Ramses II was born about 1303 B.C. ( February 22 ) in the Eastern Nile Delta. Following the death of his grandfather Ramses I and father Seti 1, Ramses 111 assumed the throne in 1279 B.C. He erected colossal monuments to himself in every major Egyptian city of his time. He built a great city called Pi - Ramses (House of Ramses), built temples in Abydos and Simbel, added to the temples at Karnak and Luxor.
On February 22, we celebrate a significant occasion, as the sun rays fall perpendicularly on the Temple of RamsesII.
Over 3000 years after his death, the miracle still occurs regularly. The rays of the rising sun reach 61 meters into the sacred inner sanctuary of the temple of Ramses II in Abu Simbel on February 22 and October 22 each year - as they have illuminated the shrine for millennia. For twenty minutes the sun shines on the holy statues of Ramses II, Amon Ra ( the sun god ), and Ra-Harakhty, god of the rising sun. Ptah, god of the under world and darkness, seated at the far left of the row of gods, remains dark on these occasions. Some things never change.
Originally built into the face of a cliff, the Temple was moved to safety 200 meters inland from its original site. The project completed by an international team of 3000 specialists, cut the temple into 2000 pieces, carved the entire temple out of the cliff and reconstructed both cliff and temple nearby . It took five years and $ 40 million to complete, one of the most ambitious relocation projects in history.
One of the five years of reconstruction work was spent just figuring out how to place the temple, so that the rising sun would continue to illuminate the inner sanctuary on those two days.

Also see Calendar ( October , 22 ) <cl221096.htm>

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Originally posted by Rhi_Sarah:
Isn't it amazing that the Ancient Egyptians were able to engineer and design the temple so that the sun's rays would fall like this? It's incrediable!

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Yes it was, but they are not the only ones, and most likely we will find older stuctures in Africa with such precision. Stone henge is much older and shows a knowledge of the heavens also, possibly to the same extent. The knowledge goes way beyond what is currently accepted.

Ozzy

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Originally posted by Ozzy:
Yes it was, but they are not the only ones, and most likely we will find older stuctures in Africa with such precision. Stone henge is much older and shows a knowledge of the heavens also, possibly to the same extent. The knowledge goes way beyond what is currently accepted.

Ozzy

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To me this is one of the most fascinating aspects of ancient cultures. I'm sure their knowledge of the heavens goes much farther back. The huge stone structure found at Nabta Playa was probably some sort of calendar. It was probably this same knowledge of the heavens that they used to predict the flooding of the Nile, the equinoxes, and definitely their lunar and solar calendars. I agree that we've probably just scratched the surface.

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Originally posted by Rhi_Sarah:
Work was first begun on Stonehenge circia 2950 BC - 2900BC ( Middle Neolithic era.)It is comprised a circular bank, ditch, and counterscarp bank of about 330 feet (100 metres) in diameter. Just inside the earth bank is a circle of the 56 Aubrey holes that held wooden posts. After 2900 BCE and for approximately the next 500 years (until 2400 BCE), post holes indicate timber settings in the centre of the monument and at the north-eastern entrance. The Aubrey Holes no longer held posts but were partially filled, some with cremation deposits added to the fill. The numerous post holes indicate timber structures but no clear patterns or configurations are discernible that would suggest their shape, form, or function.
During Phase III the monument underwent a complicated sequence of settings of large stones. The first stone setting comprised a series of Bluestones placed in what are known as the Q and R Holes (sub-phase 3i). These were subsequently dismantled and a circle of Sarsens and a horseshoe-shaped arrangement of Trilithons erected.

Stonehenge Phase III (c. 2550-1600 BCE)
The Sarsen Circle, about 108 feet (33 metres) in diameter, was originally comprised of 30 neatly trimmed upright sandstone blocks of which only 17 are now standing. The stones are evenly spaced approximately 1.0 to 1.4 metres apart, and stand on average 13 feet (4 metres) above the ground. They are about 6.5 feet (2 metres) wide and 3 feet (1 metre) thick and taper towards the top. They originally supported sarsen lintels forming a continuous circle around the top. Each lintel block has been shaped to the curve of the circle. The average length of the rectangular lintels is 3.2 metres (10' 6"). The lintels were fitted end-to end using tongue-and-groove joints, and fitted on top of the standing sarsen with mortice and tenon joints. The Sarsen Circle with its lintels is perhaps the most remarkable feature of Stonehenge in terms of design, precision stonework, and engineering.

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All correct but you missed the most recent finds as follows

BC 8000 to 7000 Large wooden posts standing in deep holes, now located in the visitor's car park. Found when the car park was being renivated.

3500 Date of the human bones found buried at the termination of the ditches surrounding the monument. These bones must have been preserved after the death of the person and kept for many years as they are much older than the date proposed for the construction of the ditches themselves.

Dates have not been coonfirmed however!

Ozzy