Abu Simbel is named after Gamal Abdel Nasser, Egyptian president from 1954 to 1970. At the time of Ramses II. the southern border of the realm of the Pharaohs was located near the two cataracts. The construction of the Abu Simbel temple compound there was meant to demonstrate the power and eternal supremacy of Egypt with respect to the tributary Nubia. The new dam flooded all of Lower Nubia, the inhabitants became homeless and were mostly resettled in the areas of Aswan and Kom Ombo. Only in Abu Simbel, a new village developed with hotel and airport. Due to a lack of
Research Centre in Cairo, Polish Centre of Mediterranean Archaeology University of Warsaw about the Polish discoveries at Faras. Even as the first season of excavation at Faras was in full swing, Michałowski was approached by the Egyptian authorities to take on the task of completing the restoration of the Upper Terrace of the Temple of Hatshepsut in Luxor. The work in Deir el-Bahari began in 1961. In 1963, Michałowski headed the international committee of experts created by the Egyptian government to rescue the rock temples of Abu Simbel. The Polish Centre in Cairo was named after its founder by the Senate of the University of Warsaw on 21 December 1983. Its establishment