There are few complete architectural testimonies that can be found outside of Egypt, the Temple of Debod is one of them and the only one existing in Spain.
This funerary monument is one of the main tourist places in Madrid and also one of the most visited, where photography enthusiasts will delight.
Since the construction of the Great Aswan Dam, the temples, which in other times had been places of worship for Egyptian and Nubian deities, were covered for much of the year by the waters of the Nile.
Faced with the disastrous situation of the monuments and archaeological sites of Lower Nubia, Unesco is carrying out the largest archaeological salvage operation of all time, which will begin in 1960 and end in 1980. Spain is one of the countries that participated in this campaign.
As a token of appreciation, in 1968 Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser presented the Temple of Debod. The large blocks of stone having been completely disassembled, they arrived at the port of Valencia in 1970 from Alexandria and were transported by truck to their current location in Madrid, on the site of the old Cuartel de la Montaña, in the area called Montaña del Príncipe Pío. In the placement it was tried to maintain the same orientation that it had in Egypt, from east to west.
After its reconstruction, it was opened to the public in 1972.
The original site of the Temple of Debod is located in Lower Nubia 16 kilometers from Aswan in a town with the same name as the temple. Its age is about 2200 years.
The Temple of Debod contains reliefs showing the king of Meroe Adijalamani. This king, successor to King Arqamani, built around 180 BC. from C. the Temple of Debod in the shape of a chapel for the devotion of the god Amun and the goddess Isis. Later it was enlarged by Pharaoh Ptolemy VI Philometor and Cleopatra II
The Temple of Debod is made up of a main building and two portals. The oldest part of the temple is the Adijalamani Chapel, the architectural core of the sanctuary.
On May 27, 2017, visits to the interior of the Temple were closed until further notice, so if you have in mind to get closer, it is better to call the tourist information center beforehand.
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