Sebua ( ar, وادى السبوع , translate=Valley of the Lions, so-called because of the sphinx-lined approach to the temple forecourts), is a pair of New Kingdom Egyptian temples, including one speos temple constructed ...

, Beit el-Wali and

Abu Simbel Abu Simbel is a historic site comprising two massive rock-cut temples in the village of Abu Simbel ( ar, أبو سمبل), Aswan Governorate, Upper Egypt, near the border with Sudan. It is situated on the western bank of Lake Nasser, about ...

), were part of a state sponsored policy designed to maintain Egyptian control over this area. During the New Kingdom period of Egypt, Nubia was not only ruled by Egyptian officials but also subject to: : a deliberate policy of acculturation, the intention of which was to break down Nubian identity. Many leading Nubians were educated in Egypt and adopted Egyptian dress, burial customs and religion. They spoke the Egyptian language and even changed their names to Egyptian ones. the decoration of the temples was to some extent royal propaganda intended to intimidate the

ocal Ocal or OCAL may refer to: * Öcal, Turkish surname * Öçal, Turkish surname * Open Clip Art Library Openclipart, also called Open Clip Art Library, is an online media repository of free-content vector clip art. The project hosts over 160,000 ...

population.

Temple architecture and decorations

There is a large amount of original colour remaining in the inner part of this temple though the paint has disappeared from the historical scenes on its Forecourt. Near the middle of the south wall of the temple, Ramesses II is depicted charging into battle against the Nubians while his two young sons Amun-her-khepsef and Khaemwaset are shown being present in this relief scene. In the next relief scene, : Ramesses senthroned, receiving the tribute of Nubia. In the upper register, Ramesses' eldest son and the viceroy Amenemope present the tribute procession. The viceroy is rewarded for his efforts with gold collars.Oakes (2003), p.201 "A painted cast from a wall relief" in the Beit el-Wali temple then illustrates the wealth of exotic products which the Egyptians obtained in trade or tribute from the Kushites; here, the pharaoh receives "leopard-skins, giraffe tails, giraffes, monkeys, leopards, cattle, antelopes, gazelles, lions, ostrich feathers and eggs, ebony, ivory, fans, bowls, shields made of

nimal Nimal may refer to *Nimal Bandara, Sri Lankan politician *Nimal Gamini Amaratunga, Sri Lankan judge *Nimal Gunaratne, Sri Lankan air force officer *Nimal Mendis, Sri Lankan politician *Nimal Piyatissa (born 1968), Sri Lankan politician *Nimal Raja ...

hides, and gold." Some of the Nubians who are part of the tribute "would be destined to be taken to Egypt to work on the king's building projects, act as policemen or be recruited into the army for service in Syria." The overriding theme of Egyptian military success is also hammered home on the opposite wall, where Ramesses II's triumphal campaigns in Libya and Syria were recorded: he is portrayed trampling his enemies and holding others "by their hair in his left hand while smiting them with his right." The theme of Ramesses' might is also carried into the temple's interior where there are further smiting scenes on the walls of the vestibule. Henceforth, Ramesses II is shown as a pious ruler who worships other deities; besides the doorway leading to the sanctuary "are niches containing statues of the king with (on the left) Isis and Horus and (on the right) Khnum and Anuket, the gods of Elephantine and the First Cataract." The pharaoh is shown presenting vases of wine to Khnum. The deity Anuket offers Ramesses several jubilees. The sanctuary contains three rock-cut cult images perhaps that of Amun, Ptah and Ramesses II.Arnold & Strudwick (2003), p.103 The most touching scenes are on eitherside of the doorway where Ramesses is shown as a child being suckled by Isis and Anuket; however, the statue niche was destroyed later perhaps in the Christian era. The exquisite reliefs of Beit el-Wali and its unusual plan differentiates it from later temples by this pharaoh which are located further south in Nubia. The temple of Beit el-Wali is small, and was built on a symmetrical level. It is made up of a forecourt, an anteroom with two columns and a sanctuary cut into the surrounding rock, with the exception of the entrance and the doorway. The temple was fronted by a pylon. At the beginning of the Christian Coptic period, the temple was used as a church. Many early travellers visited the temple; its architectural and artistic details were published by Günther Roeder in 1938.Roeder (1938)

Notes and references

References

Bibliography

* Dieter Arnold & Nigel Strudwick, The Encyclopaedia of Ancient Egyptian Architecture, I.B. Tauris Publishers, 2003. * Lorna Oakes, Pyramids, Temples and Tombs of Ancient Egypt:An Illustrated Atlas of the Land of the Pharaohs, Hermes House: Anness Publishing Ltd, 2003. * Günther Roeder, Der Felsentempel von Bet el-Wali (Cairo, 1938) ('The rock temple of Bet el-Wali')

External links