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Ramesses II
Mummy of Ramesses II
SECOND DAUGHTER OF RAMESES II
Nefertari´s Temple at Abu Simbel
Ramesses II: one of four external seated statues at Abu Simbel
Ramesses II as a child (Cairo Museum)
The Younger Memnon part of a colossal statue of Ramesses from the Ramasseum, now in the British Museum
Giant statue of Ramesses II in Memphis.
Ramesses II (also known as Ramesses the Great and alternatively transcribed as Ramses and Rameses ; also known as Ozymandias in the Greek sources, from a transliteration into Greek of a part of Ramesses´ throne name, User-maat-re Setep-en-re) was the third Egyptian pharaoh of the Nineteenth dynasty. He is often regarded as Egypt´s greatest, most celebrated, and most powerful pharaoh. His successors and later Egyptians called him the "Great Ancestor" and his subjects called him by the affectionate abbreviation "Sese". His accession date of III Shemu day 27 was declared a public holiday during the Twentieth dynasty of Egypt.
He was born around 1303 BC and at age fourteen, Ramesses was appointed Prince Regent by his father Seti I. He is believed to have taken the throne in his early 20s and to have ruled Egypt from 1279 BC to 1213 BC for a total of 66 years and 2 months, according to Manetho. He was once said to have lived to be 99 years old, but it is more likely that he died in his 90th or 91st year. If he became Pharaoh in 1279 BC as most Egyptologists today believe, he would have assumed his throne on May 31, 1279 BC, based on his known accession date of III Shemu day 27. Ramesses II celebrated an unprecedented 14 sed festivals during his reign—more than any other pharaoh. On his death, he was buried in a tomb in the Valley of the Kings; his body was later moved to a royal cache where it was discovered in 1881, and is now on display in the Cairo Museum.
Ramesses II led several expeditions north into the lands east of the Mediterranean (the location of the modern Israel, Lebanon and Syria). He also led expeditions to the south, into Nubia, commemorated in inscriptions at Beit el-Wali and Gerf Hussein.
The early part of his reign was focused on building cities, temples and monuments. He established the city of Pi-Ramesses in the Nile Delta as his new capital and main base for his campaigns in Syria. This city was built on the remains of the city of Avaris, the capital of the Hyksos when they took over, and was the location of the main Temple of Set.
Abu Simbel temples
Abu Simbel Temple of Ramesses II
Detail Temple of Rameses II saved from being lost beneath the River Nile by UNESCO
A scale model showing the original and current location of the temple (with respect to the water level) at the Nubian Museum, in Aswan
UNESCO World Heritage Site Nubian Monuments from Abu Simbel to Philae
The Abu Simbel temples are two massive rock temples in Abu Simbel (أبو سمبل in Arabic) in Nubia, southern Egypt. They are situated on the western bank of Lake Nasser, about 230 km southwest of Aswan (about 300 km by road). The complex is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site known as the "Nubian Monuments," which run from Abu Simbel downriver to Philae (near Aswan).
The twin temples were originally carved out of the mountainside during the reign of Pharaoh Ramesses II in the 13th century BCE, as a lasting monument to himself and his queen Nefertari, to commemorate his alleged victory at the Battle of Kadesh, and to intimidate his Nubian neighbors. However, the complex was relocated in its entirety in 1968, on an artificial hill made from a domed structure, high above the Aswan High Dam reservoir.
The relocation of the temples was necessary to avoid their being submerged during the creation of Lake Nasser, the massive artificial water reservoir formed after the building of the Aswan High Dam on the Nile River. Abu Simbel remains one of Egypt´s top tourist attractions.
FROM WIKIPEDIA
