Nubian Village & Museum

Taking its name from the ancient Egyptian nbu, meaning gold, in reference to the area's famous gold mines, Nubia was historically Egypt's gateway to the rest of Africa. From the time of the Old Kingdom, circa 2500 bc, Nubia went through alternating periods of independence and domination by Egypt, and by the Twenty-Fifth Dynasty it was enjoying long periods of stable self-rule and prosperity.

Its lands lie partly in Egypt and partly in Sudan, and most of the northern region was submerged in 1971 when the Aswan High Dam was opened and a section of the Nile Valley flooded to form Lake Nasser.

Entering at ground level, visitors are led down to the main exhibition area, where they find the museum's centrepiece: a statue of Rameses II (1304-1237 bc), builder of the great temple at Abu Simbel.

Nubian Museum at Aswan