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Philae Temple Complex

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wanderluster
wanderluster
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Editor Pick

Fantastic Photogenic Antiquity

  • September 19, 2009
  • Rated 5 of 5 by garymarsh6 from Gravesend, United Kingdom
Fantastic Photogenic Antiquity

The Temple of Philae.


The temple of Philae is perhaps one of the most picturesque temples on the Nile. Prior to the building of the dam it was situated on another small island but because of the building of the lower Nile dam it covered it under the waters of Lake Nasser completely submerging it. The paint was stripped off the temples by the rising and falling of the water levels. It was therefore dismantled into 40,000 blocks piece by piece weighing and estimated 20,000 tons, catalogued and moved to its present site on the Island of Angilika. It took 8 years to move it and reassemble it. You can see pictures of it on the internet submerged in the water.


The temple is dedicated to Isis and the God Osiris who was the Egyptian God of the afterlife and the underworld. To visit the temple you have to take a small boat over a large expanse of water. It is an absolutely brilliant sight as you see if from afar and get nearer. There is a hive of activity at the landing stage and the boats piloted by local Nubians jostling for a place to offload their passengers to race back and bring more.

Walking up the ramp and stairway you reach the top and are stunned by the sheer beauty of the temple complex. To the right there is a large arena where they hold Sound and light concerts describing the mythology of the great Egyptian Gods. This take place after nightfall when different parts of the temple are lit as the story unfolds.

Beyond this on the right hand side is the superb Roman Hypaethral temple built by the Roman Emperor Trajan. This temple looks like a typical Roman temple which would have had no roof. Apparently at some point during its history a wooden roof was put on the building. Beyond that is a square with numbered large pieces of stone that appears to have lost their way and seem to be spare with no where to go. It is quite a stunning building.


Looking left you see the massive temple complex to Osiris. Walking over to the temple you first enter a massive square surrounded by columned walkways. There are several side chapels leading off from the square. At the top of the square is the Temple of Osiris. There are two massive pylons either side of the main entrance which are quite magnificent with carvings on the façade. There are two granite statues of lions guarding the entrance. Walking up the ramp to the entrance you enter into a small courtyard surrounded by pillars and hieroglyphics on the walls. After passing through this courtyard you enter the Hypostyle hall where there are large columns inside. Carrying on you pass side chambers on either side of the aisle one side to the right is the vestibule and on the other side the Ostian rooms. All around the temple there are hieroglyphics telling stories of Osiris, Isis, Horus, Seth and Sobek.
You finally enter the Sanctuary.

Exiting this fantastic temple and walking around the perimeter you are awestruck by the amount of hieroglyphics and paintings on the outer walls of the temple. They are very detailed indeed. To the left hand side of the temple there is a set of small temples a gateway to one of the ruined temples is named after the Emperor Hadrian which leads to the ruined temple of Harendotes. This brings you back to the massive colonnaded square at the front of the temple.

This temple is one of the most enjoyable temples to walk around. It is quite a large site with many things to see both inside and on the outside of the temple. The surrounding waters make it a unique and calm setting despite the thousands of tourists visiting the Island. If possible it it best to visit the island early in the morning before the hoards of tourists arrive. There are hundreds of little sailing boats manned by local Nubian men all vying for your custom it is quite manic getting in and out of the boats and the boats are often rammed by another boat trying to dump their passengers so they can go back and get more.

From journal The Ancient Delights of the Middle East

Most Beautiful Temple Location

  • May 31, 2009
  • Rated 3 of 5 by ShannonBrooke from Somerville, Massachusetts
Most Beautiful Temple Location

Philae temple is another beautiful temple, built similarly to Edfu. This one is dedicated to Isis. It has a beautiful setting, but it is still too crowded. From Aswan, you take a ferry across the Nile to the island where the temple has been moved. It's previous island is underwater now, but the spot is still visible from its new location. It looks so natural in its new location that it's hard to imagine that it was moved so recently! Having it on an island means no noisy tour buses cluttering up the view, and a lovely ride across the Nile.

I really got annoyed with the giant Japanese tour group that showed up. My group of 15 waited patiently to enter the small inner sanctum so that we could learn about it. After another group left, we filed in. A Japanese tour group started to push and bang past us - one little old lady actually knocked me back a few feet. They all pushed into the inner sanctum so that we had no room to breathe. I had to run out because i was getting claustrophobic. I was so angry at them for being impolite (and although I won't write a whole entry about it here, I actually got into a fight with a similarly composed tour group of Japanesesenior citizens at the airport check-in a few days later - when they pushed past me in a line to check in, including rolling heavy suitcase over my foot, until I physically stood between me and one of them - who started to yell at me and push me and I just kept saying "No, not acceptable, not okay. You have to wait your turn.")

Anyway, the cafe at Philae temple is the best. The cappuccino is delicious and you can sip it while looking out at the Nile. It was a nice day when we were there. I highly recommend going out here, seeing the temple, and then kicking back for a while in the cafe. Relaxation can be hard to come by in Egypt.

From journal Nepenthe in the Nile

Editor Pick

Philae Temple Complex

Philae Temple Complex

The Temple of Isis at Philae is a modern complex. Well, compared to many of the other sites you will visit in Egypt it is. Its remains date from the period of Ptolemaic and later Roman rule, and hence were constructed at least a thousand years later than, say, Abu Simbel. These new interloper dynasties (hailing from Macedonia and Italy respectively) found it made sense to associate themselves with Egypt's indigenous pantheon to win over their new subjects. Of all the Egyptian gods and goddesses it was that of Isis, the loving and mysterious mother-goddess, that spread furthest throughout the Roman empire. As wife of the slaughtered god Osiris and mother of Horus, with whom the pharoahs associated themselves, she attained the honoured position of quasi-mother to the rulers of Egypt. And the complex at Philae, opposite the holy Biga Island where part of Osiris' dismembered body was supposedly buried, was one of the cult's centres.

From Aswan you will need to hire a taxi to take you to Shallal, south of the British 1902 dam. Here there is a flotilla of simple boats that can ferry you across to the island. Apparently some of them can even get there in one trip without sputtering to a halt and requiring you to transfer to a second boat, but I wouldn't know about that!

The trip there takes you along the west side of the island, the dun coloured temple suddenly appearing between green palm fronds and the towering piles of grey boulders that frame the lake. You chug past a ceremonial gate constructed in the reign of the Emperor Hadrian, the side of the tall wedge-shaped pylons, and a long colonnade topped with carved flowers to reach the landing stage at the southern tip of Philae. Disembarking, you progress down columned collonades (the western once looking over towards sacred Biga Island) to reach the large first pylon with its preternaturally clear carvings of gods cheering on the Ptolemaic pharoah Neos Dionysos (more smiting). The passageway is the site of yet more European graffiti, left by Napoleonic troops in Year 7 of the French Republic. Beyond there is a jumble of chambers, all adorned with engraved gods and supplicants, and telling the story of the raising of the infant Horus by Isis. A hypostyle hall leads down to the sanctuary. Apparently you can access the roof where there is sited a shrine to Osiris, but I found all the dark stairways forbiddingly gated off.

The remainder of the island is dotted by the architectural follies of a string of Roman Emperors, including Augustus, Trajan, Claudius, Hadrian, Marcus Aurelius and Diocletian. The most eye-catching is the Kiosk of Trajan, a square roofless shrine which - with its angles thrown into clear relief by the afternoon sun, looks to have been designed by MC Escher. It has been nicknamed 'The Pharoah's Bedstead', for reasons that become clear upon viewing. Make sure you save space on your camera for one more shot of the Kiosk as you leave, as the boatride circles the isle to the east, offering a magical view of it overhanging the water.

On the trip back you may have pointed out to you some metal rods protruding from the water. This was the original site of Philae Island. After the British built the first Aswan dam in 1902 the temple would be submerged for half the year - tourists would peer down at the angles of masonry below them in the water. Once it became clear that the new Soviet-funded High Dam would drown the temple complex forever a UNESCO-sponsored operation dissasembled the brickwork and reconstructed it on the higher Agilka Island, painstakingly landscaped to resemble the topography of the original. The only difference is that its orientation no longer looks west towards Osiris's holy isle. Instead the god's remains are underwater somewhere to the east of Agilka Island.

Entry is E£40, but this does not include the cost of transport. The doorman at our hotel organised a Mercedes taxi to take us to the landing stage for another E£40 roundtrip - this included boat fare which our taxi driver arranged for us (but not the baksheesh expected at the end of the trip). If you do organise a return make sure you are clear when and where your driver will be waiting for you. We had an anxious ten minutes contemplating a sweaty walk back to town when ours failed to turn up as expected.

Philae also hosts a son et lumiere show several times an evening. I did not go, but those of my friends who did rated it very highly - it takes you on a tour of the temple whilst relating the myths behind it. They also said that the voiceover was 'narrated' by a donkey, but I think they were pulling my leg... Tickets for this cost E£60, which is not much more than a normal unescorted ticket, and so works out as a pretty good deal.

For those of you into ancient remains, Philae is *the* site to see between Luxor and Abu Simbel. Moreover it is a darn sight easier to reach than Abu Simbel. At the very least its atmospheric columns and pylons, sited in the middle of a lake, make for a memorable visit. I think a trip will appeal to children in particular.

From journal Frontier of the Pharoahs

Philae Temple Complex

  • July 10, 2002
  • Rated 4 of 5 by akakd from , Arizona
Philae Temple Complex

Philae is a blend of Egyptian & Greco-Roman architecture, in perfect harmony. In Roman times, this was the most important pilgrimage center in Egypt. It was also the last functioning temple of ancient religion, closing finally in AD 551.

This was one of my favorite places. It had a romantic feel w/ the magnificent natural surroundings, beautifully carved floral columns, & ever-present love story of Osiris & Isis.

With the construction of the new Aswan High Dam, Philae Temple was threatened w/ complete & permanent submersion. In a massive operation led by UNESCO & the Egyptian Antiquities Organization, the island of Agilkia was reshaped into an exact replica of Philae, & the Temple of Isis, the Temple of Hathor, & Trajan's Kiosk were relocated to its drier ground. The relocated Philae was reopened in all its splendor, tide marks & all, in 1980. A remarkable feat!

For a bit of romance, return to Philae by night for the sound & light show.

From journal Aswan to Abu Simbel & More

Philae Island

  • July 9, 2002
  • Rated 3 of 5 by comrade from LONDON, United Kingdom
Situated between the two dams lies the impressive temple complex at Philae Island, like Abu Simbel relocated to avoid being submerged. Hire a taxi for the trip to the jetty where you purchase an entry ticket and can pick up a boat to the island for 4USD return (if you haggle) – or if you’re a penny pincher like me hang around until someone you can share with comes along, or try to blag your way onto someone else’s boat.

Various original buildings remain, including a well-preserved pylon (a characteristic feature of Egyptian temples) with massive carvings and the impressive birth house. There are also some Roman remains on the island, although, despite being more modern, these are less well preserved. It’s nothing like the scale of Karnak, but the island setting is very attractive.

Can easily be combined with a trip to the High Dam and the unfinished obelisk, which as you might expect is, well, unfinished. It's 30m long, so they must have gone mental when they realised there was a flaw in the rock!

From journal Aswan - a cultural tour

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