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One
of the ways our departed pharaoh-god accomplished Hekahis
religious and organizational dutieswas by the many temples, monuments,
and statues he erected to the worship and glory of the gods. The great Ramses
added
to the temples of Amon
at Karnak and the great temples at Luxor, Memphis, Thebes,
and Heliopolis
built
temple at Hermopolis
constructed
a series of sanctuaries in Nubia
along the banks of the Nile
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Abu Simbel
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Perhaps
his most exalted building achievement is among these Nubian sanctuariesthe
magnificent temples of Abu
Simbel, two adjoining temples cut into the solid rock of a cliff overlooking
the Nile. The entryway of the larger temple is flanked by four seated stone
statues of our pharaoh-god, Ramses, each 39
cubits tall. Standing like sentinels at the entryway of the smaller
temple are colossal figures of Ramses II and his wife Nefertari.
Ramses the Great made available his grand funerary temple, the Temple of
a Million Years, as a place of learning for the people. Experts there compile
onomastica
on everything from biology to geography to law to morality. Religious scholars
and scribes study sacred texts. Doctors, magicians, scribes, geologists,
astronomers, architects, surveyors, and artists receive instruction there.
On many monuments and statues, Ramses replaced the names of the lesser pharaohs
who erected them with his own. In this way, Pharaoh Ramses the Great, beloved
of Amon,
has assured that future generations will be aware of his extraordinary stature
among Egyptian rulers.
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