Ramesses III c. 1184–1153 BC
Often called the last great king of the New Kingdom. He beat back the Sea Peoples and the Libyans, and the reliefs of his temple at Medinet Habu show the sea battle. He was killed in a plot from his own harem, known from the trial records in the Judicial Papyrus of Turin.
Throne name: Usermaatre Meryamun
wsr-mꜣꜥt-rꜥ mry-imn: “The justice of Ra is strong, beloved of Amun”
Sign by sign
- Sun N5rꜥ The sun, the sun god Ra. Day.
- Head and neck of a canine F12wsr Strong, powerful.
- Goddess Maat C10mꜣꜥt The goddess Maat: truth and cosmic order.
- Canal N36mr Canal, lake.
- Flowering reed M17i The sound i.
- Game board Y5mn To remain, to endure (as in Amun).
- Ripple of water N35n The sound n. Also means 'of, to'.
Birth name: Ramesses Heqaiunu
rꜥ-ms-sw ḥqꜣ-iwnw: “Ra is the one who bore him, ruler of Heliopolis”
Sign by sign
- Ra, falcon-headed god C2rꜥ The sun god Ra, seated, with a falcon's head and the sun disk. Writes his name.
- Three fox skins F31ms To be born (as in Ramesses, Thutmose).
- Folded cloth S29s The sound s.
- Folded cloth S29s The sound s.
- Crook S38ḥqꜣ Ruler. To rule.
- Column O28iwn Pillar. Heliopolis.
Where to see Ramesses III's name today
Medinet Habu
Medinet Habu has some of the deepest-cut and most colourful hieroglyphs in Egypt, on the memorial temple of Ramesses III (c. 1184–1153 BC), the best preserved temple on the West Bank.
MuseumMuseu Egipci de Barcelona
Barcelona's Egyptian Museum shows the tomb chapel of Iny, an official of the 6th Dynasty, rebuilt from blocks the museum traced over twenty years, and a granite statue of Ramesses III whose hieroglyphs give the names of several kings. A granite shabti of Taharqa from Nuri carries a chapter of the Book of the Dead.
Read more about Ramesses III
- Usermaatre: the throne name of Ramesses II and the kings who copied it User maat ra, Usermaatre: 'the justice of Ra is strong', the throne name of Ramesses II, read sign by sign, and the later kings who took it.
- Medinet Habu: Ramesses III and the Sea Peoples in his own words Medinet Habu hieroglyphs: Ramesses III's sea battle with the Sea Peoples, his year 8 inscription, the painted second court and the signs to learn first.
- The 20th Dynasty: the last Ramesses kings The 20th dynasty of Egypt (c. 1186–1069 BC): Ramesses III at Medinet Habu, eight more kings named Ramesses, a workers' strike and the tomb robbery trials.
- Who were the Sea Peoples? The raiders who fought Ramesses II, Merneptah and Ramesses III Who were the Sea Peoples? Pirates, hired fighters and migrants who raided the eastern Mediterranean and fought three pharaohs between 1278 and 1177 BC.
Names of gods (Ra, Amun, Ptah) are written first out of respect, even when they are read later. Dates are approximate; we follow Ian Shaw (ed.), The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt (2000).