The Temple of Hibis at Kharga Oasis

The Temple of Hibis is the largest temple in the western oases of Egypt. It is of particular interest as it is one of very few surviving structures built during the first Persian occupation of Egypt – the Twenty-seventh Dynasty (c.525-404 BC). In ancient times the Kharga Oasis, supplied with drinking water by its springs, wells, and lake, was an important stopping point on the caravan routes across the Western Desert. The local town was called Hebet, the ‘Town of the Plough’, which became Hibis in Greek – the name of the temple we use today. The temple was dedicated to a local form of Amun-Ra, the god Amun-Ra of Hibis, but offerings were also made to the Theban triad of Amun-Ra, M