Great and Small Temples of Abu Simbel Great and Small Temples of Abu Simbel The Great and Small Temples in Abu Simbel are massive rock-cut temples built by Pharaoh Ramesses II during Dynasty 19 of the New Kingdom. They were originally built in Nubia next to the Second Cataract, but since the construction of the Aswan High Dam, they have been moved to their present location in the Aswan Governorate. They were built both to show Egypt’s influence over rich Nubia and to show Ramesses II as a god. Today they are preserved as a part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site's "Nubian monuments". Ramesses II was
Kadesh inscriptions reliefs. Eight copies survive today on the temples at Abydos, Karnak, Luxor and Abu Simbel, with reliefs depicting the battle. In addition to these lengthy presentations, there are also numerous small captions used to point out various elements of the battle. Outside of the inscriptions, a hieratic copy of the "Poem" is preserved in the "Raifet-Sallier papyrus", of which the first page is lost, the second page ("Papyrus Raifet") is in the Louvre and the third page ("Papyrus Sallier III") is in the British Museum. However, this is considered to be an inaccurate copy. Cuneiform references to the battle have