Egypt Attractions

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Monastery of Saint Macarius, Egypt

Monastery of Saint Macarius located in the Nitrian desert 92 km north west of Cairo is a Coptic Orthodox monastery. Founded in 360 AD by St. Macarius this monastery lies on the highway between Cairo and Alexandria. From the time of its foundation to the present day monks of different countries have inhabited the monastery.

Monastery of Saint Macarius of Egypt underwent an era of restoration both in terms of architecturally and spiritually in 1969. The new building of the monastery includes more than 150 cells, a single large dining room, a new spacious library and a large guesthouse that comprises of several rooms. The new monastery building cover an area six times more than the old monastery.

However in addition, the historical old building of the Monastery of Saint Macarius has been restored carefully. Egypt Monastery of Saint Macarius at present is under the guidance of Pope Shenouda III. Monastery of Saint Macarius also maintains links with other several monasteries of the world including the Monastery of Chevtogne in Belgium and France's Monastery of Transfiguration.

St Macarius, the founder of the monastery was an Egyptian Christian monk also known by the name of Macarius the Great or the Lamp of the Desert. It was only because of his divine impact that the region of Nitrian desert is also called as Desert of Macarius. Also known as Deir Abu Magar, this monastery is the oldest monastery in the Wadi al Natrun.
The monastery was an informal structure very much similar to a village. Monastery of Saint Macarius includes a church known as St. Macarius Church and tower.

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Mosque of Ibn Tulun, Egypt


The Mosque of Ibn Tulun in Egypt is oldest mosque in Egypt. The Mosque has been named after a soldier Ahmed Ibn Tulun in troops of Samara. He rose to the position to rule Egypt from 868 AD to 883 AD.

Following the tradition of his predecessors he established a new city called Qataia and also made it his capital. In the city he built a palace and mosque that was named after him. The Ibn Tulun Mosque seems to have been completed by 879 AD according to the inscriptions.

Some scholars maintain that Mosque of Ibn Tulun in Egypt has built by an architect who was a Egyptian Chriatian. He only brought about the idea of piers instead of large columns that was necessary to support the roof span. But others maintain that since Ibn Tulun lived in Samara the Great Mosque of Mutawwakil influenced him.

The importance of the Ibn Tulun Mosque in Cairo lies in the fact that it ahs been able to influence architecture beyond the Muslim boundaries. It went ahead to be praised by the Europeans and later imitation. The achievements in the mosque include the adoption of piers to support the roofs and arcades instead of columns. Here one also finds the systematic use of pointed arches.

The visit to Mosque of Ibn Tulun in Cairo would be enriching as it so much to offer and helps understand the historic and architectural achievements of Muslim civilization.

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Mummification Museum, Egypt

Mummification Museum of Egypt is located in Luxor city of Egypt. It is a new museum dedicated to the process of mummification of Egypt and is situated north to Luxor Temple. It is a small museum but the unique one dedicated to Egyptian art of burial.

Opened in 1997, this museum features hall of artifacts, one lecture hall, video room and cafeteria. Hall of artifacts is classified into two parts. The first one is an ascended corridor that has ten tablets that throw lights on the funeral process from the death to the burial. The second part of the hall of artifacts began with an end of the corridor.

The artifacts of the second part are concentrate on eleven topics. It include gods of Ancient Egypt, Embalming materials, Organic materials used in process of mummification, Embalming fluid, Tools of mummification, Canopic jars, Ushabatis, Amulets, Coffin of Padiamum, Mummy of Masaherta and the mummified animals.

The technique of mummification had been evolved over several millennia. The earliest burials were made simply in baskets in the sand. During the period of Pharaohs, the burial of dead were elaborate and a ritualistic affair. But with the beginning of the New Kingdom, mummification process had touched a new height of art.

Mummification Museum of Egypt displays both human and animal mummies. However, along with these there is also a display of tools used in the process of mummification as well as artifacts items buried along with the mummies. Egyptian believed in life after death and that is why they buried items related to the person along with the dead body.

This museum provides all information related to mummification art. There is a statue of Anubis, the jackal-god who presided over the dead, at the entrance to the museum. Museum hours are from 9 AM to 1 PM year round, with winter evening hours of 4 PM until 9 PM and summer evening hours of 5 PM until 10 PM.

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Nefertari's Temple of Hathor, Egypt

Nefertari's Temple of Hathor is located in Abu Simbel a small place in Egypt located close to the border of Sudan. Nefertari's Temple of Hathor of Egypt is among one of the two temples built to honor female group in Egypt. The other temple is in Luxor that was build for honoring Queen Hatshepsut.

The king Ramesses II build Temple of Hathor for his most beloved Queen Nefertari. Located at a short distance from the temple dedicated to King Ramesses II, Temple of Hathor is carved in a limestone mountain. The temple of Ramesses II is called The Great Temple while the Temple of Hathor is known by the name of Small Temple.

The entrance of the temple is in form of a receding Pylon while on the either side of the temple there is a defied statue of Nefertari along with her husband Ramesses II. Nefertari's Temple of Hathor is much simpler in structure than the Temple of Re-Herakhte.

Nefertari's Temple of Hathor consists of only one hypostyle hall and a rock cut sanctuary. The hall of the temple had images of Ramesses with wife Nefertari in battlefield. Just behind the hall, is located a small chamber that had images of Hathor cow framed in reeds. Just beyond this chamber is the sanctuary of Hathor's Temple. The front wall of the sanctuary contain carved image of an emerging divine cow from the wall protecting Ramesses. The other images at the sanctuary show various scenes of Nefertari offering incense to Mut and Hathor.

Six statues of both Ramesses and Nefertari that stood at the entrance of the temple are the example of rock cut statues. However these statues are smaller in size as compared to the statues that guard the entrance of Ramesses's temple. The statues at Temple of Hathor are 10 meters in height while the latter one are 20 meters tall.

The interior of the temple is laid out in much of the traditional format. The first chamber of the temple that is generally open for the public include six massive pillars decorated with a female head in the center of the chamber. The interior chambers of the temple, which were open for the nobles and for the priests only, also had similar niches like the first chamber.

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Pompeys Pillar, Egypt


Among the ancient remains of Egypt, Pompey's Pillar is the most well known Egyptian monument that is still standing. Situated on a modest hill near the large Arab cemetery in the southwest of Egypt, it is a part of Alexandria's ancient treasure.

Originally Pompey's Pillar is associated with the ancient and famous Temple of Serapis that is no more now. This polished red granite structure is 99 feet high including the pedestal and is of about three meters in diameter at the base and two and half meters at the top.

Traditionally considered as the construction of King Theodosius to celebrate the Christianity's victory over Paganism, Pompey's Pillar, however, was set up in honor of Diocletian in 292. Earlier it was considered as a magnificent structure rivaling Soma and the Caesareum.

Pompey's Pillar is called as "Amoud el-Sawari" meaning Column of the Horseman in Arabic and was the tallest ancient monument of Alexandria. There are also other ancient ruins near to Pillar of Pompey of Egypt. Among them one is Alexandria's catacomb known by the name of "Kom al Sukkfa". Located at a short distance southwest of the Pompey's Pillar, This ancient structure of Alexandria consists of multi-level labyrinth that are reachable by a series of large spiral staircase.

These catacombs contain numerous chambers along with sculpted pillars, statues and other religious symbols of Roman as well as of Egyptian religion, burial niches and sarcophagi. Pompey's Pillar also features subterranean galleries as the nearby attractions. These are the ancient galleries where the sacred Apis bulls were buried along with three sphinxes.

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Roman Amphitheatre, Egypt


Roman Amphitheatre or Roman Theatre is located in the central region of Alexandria city at Kom el-Dikka. Bordered by the Horrya Street in the north, Nabi Daniel Street in west, Abdel Moneim Street in south and Saphia Zaghloul Street from the eastern side, Roman Theatre is one of the symbols of Alexandria city.

Basically Amphitheatre means double theatre and were grand and impressive in structure. Usually built in semi-circular shape, Amphitheatre was an open-air theatre with no curtains on the stage.

The Roman Theatre of Egypt is modest in size and most of the part of the structure is in ruined condition but still it is an excellent ancient structure of Roman period of Egypt. The theatre also consists of numerous galleries erected crudely. These galleries contain rooms for more spectators along with arrangement of 700-800 marble seats around the stage.

The Roman Amphitheatre was discovered in the excavations doing for the site of Paneion or "Park of Pan" in Kom el-Dikkah also known by the name of Hill of Rubble. In the layers of the above the roman street two other archaeological sites were found. These were a Muslim Cemetery and slums.

Dating back from the 2nd century A.D, this Roman theatre had a large auditorium, which measures 42m in diameter. The outer face of the theatre's building was probably adorned with columns located in several storeys. However during later times the theatre was rebuilt and the massive auditorium was diminished to 33.5 m in diameter. It then counted 16 rows of marble seats.

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Sinai Mountain, Egypt

Sinai Mountain the second largest mountain peak of Sinai Peninsula of Egypt after Mount St. Catherine, is also known as Mount Horeb or Mount Musa or Gebel Musa or Moses Mountain. With a height of 2,285 meter, Sinai Mountain is near to Ras Sasafeh.

Sinai Mount is the nucleus of great visited pilgrimage destination that includes Monastery of St. Catherine and the Burning Bush, along with Elijah's Plateau and Plain of ar-Raaha. Moses was the traditional founder of Judaism born in Egypt and it was because of his name that the Sinai Mountain is also called as the Mountain of Moses or Moses Mountain.

On the peak of the Mount Sinai is a small Chapel dedicated to the Holy Trinity. This Chapel, known as the Burning Bush, was built in 1934 on the ancient ruins of 16th century church. It is believed that this Chapel enclosed the holy rock from which God made the Tablets of Law. The western wall of the chapel contained a cleft carved out of the rock, which is also related with Moses.

Below the Chapel is the plateau called as Elijah's Basin. This basin is about seventy hundred and fifty steps below the chapel. Northwest of Elijah's Plateau is located Jebel Safsafa where St. Gregory the Byzantine hermit lived and prayed. Plain of ar-Raaha stands below the 2168-meter summit of Ras Safsafa. It is the place where Moses erected the first tabernacle.

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Step Pyramid of Djoser, Egypt

Step Pyramid of Djoser also known as The Great Step Pyramid was built during the 27th century BC at the Saqqara Necropolis to the northwest of the Memphis city. Constructed for the burial of Pharaoh Djoser or Horus Netjerikhet-a makor ruler of 3rd dynasty by his minister Imhotep it was the first Egyptian pyramid that consist six stone mastabas built atop one another in decreasing size.

The step pyramid of Djoser is considered as the earliest large-scale stone construction of Egypt. The complex of Great Step pyramid is surrounded by a wall made of fine white limestone that measured about 10.5 meters (34 feet) high and 1,645 meters (5,397 ft) long at the built up time.

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Suez Canal, Egypt

Suez Canal, Egypt is one of the largest artificial maritime canals of the world. It is not only Egypt's largest canal but is also an identity of Egypt similar to pyramids and the Nile River. 163 km long and 300 meter wide at its narrowest point, Suez Canal is considered as the significant geographic oil transit point between Red Sea and Mediterranean Sea.

Located in the west of the Sinai Peninsula, Suez Canal serves as a two-way water transportation route between Europe and Asia. Almost 8% of the total world's shipping traffic is controlled by Suez Canal.

The first appearance of Suez Canal on the political scene was in 1956 during the Suez crisis. In 1967, the canal was closed due to the war with Israel and was reclaimed by the Egyptians in another war with Israel that took placed in 1973. But the re-opening of the Canal took place only in 1975 and since then the traffic at Suez Canal is going smoothly.

The cities and beaches located close to the Suez Canal serve as a popular summer resorts for the tourists visiting Egypt. The Suez Canal Bridge built by the assistance of Japanese government is also known by the name of Egyptian-Japanese Friendship Bridge. It is a high-level fixed Road Bridge that has a 70-meter clearance over the canal constructed at El Qantara.

Suez Canal, Egypt is comprises of two parts-north and south of the Great Bitter Lake. Great Bitter Lake is a salt-water lake that flows between north and south part of Suez Canal. As Suez Canal contains no locks so the water flows freely into the Great Bitter Lake from the Mediterranean and Red Sea. This salt lake acts as a buffer to the canal, protecting canal from the tidal current's effect.

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Temple of Horus, Egypt

Located between Luxor and Aswan on the west bank of the Nile river, Edfu is home of the second largest temple of Egypt i.e. Temple of Horus. Temple of Horus is not only the second largest temple after Temple of Karnak but also one of the best-preserved historical remains of the Ancient Egypt.

The Temple of Horus is a processional cult temple constructed in three intervals-first the temple by Ptolemy III then the outer hypostyle hall in the second interval and in last the perimeter walls and the pylons. The massive grand pylons of Temple of Horus are some 250 ft across and 100 ft high.

Temple of Horus at Edfu is dedicated to the falcon headed god -Horus. The main building of the temple includes a hypostyle hall. The entrance of the hall has images in honor of Horus and Hathor and there is also a 10 ft tall statue of Horus as the falcon god. Beyond the main hypostyle hall there is a second smaller same style hall that leads to a well, known by the name of "Chamber of the Nile" where priests obtained the holy water. Beyond this small hypostyle hall there is another hall used for offering followed by vestibule and sanctuary respectively.

The sanctuary of the temple is itself surrounded by the chapels and the rooms. The front chapel from the east is the Chapel of the New Year. The pylons of the main building of the Temple of Horus are of 118 ft high and include scenes of Pharaohs in battlefield. Within the pylons is the courtyard that leads into the main hypostyle hall. However on the either side of the courtyard there are gates that lead into an area beyond the temple but within the boundaries of the temple. This area consists of inscriptions that recorded all the land donations.

The Temple of Horus is unusual because of its location. A marvelous and magnificent black marble statue of the god at the entrance of the inner temple is a masterpiece of Egyptian architecture. It is the structural make over of this temple that makes it one of the famous Egypt tourist attractions site.