WHY is there a small hole in the Grand Egyptian Museum's facade?
Bad craftsmanship? Not quite!
Read on—there's a fascinating reason behind it! 😉
#GEM #Archaeology #museum
This is so cool! On the facade of the Grand Egyptian Museum, you'll notice a small hole in the wall, and at first sight, you might think it's a ventilation shaft, but it is in fact such a fascinating feature!
You see, this opening was specially designed to recreate one of the greatest phenomena in ancient Egyptian history: the alignment of the sun with the face of Ramses II in his temple at Abu Simbel.
So, on February 22 and October 22 (dates that are believed to mark his birthday and coronation), sunlight is directed to illuminate the face of the colossal statue of Ramses II inside the museum, echoing the original phenomenon at Abu Simbel.
Brilliant, isn't it?