Monastery of Saint Menas
One of the oldest Christian sites in Egypt (IV-VII w.), Monastery of Saint Menas (Dajr Abu Mina, Deir Abu Mina), is only about 15 km. To get here, best to hire a taxi (ok. 20 USD). Minibuses also run from Alexandria Train Station.
The monastery complex of St.. Menasa – Roman soldier and martyr – the church enters, baptysterium, basilica, public buildings, expensive, houses and workshops, erected since early Christian times around the tomb of the martyr of Alexandria. Object in 1979 r. inscribed on the UNESCO World Cultural and Natural Heritage List. W 2001 r. he was considered endangered, as soil moistening related to field irrigation may result in the collapse of buildings. The ruins were first investigated by Karl Maria Kaufmann (between 1905 a 1907 r.). At a distance of approx. 1 km from historic buildings, a new monastery of St. Menas was established in Marjut. Annually 11 On November, many pilgrims come to the church fair.
Most of the temples of the complex do not bear Egyptian features, because they were created on the initiative of foreign pilgrims.
One of the fastest growing religious centers in the country operated here between April and August. Around the saint's tomb from the end of the 4th century. pilgrims were buried. A small oratory was also established at that time. In the first half of the 5th century. a basilica grew over the grave, at the beginning of the 6th century. it was replaced by the basilica of the Vault (the Church of the Martyr or the Church of the Sepulcher). The sanctuary burned down, but in the mid-ninth century. they were rebuilt. The ruins of this five-nave martyrdom have survived to this day (38 me and 22,5 m). At the beginning of the 6th century. comes the great basilica, wrongly called the Basilica of Arkadiusz (east of the Vault Basilica), partially covering the original buildings.
After further alterations, the Crypt Basilica and the Great Basilica merged into one whole (67 m in length and 32 m wide). He had a transept with aisles 50 m in length and 20 m wide. The vault was propped up 56 marble columns.
At the intersection of the nave and the transept, there was an altar with a marble canopy supported by four columns. The main entrance with three large doors was on the south side of the nave, another was at the northwest end of the nave and north transept. The nave was surrounded by halls, including underground tombs, corridors and side chapels. Octagonal baptistery from 5th-6th century, located on the west side of the Church of the Sepulcher, it was surrounded by a square outer structure with a great stepped well of marble blocks. Both the Church of the Sepulcher, and the Great Basilica were rebuilt several times after fires. After one such catastrophe, Patriarch Josef (830-849) ok. 849 r. he ordered a new basilica with five naves to be erected over the tomb of the saint (38 m in length and 22,5 m wide). A complex of cisterns and baths adjoined the church from the north.
At the eastern end of the complex, you can see the ruins of the eastern church. In the northeast corner there was a baptistery with a swimming pool. In the middle of the large cemetery there is a three-nave northern basilica (VII-IX w.). The baptistery is adjacent to it on the right. The residence of the Alexandrian Patriarch rises nearby. The pilgrimage center flourished most between the 4th and 6th centuries. The town which grew next to it served the pilgrims and the monastery. The squares covered with marble slabs come from this time, accommodation for pilgrims, cisterns and baths. The visitors enjoyed the miraculous water in the great baths (V w.). There were workshops in secular buildings, where mainly the so-called. ampoules of St.. Menasa – bottles and containers for holy water, marked with a pious inscription and stamped with a seal with the image of the saint. These vessels were found in many places in Europe, North Africa and Asia, which proves the popularity of the local cult. During the Sassanid Persian invasion of 619 r. part of the complex was destroyed. Later, the facilities were partially rebuilt, but the nearby Berber raids began, followed by a Muslim invasion. About 900 r. the center was plundered by the Abbasids, who took the decorated stones to Cairo. The center survived until the turn of the 10th and 11th centuries., a w XIII w. completely deserted. The plentiful springs of water had dried up. Today the ruins are covered with heaps of sand from the desert. However, the rise in the groundwater level caused by intensive irrigation does not bode well for historical monuments, especially in years with high rainfall. The possibility of covering churches with sand is being considered, including the crypt with the tomb of St.. Menasa. You can hire a guide in the nearby modern pilgrimage center.