About 1,270 tourists, including 520 Egyptians, watched the alignment of the sun on the face of King Ramses II on Friday morning at the Abu Simbel temple in Aswan.
The sun falls perpendicularly on the face of the statue of Ramses II twice a year – on October 22 and February 22.
The director of the department of antiquities of Aswan and Nuba, Abdel Moneim Said, confirmed that the phenomenon began at 5:53 am and lasted 23 minutes.
He added that he was watched by more than 81 public figures.
On February 22 and October 22, sunlight also illuminated the statues of the sun gods Re-Horakhte and Amon-Re, standing next to Ramses II.
These statues stand in the company of the Theban god of darkness, Ptah, who remains in the shadows throughout the year.