Egypt: Engineering an Empire Page #10

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Syria, with 20,000 men ...

greater strength Egyptian

that history knows.

They had, by this time,

discovered the chariot, the double arrow ...

several other weapons

and instruments of war.

Certainly, in the ancient world, they

were among the greatest warriors.

Although the forces of Pharaoh

were formidable ...

the Hittites were still

more soldiers.

Even fewer,

Ramses fought to a bloody stalemate ...

and returned home a hero.

Bas-reliefs were carved

to commemorate the bravery of the pharaoh ...

walls

numerous buildings ...

including his great temple

Abu Simbel.

The construction of began

around 1269 a.C. ..

in the 10th year of the reign of Ramses.

Their engineers used

similar process ...

the construction of graves

in the Valley of the Kings.

All colossal sculptures

were carved ...

by a set of people

working together ...

built all these pieces colossal.

And we know ...

by representations

the tomb of Rekhmire ...

showing the workshops of the temples,

the sculptors worked ...

with statues of proportions

huge, three-dimensional ...

appear and carving

the face, shoulders, arms ...

the body and legs.

And all this

huge community effort ...

they created a work of art

with perfect proportions.

they created a work of art

with perfect proportions....

are the largest and

already carved in Egypt.

Inside a complex

Templar was cut ...

within a colossal rock.

Only the first lobby has more

eight majestic statues of the pharaoh.

Besides them, there are a number

other quarters.

In the second hall, a shrine

and lower chambers that can ...

have served as deposits

for sacred offerings.

Every facet of the temple was designed

to send a clear message ...

to all who entered. Ramses the Great

was a god among men.

Ramses II appears not only

worshiping the gods ...

but also worshiping

deified his own image.

So we Pharaoh Ramses II

Ramses II worshiping God.

And all this

happened throughout his life.

The heart of the temple

is your sanctuary ...

lying 60m inside the mountain.

Inside are four statues

the most powerful gods of Egypt:

Ptah, the creator god,

Amon, the supreme god ...

Ramses the living god

and Ra-Harakhty, the sun god.

Twice a year,

on February 22 and October ...

the rays of the rising sun reach

busts of three gods ...

associated with it, Rameses,

Amon-Ra and Harakhty.

Some Egyptologists attribute

significance of these dates ...

as Pharaoh's birthday

and his coronation.

Others, attribute to mere chance.

This is very normal. If you look

in your home, anywhere ...

the sun hits certain

place twice a year.

This is very natural.

Beside the great temple

is another, built ...

in honor of the beloved Queen

Ramses, Nefertari.

Pharaoh could have any woman he wanted,

but his heart belonged only to her.

Nefertari is absolutely beautiful

in their representations.

She must have been really

stunning and actually ...

no inscriptions say

she was a woman ...

by whom the north wind blew.

At the outside of the

her temple, there are six statues.

Four of Ramesses and two of Nefertari,

each with a height of 10m.

This is the oldest Egyptian temple

in which the statues of Queen ...

are as high as those of the King, which

demonstrates the high prestige of it.

As is deified Ramses

in his temple ...

Nefertari also is

in your own temple.

Nefertari, in fact, it was shown

as the goddess Hathor.

She became a deity,

equal to her husband.

During the reign of Ramses the Great

The Abu-Simbel temples in ...

rose like stately

reminders for travelers from the north ...

that a powerful empire

amounted to just over the horizon.

That empire built

in nearly two millenniums ...

would spend a thousand years

following declining.

In a few centuries after the death

Ramses the Great in 1212 a.c. ..

New Empire had fallen,

victim of the same circumstances ...

which had destroyed previous:

Leaders increasingly weak ...

and economic depression.

Through the centuries, strong attacks

of foreign conquerors ...

Nubians, Libyans, Assyrians, Persians and

by Alexander the Great and the Greeks ...

took Egypt. Finally, the

suicide of legendary Cleopatra VII ...

Octavian and the legions of Rome

invaded their land ...

and that was the end of ancient Egypt.

Through the centuries, the temples were

buried by the sands of the desert ...

lost in history as

the civilization that built them.

But in our time, they were reborn

and again stand ...

to proclaim

power and ingenuity ...

the first world empire.

The Egyptians built

foundations of engineering.

It was they who

invented engineering.

Without the help of computers or cranes,

Egyptian engineers have created ...

monumental masterpieces.

Witnesses not only ...

sophisticated understanding of their

of architectural principles ...

but also their ability

gather in large quantities ...

of men and materials to execute it.

The Egyptians built

in much larger ...

than all others for millennia.

They must have had

an immense confidence in themselves ...

and capacity building.

But the imposing structures left

Egyptians are the result ...

much more than granite,

limestone and workers.

They represent the unrivaled genius,

technology unmatched ...

and the beginning of the eternal struggle of mankind

to build a bridge ...

between the human and the divine.

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