The majestic Philae temple of Aswan

One of the most beautiful and truly captivating areas to Visit in Egypt without a Doubt ar ethe cities of Luxor and Aswan. Easily accessible by a Nile Cruise 2023 these two cities surrounding the Nile banks are filled to the brim with the best of Egypt’s archaeological discoveries such as the Valley of the Kings, Karnak and Luxor temples amongst others. One of the Mosttryly amazing places to visit is the Amazing Philae temple in Aswan, the creme de la creme of attractions in Aswan.  Imbued with Mystery a plethora of questions have been asked about the temple which we will answer in this article

• Location of temple 
• when was and who built it?
• History of Philae temple

Where is the Philea Temple? 

Evident from the name the phial temple is located in the ever captivating Agikia Island., an island located in the Aswan's low dam reservoir downstream of Lake Nasser and Aswan Dam. However, the aforementioned location is not the original position of the  Philae temple as due to the constant floodings the area was falling victim to, the entirety of the temple was moved to the close by Agikia island. This relocation was part of a UNESCO campaign project for the sake of protecting the temple and other similar constructs before the completion of the Aswan High dam.

One of the things that separate the Philae islands is there unparalleled archaeological and architectural wealth most in near-mint condition. The most ancient of those structures is believed to be the Philae temple or otherwise named the “Isis Temple” is believed to have been built during the reign of Nectanebo I in between 362-389 BC. The other principal structures are situated at the south end on the smaller islands, with the other ruins mostly sharing a more roman influence.

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History of the Philae Temple:

The cycle of events in the island in general and the temple could be traced through a couple of eras with the history of both correlating and intertwining with one another. During the Pharaonic Era, the name of the island meant “ boundary” and was kept in good shape as the Egyptian utilized it as a garrison due to it being a southern border, with the greek and Romans following in their footsteps. The oldest structure at the time would have been the shrine built by pharaoh Tahraqa, most likely dedicated to the Deity Amun. there was also a small kiosk built by prismatic II of the 26th Dynasty and was the first sign of isis worship in the Island

Moving forward to the Ptolemaic era. Two-thirds of the still surviving structures were built in this Era making the Island a prominent and well-known sight of pilgrimage not just for the Egyptians but all the way from Greece, Anatolia and create. This era is also the era in which the Island received additional pieces from the Nubian king, Arqamani. The Roman era was an era of neglect dor the Island  and the Philae temple even the aforementioned pilgrimages seized to be a reoccurring thing despite several Romans emperors contributing to the many existing relics on the island Later in 1873 to 1874 the island started to regain traction again with several foreign novel writers describing the beauty of the area such as Amelia, Adwars and egyptologists such as Joseph Bonomi the younger.

Finally, throughout the nineties and into the 2oth century the Philea temple continued to garner attention Edgehill before the construction of the Aswan low dam. As before the Dam whenever a flood occurred almost the entirety of the island would be submerged which lead to the UNESCO Campaign to preserve the temple and the other relics on the island in 1960.

To sum it all up both the  Philea temple and the island are not merely a piece of land infused and overflowing with history. Its a tale of love, appreciation of heritage, diversity and a tale recited by one of the best Aswan attractions known to man, the Philae temple.

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