Temple of Montu (Medamud)

Coordinates: 25°44′3.26″N 32°42′36.62″E / 25.7342389°N 32.7101722°E / 25.7342389; 32.7101722 (Temple of Monthu (Médamoud))
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Temple of Montu in Medamud

The Temple of Montu (also Temple of Monthu, Montju, or Menthu) is an

Ptolemy VIII
period of the 2nd century BC, although decorations and additions continued to be added centuries later by the Romans. Because of Montu's strong association with raging bulls, the temple was a major center of worship for bulls, containing many statues of bulls for worship and reliefs. Most of these statues are now located in various museums around the world.

Montu

Relief of Montu in Medamud

Montu was a

Two Lands"); his son was Harpora.[2] He is also associated with a sacred bull named Buchis.[3]

Fernand Bisson de la Roque
.

In addition to the temple at Medamud, temples dedicated to Montu were built in Karnak, Armant, and Tod.[4] From 1925-1932, the Medamud Temple of Montu was excavated by French archaeologist Fernand Bisson de la Roque of the Institut Français d'Archéologie Orientale[5] in conjunction with the Louvre.[2]

Geography

Medamud (or Madu) was an outpost of Thebes, located 3 miles (4.8 km) away.[6] Little is known about the town of Medamud or its other structures. Prior to construction of the Middle Kingdom temple, the site had been burned and earlier mounds were razed. The Middle Kingdom temple is situated on a circular mound, its orientation bearing east-west.[2]

Nearby are the Egyptian temple complexes at Luxor and Karnak. The Karnak Temple Complex contains three precincts, including the Precinct of Montu, which contains another Temple of Montu.[7][8]

Old Kingdom site

The Old Kingdom temple site, dedicated to Montu, was walled and had a sacred grove. It had a tunnel system, mounds, and chambers.[9]

Middle Kingdom temple

The Middle Kingdom

11th dynasty in Deir el-Bahari
. The sanctuary was remodeled in later periods.

The temple's features included a tribune platform, a canal, a

hypostasis
of the living Montu.

This temple has provided many examples of royal statuary and

Sobekhotep II, and included some reliefs of his predecessors and of his ancestor Senwosret III,[12][13] dressed in the fashion of the Sed festival
.

New Kingdom temple

The temple was revised later by the kings of the 18th Dynasty of Egypt and was rebuilt by Thutmose III,[14] who rebuilt the stone sanctuary and adorned it with statues in his likeness.

Graeco-Roman temple

Plan of the Temple of Montu at Medamud

The site is currently closed to the public as a team of archaeologists and restorers work to protect against the modern city encroachment on the ancient remains of the former city.

Montu depicted with a bull's head, from the Ptolemaic period (332 — 30 BC). On display in the Louvre, the statue was found in Medamud in the cell of the goddess Raet-Tawy.

Composed of twelve columns, the structure was built under

Ptolemy II
.

Some of the artifacts found in the temple date to

Ptolemy IV. Many of these artifacts are statues of bulls used for worship and reliefs. The interior of this monument and its doors describe the traditional scenes of the Sed festival, when the king in traditional costume receives offerings or during an important step in the inauguration ceremony of royal power.[17][18] The Temple of Montu is also an important insight into how very popular bull cults were in ancient Egypt, with Montu being strongly associated with raging bulls. A long corridor retained the scenes of the cult of the bull Buchis, which dates mostly from the emperor Domitian (81–96). There is also a wall relief of a procession of musicians who came to visit Trajan
.

Nothing remains of the earlier or later temples, and the remains are dated mainly from the Greco-Roman period. The temple at Medamud was probably founded as the place of worship for the living god Montu while the temple Bouchéum (or Bucheum) at

Coptic remains on the temple site.[2]

Museum exhibits

What could be removed from the original structure, parts of the building and artifacts, were taken to museums such as the Karnak Open Air Museum. Most of the temple's statues and the Gates to the Temple are now located in various museums, including the Museum of Fine Arts of Lyon and the Louvre.

See also

References

  1. ISBN 978-90-04-15857-3
    . Retrieved 25 November 2011.
  2. ^
    ISBN 978-0-415-18589-9
    . Retrieved 25 November 2011.
  3. ISBN 978-0-415-34495-1
    . Retrieved 25 November 2011.
  4. ISBN 978-1-60413-926-6
    . Retrieved 25 November 2011.
  5. ISBN 978-0-19-510234-5
    . Retrieved 26 November 2011.
  6. ISBN 978-0-06-210605-6
    . Retrieved 25 November 2011.
  7. ISBN 978-0-7614-7877-5
    . Retrieved 25 November 2011.
  8. ISBN 978-1-58909-817-6
    . Retrieved 25 November 2011.
  9. ISBN 978-0-8160-4563-1
    . Retrieved 25 November 2011.
  10. ^ Desroches-Noblecourt, Christiane (1962). L'art égyptien. Presses universitaires de France. p. 173. Retrieved 25 November 2011.
  11. ^ Vernes, Maurice; Réville, Jean; Marillier, Léon; René Dussaud; Paul Alphandéry (1944). Revue de l'histoire des religions. Presses Universitaires de France. p. 119. Retrieved 25 November 2011.
  12. The British Museum
    . Retrieved 25 November 2011.
  13. ISBN 978-2-13-049317-4
    . Retrieved 25 November 2011.
  14. ^ Chronique d'Égypte. Belgium. Ministère de l'éducation nationale et de la culture française, Fondation égyptologique reine Élisabeth. 1 January 1943. Retrieved 25 November 2011.
  15. ISBN 978-90-5063-237-9
    . Retrieved 25 November 2011.
  16. ^ Centre national de la recherche scientifique (France) (1984). Revue historique de droit français et étranger. Librarie de la Société du Recueil Sirey. p. 3. Retrieved 25 November 2011.
  17. ISBN 978-90-429-0669-3
    . Retrieved 25 November 2011.
  18. ^ Société française d'Égyptologie (1946). Revue d'égyptologie. Ernest Leroux. p. 43. Retrieved 25 November 2011.
  19. ^ Hari, Robert (1964). Horemheb et la reine Moutnedjemet: ou, La fin d'une dynastie. Impr. La Sirène. p. 324. Retrieved 25 November 2011.

External links

25°44′3.26″N 32°42′36.62″E / 25.7342389°N 32.7101722°E / 25.7342389; 32.7101722 (Temple of Monthu (Médamoud))

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