Montu was a falcon-headed deity whose origins date back to the Old Kingdom. During Dynasty XI the god achieved the status of patron of the Theban kings and became associated with war. Several temples to the north and south of Thebes were dedicated to Montu during the Middle Kingdom and added to by pharaohs of later dynasties.

The village of Tod is on the east bank of the Nile, 20km south of Luxor. Its ancient name was Djerty and Tuphium in classical times.

The site of the remaining temple dates back to Dynasty V in the Old Kingdom when there was a local cult of the god Montu here and blocks from the early shrine can be seen in the magazine store near the entrance to the temple.

Major building works at the site date to the Middle Kingdom and the reigns of Mentuhotep and Senwosret I, though little remains now from this period. A cache of gold and silver artefacts known as the 'Tod Treasure' was discovered during excavations beneath the floor of the Middle Kingdom buildings in 1936 and is now on display in Cairo Museum.

The monuments which can be seen today date from the New Kingdom to Roman times. On the north side of the site is a small barque shrine or way-station built by Tuthmose III and restored by later Ramesside kings. On the west are remains of a quay and avenue of sphinxes. There is also evidence of a small sacred lake to the north and east.

The larger part of the buildings today consist of a columned hall begun by Ptolemy VIII, which includes a hidden room side which was a treasury above a chapel on the south side. The later temple was built against a wall of the Middle Kingdom remains, and a long text of Senwosret I has been over-carved with Ptolemaic reliefs. Many of the later cartouches have been left blank (often the case in Ptolemaic building works).

Before going to Tod, an entrance ticket must be bought at Luxor Temple. The visitor today can reach Tod by taxi as part of the Aswan convoy, and turn off at the traffic station south of Luxor, and crossing the railway tracks, follow the road east until you come to the village of Tod. The temple lies at the end of the road through the village.

The temple of Medamud is very close to Luxor, about 8km to the north and was once linked to the Temple of Montu at Karnak by a canal. The site of the present temple is known to have been superimposed on remains from the Middle Kingdom or possibly earlier, by kings of the Graeco-Roman Period. The later buildings were dedicated to Montu, Rattawy and Harpocrates.

The entrance to the temple has an unusual triple portal with kiosks built by Ptolemy VIII Euergetes II. In the southern kiosk the screen walls were decorated with reliefs of singers and musicians, and the god, Bes, dancing.

Behind the kiosks, a large forecourt with an altar was decorated by Antonius Pius and its slender columns are the most substantial remains of the monument.

In the main part of the temple the hypostyle hall is now a ruin, but a granite doorway depicting Amenhotep II before Montu-re has been preserved among the later remains of columns. Little now remains of the sanctuary, which had a passage around it leading off to small chambers.

Behind the main part of the temple was a 'Great East Court' which was a precinct of the sacred bull, the incarnation of the god. On the remains of the exterior south wall is a relief of Trajan worshipping the sacred bull which marks a place where oracles were delivered.

Within the temple enclosure was a sacred lake, a well and granaries, now gone. A small temple of Ptolemy III Euergetes I once stood in the southwest corner and sphinxes lined a processional way leading from the main temple down to the quay.

To the east of the temple precinct was a cemetery. A block field on the southern side of the temple is worth investigating as it contains many interesting fragmentary reliefs.

Although only a short distance from Luxor, the Temple of Montu at Medamud is officially closed to visitors. If you are really keen it is sometimes possible to obtain permission to visit the site from the Tourist Police in Luxor in which case they would accompany your taxi.