The Great Temple of Ramses II and the slightly smaller Hathor Temple dedicated to his wife Nefertari, which together form the temple complex of Abu Simbel, are among the most famous and spectacular monuments in Egypt. The imposing main temple of the Abu Simbel complex was carved into the mountain on the west bank of the Nile between 1274 and 1244 BC and was dedicated to the deified Ramses II himself as well as to Re-Harachte, Amun-Re and Ptah. The four colossal statues of the pharaoh in front of the temple look like gigantic sentinels guarding the incoming traffic from the south and are intended as a warning of the pharaoh's strength and might.

The roof of the great hall is decorated with vultures symbolizing the protective goddess Nekhbet and is supported by eight columns, in front of each of which stands an Osirid statue of Ramses II. Reliefs on the walls show the pharaoh's courage in battle. On the north wall is a depiction of the famous Battle of Kadesh (ca. 1274 BC) in present-day Syria, in which Ramses inspired his demoralized army to win the battle against the Hittites. The scene is dominated by a famous relief showing Ramses in his chariot shooting arrows at his fleeing enemies. The Egyptian camp, walled in by the round shields of its soldiers, and the fortified Hittite city surrounded by the River Orontes can also be seen. The next room, the four-columned vestibule, in which Ramses and Nefertari are depicted before the gods and the solar barques, leads into the sanctuary, where Ramses and the triad of gods of the Great Temple sit on their thrones.

Next to the Great Temple of Ramses II is the smaller temple of Abu Simbel. The Temple of Hathor has a façade carved into the rock, in front of which stand six 10-metre-high statues of Ramses and Nefertari, with some of their numerous children at their side. Nefertari here wears the garb of the goddess Hathor and, unusually, is depicted at the same height as her husband (and not knee-high like most pharaoh consorts). Inside, the six columns of the hypostyle hall are crowned with capitals in the shape of Hathor. On the walls, the queen appears before the gods, who are very similar to Ramses II, and she can be seen honoring her husband. The vestibule and the adjoining rooms with colorful scenes of the goddess and her sacred barque lead to the sanctuary, where a statue of Hathor as a cow protrudes from the rock.

The temple complex was originally located in a place where the flooding of the Nasser reservoir would have led to the destruction of the monuments. In a concerted effort, UNESCO financed and directed the dismantling of the temples from 1964 to 1968. They were rebuilt true to the original at a higher point, the current location.