Across the court stands the
Temple of Ramses III. This is the only
temple still standing in the whole of Egypt which was built on a homogeneous plan by a single monarch. The pylon which forms the entrance has now been repaired and shows, on the left-hand tower, a relief of the Pharaoh wearing the double crown and
holding a group of prisoners by the hair, whilst in his other hand he raises a club to smite them.
Amon stands before him handing him the sword of victory and delivering to him three rows of vanquished cities each represented as a human figure rising out of a symbolic fort which bears the name of the city.
On the right-hand tower the theme is repeated but with the Pharaoh wearing the crown of Lower Egypt . Large statues of the Pharaoh flank the doorway over which Ramses III receives the symbol of life from Amon.
Passing through the entrance pylon we come to an open court surrounded by covered passages on three sides, each supported by eight square pillars with statues of Osiris in front of them. On the terrace at the rear are four similar pillars and four columns which have bud capitals. The reliefs on the back wall of the pylon show Ramses receiving the hieroglyph for "jubilee" from the enthroned Amon.On the east wall is a procession of standard bearers and the Pharaoh leading the priests who hear the sacred barges of Amon , Mut and Khonsu.
The hypo-style hall of the
temple of Ramses III has eight columns with papyrus-bud capitals, adjoining which are three shrines respectively dedicated to Mut, Amon and Khonsu.
This
temple is a cameo. Its charm is its size, its value is its adherence to the traditional, its historical importance is its completion according to the unadulterated blue print of Ramses III.
Ramses III ruled at the tail end of a long line of imperial Pharaohs and he was the last of the Ramessides to carve a place for himself in history. Though wealthy-having reaped the fruits of his ancestors' battles - he was far from great, a fact that he seems himself to have recognized by placing his modest
temple across the axis of the main structure at
Karnak as though to say, "I do not wish to compete". During his 32-year reign he fought three important battles, and his architectural activities included a
temple at Medinet Habu, where he recorded his battles, and the initial construction of the
temple of Khonsu, which was completed by his successors. He also enriched the
temples of Memphis and Heliopolis but ended his days severely criticized by his contemporaries, who despised his weakened position under the priests of Amon.
Luxor, Egypt