Philae Temple

Bulding phiale Temple

The Philae Temple was built by the last dynasty of ancient Egypt, the Ptolemaic. It is dedicated to Isis, the goddess of healing, birth, and magic, her husband Osiris, and their son Horus. The temple is one of the last places where ancient Egyptian religion survived after Christianity swept the shores in 550 AD. The temple is composed of syenite, with steep walls and summits encompassing the island. Believed to be one of the burying places of Osiris, both the Egyptians and Nubians (or Ethiopians) held the site in high reverence. Only priests were allowed to inhabit the island. The temple of Isis was one of the last ancient Egyptian temples to remain active, as it continued to function until the reign of the Byzantine Emperor Justinian, who ordered the foreclosure of all pagan temples. It is here that a priest of Isis named Esme-Akhom carved the very last dated hieroglyphic inscription, which dates to the late 4th century. The temple was converted into a Christian church and many inscriptions were deliberately destroyed. All these monuments were relocated from the original Philae Island to the nearby island of Aglaia during the UNESCO Nubia Campaign in the 1960’s to rescue sites flooded by the construction of the Aswan High Dam.