Abu Simbel (or Ipsambul) is a village in southern Egypt on Lake Nasser - that portion of the Nile River which forms a huge reservoir behind the Aswan High Dam. There are two massive temples dating from c.1250 B.C. These were hewn out of the rock cliffs on the Nile's west bank during the reign of Ramses II. Between 1964 and 1966, an international project, using UNESCO aid, rescued the temples from the rising waters of the Lake. They were dismantled, lifted some 61 m (200 feet) and reassembled. Today, the temples have a relationship to the River almost identical to their original configuration.