After Egyptian officials began planning the Aswan High Dam project on the Nile in 1954, she met with General Nasser to voice concerns that 32 ancient temples and chapels in southern Nubia were facing submersion. UNESCO helped mobilize a huge project to dismantle, move, and reconstruct the antiquities, including massive statues of Pharaoh Ramses II at Abu Simbel, which were broken down into 1,000 pieces and rebuilt over four years.