The main temple, dedicated to imuti-Re, Re-I-larakhte, Ptah and to the king himself, is only one of a number of temples built by this king, and other kings before him, in Egypt’s ‘colonial’ territory Kush.

The temple, and the others like it, was no doubt intended to make an impression on the Nubians and to provide a focal-point for the Egyptian officials serving in this far-flung outpost of empire.

The Egyptians were a people who were very attached to their land, they did not like to be away from home; in temples such as these their gods were brought close to them and their 1 in the form of his Ka or “life force”,

 in some ways comparable to thc ‘genius’ of the Roman cmperor was also close to hand, there to protect them from the dangers they might face and to endow them with his strength for their tasks.

The main temple is an imposing structure; not only is its original construction a magnificent achievement, the dismantling, transport and reconstruction of the temple in modern times, to save it from the waters of the Aswan High Dam, is a comparable feat. The temple has been completely hewn out of the living rock, yet its design and proportions are perfect.

In front of the temple, as though in front of a pylon of a normal temple, stand four colossal statues of the king. As with other statues of this size, we are amazed at their fine proportions, and the fine modelling of the heads.