King Amenemhat III (of the Twelfth Dynasty) had much of his efforts directed to the development of investment and progress. He focused in utilizing all the country's resources, natural and human. Achieving this, he had set up the foundations of barrages at El Lahun, aiming at keeping water for the irrigation of greater agricultural areas in El Fayoum.
The Lahun Barrages we see today were built by the Mameluke Sultan, Al Zaher Beybars, during the Bahari Mameluke Period over the old ones. With this construction, Beybars intended to control the water and to protect the fields from the floods of Bahr Youssef (Yusuf) Canal. They comprise two gates and measure 21 meters.
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