In this photo you can see the artificial hill constructed to cover the reassembled temple. Originally both temples were on the cliffs by the River Nile, and they were visible from several miles of distance. They were a symbol of the power of Ancient Egypt and of the Pharaoh Ramses II himself.
The salvage operation began in 1964 and finished in 1968. More than 3000 specialists were necessary to cut the Temples into pieces and to rebuild them 60 meters above their previous site.