Ramesseum: The “Ozymandias” Temple of Ramesses the Great

What You Will See: A Tour of the Ramesseum Temple

Your Egypt Fun Tours guide will walk you through this vast, 600-foot-long complex. While the two main entrance pylons are now in ruins, the temple’s story is still clear.

1. The First Courtyard & The “Ozymandias” Colossus

After you pass the ruined first pylon, you enter the first courtyard. Here, you will see it. Lying in the rubble is the toppled, 1,000-ton granite colossus of Ramesses II. It is shattered, but its scale is breathtaking. It once stood 18 meters (60 feet) high, and its toppled head and shoulders are the “vast and trunkless legs of stone” from the poem.

2. Ramesseum Temple: The Second Pylon & Battle Scenes

The second pylon, or gateway, is in much better shape. Its inner walls are covered in dramatic, deep-cut reliefs celebrating Ramesses’s “great victory” at the Battle of Kadesh. Your guide will point out the action-packed scenes of the king in his war chariot, firing arrows into the chaotic mass of his Hittite enemies. You can also see scenes of captives being brought before the king.

3. The Great Hypostyle Hall

You will next enter the Great Hypostyle Hall. While the first courtyard is destroyed, the second is in better condition, with two rows of Osiris-style columns (showing Ramesses as the god). The main hall still has 29 of its original 48 columns standing. Look up! The taller, central columns (which have now fallen) created a “clerestory,” a high window to let light into the dim, sacred hall.

4. Ramesseum Temple: The “Halls of Knowledge”

Further into the temple, you’ll find the smaller, more sacred halls.

• The “Astronomical Room”: This small hypostyle hall features a stunning, well-preserved ceiling. This is one of the first-ever 12-month calendars depicted in a temple, showing the months of the year.
• The Tree of Life: On the western wall, look for a beautiful scene. Ramesses II sits beneath the sacred Tree of Life, while the gods Thoth (ibis-headed god of writing) and Seshat (goddess of wisdom) write his name on the tree’s leaves, granting him a long and eternal life.
• The Library: Other chambers in this area served as the temple’s library, linen-room, and a shrine dedicated to the god Amon-Ra.

5. The Mud-Brick Storerooms (The “Insider’s Tip”)

Don’t miss this! Walk around the back of the stone temple to see a massive, sprawling complex of mud-brick arches and vaults. These are the temple’s granaries and storerooms. This is where the temple’s “economy”—the grain, wine, beer, and goods—was stored, showing you the real, day-to-day power of the pharaoh’s cult.