Why a Nubian temple is in Spain
21 January 2025
It's 1968. Spanish dictator Francisco Franco is at the height of his power, Spain is in desperate need of friends abroad, and the wounds of a traumatic civil war have not yet healed. Then, a plane from Egypt arrives. It carries hundreds of marked stones, a set of building instructions, and an unwritten, yet clear message: "thank you".
This is the story of the Debod Temple, a 2,200-year-old temple - which is considered Nubian because it was originally located in Lower Nubia, a region that straddles southern Egypt and northern Sudan - was donated by Egypt to Spain. It was a sign of gratitude for helping save 22 Ancient Egyptian monuments and buildings during the construction of the Aswan Dam in southern Egypt. Decades later, it has endured it all: droughts, abandonment, dismantling, displacement – but rain, experts now fear, could be the straw that breaks the camel's back.
 | Carlos Caselles Italy and the Netherlands also received temples from Egypt for their assistance during the Nubia Campaign. They can be visited in Turin and Leiden, are of ancient Egyptian and Roman Egyptian style (respectively) and unlike Debod, which stands proudly in a park in Madrid, are kept indoors following Egypt's recommendation. |
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