The Temple of Medinet Habu

Ramses III built his mortuary temple, also known as the Temple of Medinet Habu, which is considered an architectural masterpiece due to its beauty and good state of preservation. It was dedicated to performing his funeral rituals, as well as to performing the rituals of worshiping the god Amun. This temple was built according to the usual traditions of temple construction in this era and is largely inspired by the Ramesseum.

King Ramses III (c.1184-1153 BC) is the most famous king of the Twentieth Dynasty, who fought many wars against the Libyans and the Sea Peoples, which led to years of prosperity in Egypt, but in the end, he fell victim to a conspiracy by the royal harem in the late days of his reign.

The temple is surrounded by a huge wall built of mud bricks with two guard rooms, and in the middle of the wall is a great gate surrounded by two towers with terraces and is known as the Gate of Ramses III or the High Gate, It is on the eastern side and there was a similar one on the western side but it was demolished. The eastern gate leads to the first pylon, then the first courtyard, then the second pylon and the second courtyard, then three halls of columns and a group of chapels, then the Holy of Holies and behind it a group of rooms. The temple also includes the remains of a royal palace, storehouses, temple administration buildings, and royal stables. It also contains many columns, some of which are round with papyrus-shaped capitals, and others represent Ramses III in the form of Osirians.

There is also in the area surrounding the temple a temple built by Queen Hatshepsut and King Thutmose III on the site of a temple built in the Twelfth Dynasty, which was built on the tombs of the ancestors of the god Amun, as well as the tombs of the divine wives of the god Amun-Ra, which date back to the Twenty-fifth and Twenty-sixth Dynasties.

There was a canal connected to the Nile, preceded by a dock. This canal allowed access to the temple by boats. The temple is surrounded by a huge wall built of mud bricks with two guard rooms. The area surrounding the temple was used by the inhabitants to protect themselves from attacks by Libyans from the west and to protect the temple. This is due to the political situation during the reign of Ramses III.

The decorations of the temple show Ramses III in military scenes such as the Libyan campaigns and battles against the Sea Peoples, as well as scenes of hunting and exploratory trips, in addition to religious scenes such as the king worshipping the deities, as well as various celebrations.