Kalabsha Temple reopens in June

Restoration work is continuing on Kalabsha Temple in southern Egypt and the project should be completed in June, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council for Antiquities (SCA) Gaballah Ali Gaballah said yesterday.

The restoration, which includes cleaning and repairing the temple's floors, walls and ceilings, is being carried out by the SCA in cooperation with the Nubian Antiquities Fund. Total restoration costs are expected to hit L.E 3 million. The government is also installing a sound and light system, as well as a dock on Lake Nasser to receive tourists.

Kalabsha Temple was one of several ancient monuments relocated in the 1960s as part of a UNESCO campaign to save Egyptian monuments threatened by the establishment of the Aswan High Dam.

During a recent visit, UNESCO's general director agreed to allocate funds to study the possibility of adding new antiquity sites in Nubia to the World Heritage List.