Hermitages - Coptic Wiki

The apostles in the apse of the central haykal on both sides of a window with stucco tracery

The Monastery of the Archangel Gabriel (FAYYUM)

The Monastery of the Archangel Gabriel (FAYYUM) The saintly bishop AUR OF NAQLUN, the legendary founder of the monastery, was the secret son of a princess and a magician living somewhere in the East. His mother died when he was three years old. When he was eight years old, the king, the father of the …

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Intellectual Life in Middle Egypt: The Case of the Monastery of Bawit (Sixth-Eighth Centuries)

History, Places / By Armia FAYEZ

Intellectual Life in Middle Egypt: The Case of the Monastery of Bawit (Sixth-Eighth Centuries) THE MONASTERY OF BAWIT is located on the west bank of the Nile, on the edge of the desert. The site was excavated at the beginning of the twentieth century by a team from the Institut franais d’archeologie orientale, led by …

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Recent Excavations at Bawit

Places, Heritage / By Armia FAYEZ

Recent Excavations at Bawit The remains of the Bawit monastery, founded by Apa Apollo, are located near Dashlout, about twenty-five kilometers south of Hermopolis (today Ashmunayn).[1] The kom covers an area of forty hectares. Apa Apollo’s monastery was one of the most important monasteries of Middle Egypt and the site of Bawit has indubitably yielded …

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Al-Shaykh Sa’id Revisited: A Reassessment of the Spatial Layout of a Monastic Community

History / By Armia FAYEZ

Al-Shaykh Sa’id Revisited: A Reassessment of the Spatial Layout of a Monastic Community Al-Shaykh Sa‘id (Middle Egypt) covers the southern part of the archaeological concession area of the Dayr al-Barsha Project (Research Group Egyptology, KU Leuven),[1] directed by Harco Willems.[2] The site is named after the nearby tomb of a local saint. An ensemble of …

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An Overview of Rock-cut Coptic Sites in Asyut

Places / By Armia FAYEZ

An Overview of Rock-cut Coptic Sites in Asyut Introduction This research is an attempt to provide an overview of some of the most remarkable rock-cut monasteries in Asyut Governorate. The Asyut plateau was a suitable area for monastic settlement as it is bordered on the east and the west with mountains flanking the agricultural land. …

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The History of Christianity in Egypt

History / By Armia FAYEZ

The History of Christianity in Egypt THE TERM COPT COMES DIRECTLY FROM THE ARABIC QBT, which appears to derive from the Greek aigyptos (Egypt) / aigyptioi (Egyptians), a phonetic corruption of the ancient Egyptian word Hikaptah, one of the names of Memphis. Initially the word described a non-Arabic-speaking non-Muslim. By implication, a Copt was also …

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Theology And Liturgy Bibliography

Liturgy, Theology / By Armia FAYEZ

THEOLOGY AND LITURGY BIBLIOGRAPHY Abdallah, Alfonso. L’ordinamento Liturgico di Gabriele V-88 Patriarca Copto. Cairo: Ain Shams Press, 1962. ‘Abd al-Masih Salib al-Mas‘udi. Al-Khuulaji al-Muqaddas. Cairo: n.p., 1902. Alcock, Antony. The Life of Saint Samuel of Kalamun by Isaac the Presbyter. London: Aris & Philips, 1983. Allen, Pauline, and C. Datema. “Leontius presbyter of Constantinople.” Byzantina …

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Kellia

Places / By Armia FAYEZ

KELLIA The archaeological remains that were discovered in Kellia represent the largest complex of Christian monasteries and hermitages known to date. The monastic site, which is situated about 18 kilometers south of modern al-Barnuji, the ancient Nitria in the western Nile Delta, was partly excavated, examined, and documented between 1965 and 1990. Unfortunately, the encroachment …

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Sanctuarye – Architectural Elements Of Churches

System / By Youssef Matta

Sanctuary The sanctuary (Arabic, haykal) is the area around the altar. The term derives from the Hebrew hekal, the main hall in the Temple in Jerusalem, which lay in front of the inaccessible Holy of Holies. The Arabic term is first used in the HISTORY OF THE PATRIARCHS by Sawirus Ibn al-Muqaffa‘. Older synonyms are …

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Pillare – Architectural Elements Of Churches

System / By Youssef Matta

Pillar A pillar, like a column (see above), is a vertical architectural support, but it is usually rectangular in plan. Occasionally it may be octagonal, cruciform, or T-shaped. In traditional architecture, pillars are built of individual stones or bricks, not drums or an entire shaft. Because a pillar is heavier than a column (shorter in …

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