Monuments to visit Aswan

The first Aswan Dam was built between 1898 and 1902 at the request of the British Governor. The aim was to regulate the flooding of the Nile in order to make better use of agricultural land. Similarly, the end of the flood allowed the development of Cairo, without fear of flooding. This first dam was raised twice. It was after its elevation that the island of Philae was submerged. Under the aegis of UNESCO, the temple of Philae was moved to the island of Agikia between 1972 and 1980.

Still welded to the rock from which it was to be extracted, it rests with its entire mass (1,200 tonnes) and length (42 m) on its granite bed. Abandoned as it was and left unfinished because of cracks that appeared in some places, it would have been the largest obelisk known once erected. The surrounding area is a former quarry where the workers used to work to remove the enormous blocks of stone that looked like temples, palaces or deities.

The work was insane, judge! You had to start by hammering the rock with a stone as hard as dolorite, until a sufficiently wide and deep notch was made. Wooden wedges, previously soaked in water, were driven in, and as they dried, the wedges expanded and shattered the rock. The operation was carried out on three sides. Depending on its use, it was roughened on the spot, sometimes even almost finished. It was then placed on a wooden sledge and taken down to the river by a special ramp. It was made of rubble, on which the masons sealed several layers of bricks covered with a thick layer of silt kept wet and slippery.

The felucca, in charge of transporting the blocks, landed a little before the receding water level near the bank. Once aground, there was time to load the felucca. At the next flood, the boat was afloat and set sail for the delivery. Unloading was carried out in the same manner.