The site of Madīnat Hābū is situated on the west bank of the Nile on the outskirts of Luxor, at the foot of the Theban Hills. Today the site is best known for the monumental temple of Ramses III, but prior to the 19^th century, the site also retained impressive material vestiges of the Late Roman and Coptic-periods, elements which have since been removed. We know, nonetheless, that Madīnat Hābū was home to a flourishing Christian community thanks to the plethora of texts which importantly associate the site with the famed Djeme (see: Stefanski and Lichtheim 1952). Not all of these texts are published. A small number of the Coptic ostraca were published by W. Till in 1938, while the remaining 400 were published by E. Stefanski and M. Lichtheim in 1952, though these were apparently less than half of the total retrieved, the remaining being “small and badly preserved fragments which are not worth publishing” (Stefanski and Lichtheim 1952: v). And a large number of the papyri were published by W. E. Crum and G. Steindorff in 1912- Whatsmore, four archaeologically attested churches(/chapels) further illuminate the situation at the site.

The now-absent traces of Late Roman and Coptic-period life, which included domestic and religious structures, were concentrated in and around the temple of Ramses III, which was itself constructed atop of earlier structures belonging to the 18^th Dynasty. Arguably the most significant of these Christian remains was a basilical church erected within the 2^nd court of the temple which was removed by the antiquities service in 1891 prior to the commencement of restoration works (Hölscher 1934: 1, pl. 32; id 1954: 51-52, figs. 45, 57; Wilber 1940: 93; Timm 1984-1992: 1026). It has been posited that this was known as the “Holy Church of the Castrum Jeme”/“Holy Church of Jeme” referenced the texts, but there is no direct evidence to demonstrate this (Hölscher 1931: 56; id 1956: 51). Unlike the Pharaonic monument in which it was situated, the church never saw much scientific interest and so no floorplan was ever produced prior to its removal. Instead, our understanding of the structure and its architecture derives exclusively from drawings and photographs of the temple from the years prior (e.g., Granger 1745: 68), though a description of the baptismal font was offered by George Daressy at the beginning of the 20^th century (Daressy 1920: 173). These various works demonstrate that it was a five-aisled basilica, and hypothetical floor plans have since been published (Hölscher 1954: 52-55, fig. 57). Grossmann tentatively considered the church to have been erected in the fifth century (Grossmann 2002: 457), though he had earlier posited a mid-6^th century date (Grossmann 1991: 1497). Various modifications were necessary to the temple space to permit the erection of this church which, in addition to several graffiti, remain the only traces of its presence (Edgerton 1937: pls. 92-102).

A much smaller church, and seemingly the earliest of the four churches recorded, is situated in the court of the temple complex of Eye and Haramhab (Hölscher 1954: 56, fig. 60; Timm 1984-1992: 1026). This church is understood to have developed out of a pre-existent structure the purpose of which is not clear; the excavators noted similarities with a small, covered marketplace, but considered this improbable given the structure’s presence on the edge of a cemetery. Wilber noted: “The excavators remark that it seems to have been built over a Roman bath”, but there appears to be no such reference (Wilber 1940: 93). Such a location could rather indicate that it was originally a private funerary mausoleum. The construction of the original building is considered to pre-date 300 based on the presence of later graves in and around the church which are dated to the fourth-fifth century, though exactly why the graves are situated in this time frame is not apparent (Hölscher 1954: 39-40, 56-57, figs. 60-61 and pl. 34).

In addition to this was a small church situated outside the eastern fortified gate of the site, only a single course of which was preserved. Little information was published regarding this structure, but it is noted as being similar in plan to the basilica within the temple, albeit far more modest and apparently of a later date (Hölscher 1934: Pls. 9-10; id 1954: 55-56, fig. 59 and pl. 46; Grossmann 1991: 1497; Timm 1984-1992: 1026). It was suggested by the excavators that this could be the church of Apa Patermuthios mentioned in the papyri, but there is no reason given for this equivalence (Hölscher 1931: 56).

Lastly, there is a church – or rather chapel – situated within a small temple in the northeast corner of the Madīnat Hābū enclosure which contains well-preserved paintings depicting the life and martyrdom of saint Menas (Wilber 1940; Hölscher 1931: 69; id 1954: 57; Timm 1984-1992: 1026). This is presumably the latest of the four churches, situated sometime in the 8^th century (Wilber 1940: 101).

Many of the Coptic-period houses were removed from the temple and surrounding areas presumably at the same time as the removal of the basilical church, with the few that remained subsequently being removed during the course of excavations in 1927. Only “the ruins outside the enclosure and on top of the old enclosure wall” were left in place (Hölscher 1954: 45). These structures had been in a remarkable state of preservation prior to removal, all comprising several stories. The best-preserved structures were those to the north and west of the temple, with a large collection of Roman-period structures to the north, dated by the excavators to the third-fourth century, a date aided by lamps as well as coins (Hölscher 1954: 37, 45, 67 and pl. 29; for a catalogue of the houses, see: p. 49-51 and pls. 40-44).