Temple of Ramesses III

About

The Temple of Ramses III. Medinet Habu was an important New Kingdom temple structure in the West Bank of Luxor in Egypt. Aside from its size and architectural and artistic importance, the mortuary temple is probably best known as the source of relief inscriptions detailing the arrival and defeat of the Sea Peoples during the reign of Ramesses III.

Identification and excavation

The first European to describe the temple in modern literature was Vivant Denon, who visited it between 1799 and 1801, Jean-François Champollion described it in detail in 1829. The first excavations of the temple took place sporadically between 1859 and 1899, under the auspices of the Office of Antiquities. During these decades the main temple was vacated and a large number of buildings from the Greco-Roman period were destroyed, including an important Byzantine church in the second courtyard, without any notes or records being made. Excavation, recording, and preservation of the Temple have been facilitated in large part by the Architectural and Epigraphic Surveys of the University of Chicago’s Oriental Institute in , almost continuously since 1924.

Description

around 300 m (1,000 ft) and contains more than 7,000 m2 (75,347 sq ft) of ornate wall reliefs, Its walls are relatively well preserved and it is surrounded by a huge clay enclosure that may have been fortified. The first pylon leads to an open courtyard flanked on one side by colossal statues of Ramses III. than Osiris and is bordered on the other side by uncarved columns. .The second pylon leads to a peristyle room, also with columns in the shape of Ramses. The third pylon is reached by going up a ramp that leads through a portico and then opens into a large portico (which has lost its roof).

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Little king list

The Medinet Habu King List is a procession celebrating the Min festival with the names of nine pharaohs. It is located in the upper register of the east wall in the second courtyard.