The Egyptian island of Philae was the centre of the cult of the goddess Isis. The original ancient temple island was completely submerged in the waters of Lake Nasser after the construction of the Aswan Dam. As part of the rescue operation, all of Philae's great temples and monuments were removed from the water and rebuilt on a neighbouring island, which was renamed Philae.
This island was one of the last outposts of Egyptian religion, surviving the Roman Empire's conversion to Christianity by two centuries. The earliest structure on the island is thought to be a small temple of Isis, built around 370 B.C. A number of rulers later expanded it into the Great Temple of Isis. Other ruins date mainly from the Ptolemaic kingdom (282-145 BC), with many traces of the Roman era.
The sacred island attracted many Greek and Roman pilgrims who went to pray for healing to the mysterious Egyptian goddess Isis. Even after the banning of other faiths by Emperor Marcian in 451, Nubian priests were allowed to make offerings to Isis on the island of Philae. The temples of the island were finally closed in 535 AD by order of Emperor Justinian. Some of the buildings were converted for Christian worship, and a Coptic community settled on Philae, which lived on the island until the arrival of Islam.
To the ancient temple of Isis, the passage from the river led through a double colonnade. In front of the propylaea (front gate) were two huge lions made of granite, behind them rose paired obelisks 13 metres high. The gates were pyramidal in shape and colossal in size. At each corner of the sanctuary stood a monolithic temple, the "cage of the Sacred Hawk". These shrines have now been moved to the Louvre in Paris and the museum in Florence.
Next came smaller temples dedicated to Isis, Hathor and various deities associated with medicine and fertility. Their walls were covered with bas-reliefs with scenes depicting the birth of Ptolemy under the figure of the god Horus. There are images of Osiris everywhere on the walls, and two interior rooms are particularly rich in ancient symbols. On two propylaea, carved Greek inscriptions overlap with partially destroyed Egyptian figures.
The images were badly damaged as early as the first Christians and iconoclasts. To the south of the monumental structure is a small temple dedicated to Hathor, the few surviving columns crowned with the head of this goddess. Its portico consisted of twelve columns. Their tops are in various shapes and combinations of palm branches and lotus flowers. The columns and the sculptures on them, ceilings and walls were painted with bright colours that had lost their original lustre due to the dryness of the climate.
In the 18th and 19th centuries, the island became known as a beautiful holiday destination and a popular resort with a salubrious climate. When the first Aswan Dam was built, the island began to go underwater for much of the year. The grey colouring at the bottom of the temples is a reminder of this period.
The new high-rise dam project threatened the existence of the island, then it was decided to dismantle and relocate the temples. International organisations under the auspices of UNESCO carried out a series of works between 1972 and 1980. The island of Philae was surrounded by a protective causeway, water was drained from it and the neighbouring island of Agilkia was cleared and prepared for the architectural masterpieces. The temples were divided into sections and carefully numbered, and then re-installed in the same positions on the new site. While the two Coptic churches and monastery, the ruins of the Temple of Augustus and the large Roman city gates could not be moved, they remained there on the underwater island of Philae. The government hopes to restore them later.
