Medinet Habu: The “Fortress Temple” of Ramesses III

What You Will See: A Tour of the Fortress at Medinet Habu

Your Egypt Fun Tours guide will walk you through this massive complex, but here is what you will explore.

1. The Migdol Gate (The “Syrian Fortress” Entrance)

You don’t enter Medinet Habu through a normal gate. You enter through a Migdol, a unique, towering gateway modeled after a Syrian defensive fortress. This was a deliberate, powerful statement to any northern enemies: “I beat you, and now I have built your fortress in my land as a trophy.”

2. The First Pylon: The “Sea Peoples” Battle

This is the main event. The massive, 25-meter-high first pylon (gateway) is the billboard for the temple’s story. The outer walls are covered in epic, action-packed reliefs of the Battle of the Sea Peoples.

• Your guide will “read” the battle for you: You’ll see the pharaoh in his chariot, the Egyptian army charging, and the chaotic, naval battle with the invaders’ ships. You can clearly see the different groups of the Sea Peoples, with their unique feathered headdresses and horned helmets.

3. The First Courtyard (The “Coptic City”)

As you step into the first grand courtyard, you’ll see a unique “clash of history.” The courtyard is lined with giant statues of Ramesses III… but in the center are the round columns of a Coptic Church.

• A Second Life: Centuries after the pharaohs, this abandoned fortress was so safe that a whole Coptic (Christian) town grew inside the temple walls. You are seeing two histories, 1,500 years apart, in one glance.

4. The Second Courtyard & The Hypostyle Halls (The “Color”)

This is where you’ll be told to “look up!” The second courtyard leads into the inner, roofed hypostyle halls, and the change is breathtaking.

• The “Color Room”: The roof has protected the stone from the sun, and the original paint on the columns and ceilings is almost perfect. The deep, rich “Egyptian Blue” is a sight you will never forget. It’s one of the best places in all of Egypt to see this.
• The “Counting” Scenes: The walls here show the pharaoh’s power in a more grisly way. You’ll see famous reliefs of scribes “counting” the spoils of war… by tallying the piles of severed hands of his slain enemies.