Temple of Wadi El-Sebua

The name in Arabic means “Valley of the Lions”, referring to the avenue of sphinxes that leads up to this temple, which was built during the reign of Ramesses II. Though it was moved to its current location only in the1960’s, it was quickly forgotten and neglected.

By the time it became a frequent tourist attraction again in the 1990’s when cruises started running on Lake Nasser, it was partially filled with sand. The affect of its unkempt appearance and remote location is to give visitors the feeling that they are themselves discovering this temple for the first time.

The temple is partially constructed out of stone blocks, but the inner sanctuary is actually carved into the bedrock. Originally, the temple offered three pylons, but only two of them survive.

The first leading to the avenue of sphinxes is no longer here, but the second, leading into a forecourt decorated by statues of Ramesses II and the third, revealing to a second courtyard supported by columns decorated by images of Ramesses as Osiris remain.

The hypostyle hall and inner sanctuary that follow these courtyards were carved into the bedrock.

Nearby Wadi El-Seboua is the Temple of Dakka, which was built during the Ptolemaic era in the third century BC

This site is notable because of the huge and well-preserved pylon that remains here. You can climb on top of the pylon to enjoy impressive views of the surrounding landscape with the desert in one direction and the lake in the other.