Location of Medinet Hebu:
The west bank at Luxor is one of the most important archaeological sites in the world. Thebes, located opposite of today’s city of Luxor, was the capital of Egypt during the period of the Middle and New Kingdoms. With the temples and palaces at Karnak and Luxor, and the necropolises of the Valley of the Kings and the Valley of the Queens, Thebes is testimony to Egyptian civilization at its height.
Temple of Medinet Hebu:
Medinet Hebu was both a temple and a complex of temples dating from the New Kingdom. The area was one of the earliest places within the Theban region to be associated with the worship of Amun. Hatshepsut and Tutmosis III built a small temple to Amun on the site of an the site of an earlier structure. Next to their temple, Ramesses III built his mortuary temple, Medinet Hebu’s most conspicuous standing monument. Medinet Hebu was erected and enclosed with massive mud brick-built walls and became the focus of the administrative and economic life of the whole of Thebes. The area included storehouses, workshops, administrative offices, and residences of priests and officials. The site was inhabited well into the Middle Ages (9 th century A.D.). The original temple underwent many alterations and enlargements in the following 1500 years. These considerably extended its plan by adding a columned hall, two pylons, and a court at the front.
The mortuary temple used to be connected with the Nile by a canal, and a landing quay was built outside the enclosure wall. The entrance to the temple enclosure was through one of two fortified gates, of which only the eastern so-called "Pavilion" now remains. South of the last court stood the brick-built palace, now badly damaged. Two building phases of the structure can be recognized. The interior of the palace was originally decorated with exquisite faience tiles. The "window of appearances" connected the palace with the temple.
The Coptic Fresco of Saint Menas at Medinet Hebu:
Saint Menas has received his due share of attention in religious literature, both in connection with incidents of his life and the miracles which he performed, and thus it is surprising to find that none of the scenes at Medinet Hebu seem to portray incidents common to the literary record. The fact that such a concordance could not be established in a preliminary analysis has necessitated a detailed study of the documentary material concerning the saint. Earlier studies of Menas have settled neither the problem of where the saint was born and where he lived, nor the problems regarding the relations between his appearance on objects of art and the material of the literary legends. The results of an investigation of these questions must be given before the paintings can be considered in detail.
The west bank at Luxor is one of the most important archaeological sites in the world. Thebes, located opposite of today’s city of Luxor, was the capital of Egypt during the period of the Middle and New Kingdoms. With the temples and palaces at Karnak and Luxor, and the necropolises of the Valley of the Kings and the Valley of the Queens, Thebes is testimony to Egyptian civilization at its height.
Temple of Medinet Hebu:
Medinet Hebu was both a temple and a complex of temples dating from the New Kingdom. The area was one of the earliest places within the Theban region to be associated with the worship of Amun. Hatshepsut and Tutmosis III built a small temple to Amun on the site of an the site of an earlier structure. Next to their temple, Ramesses III built his mortuary temple, Medinet Hebu’s most conspicuous standing monument. Medinet Hebu was erected and enclosed with massive mud brick-built walls and became the focus of the administrative and economic life of the whole of Thebes. The area included storehouses, workshops, administrative offices, and residences of priests and officials. The site was inhabited well into the Middle Ages (9 th century A.D.). The original temple underwent many alterations and enlargements in the following 1500 years. These considerably extended its plan by adding a columned hall, two pylons, and a court at the front.
Mortuary Temple of Ramesses III - sky view
The temple at Medinet Hebu of Ramesses III at Qurna
Ramessid columns in the peristyle court
Ceiling decoration in the peristyle hall
Zone of decolourisation in court of mortuary temple of Ramesses III
The Mortuary Temple of Ramesses III
The mortuary temple used to be connected with the Nile by a canal, and a landing quay was built outside the enclosure wall. The entrance to the temple enclosure was through one of two fortified gates, of which only the eastern so-called "Pavilion" now remains. South of the last court stood the brick-built palace, now badly damaged. Two building phases of the structure can be recognized. The interior of the palace was originally decorated with exquisite faience tiles. The "window of appearances" connected the palace with the temple.
The Coptic Fresco of Saint Menas at Medinet Hebu:
Saint Menas has received his due share of attention in religious literature, both in connection with incidents of his life and the miracles which he performed, and thus it is surprising to find that none of the scenes at Medinet Hebu seem to portray incidents common to the literary record. The fact that such a concordance could not be established in a preliminary analysis has necessitated a detailed study of the documentary material concerning the saint. Earlier studies of Menas have settled neither the problem of where the saint was born and where he lived, nor the problems regarding the relations between his appearance on objects of art and the material of the literary legends. The results of an investigation of these questions must be given before the paintings can be considered in detail.
Ricostruzione dell’affresco di Medinet Hebu