PRIKCETON . NEW JERSEY V// VW PRESENTED BY Mrs. Kennedy Fund Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2015 https://archive.org/details/churchesmonasterOOabus THE Churches and Monasteries of Egy AND Some Neighbouring Countries Bonbon HENRY FROWDE Oxford University Press Warehouse Amen Corner, E.C. MACMILLAN & CO., 66 FIFTH AVENUE THE urches & Monasteries of Eg AND Some Neighbouring Countries ATTRIBUTED TO 'aBU SALIH, the ARMENIAN TRANSLATED FROM THE ORIGINAL ARABIC BV B. T. A. EVETTS, M.A. TRINITY COLLEGE, OXFORD AUTHOR OF ' RITES OF THE COPTIC CHURCH,' ETC. WITH ADDED NOTES BY ALFRED J. BUTLER, M.A., F. S. A. FELLOW OF BRASENOSE COLLEGE, OXFORD AUTHOR OF 'THE ANCIENT COPTIC CHURCHES OF EGYPT' WITH A MAP AT THE CLARENDON PRESS 1895 PRINTED AT THE CLARENDON PRESS BY HORACE HART, PRINTER TO THE UNIVERSITY CONTENTS. PAGE Preface to the Text and Translation v-viii Introduction ix-xxv Churches and Monasteries of Egypt 1-304 Appendix 305-346 Indexes : — I. Index of Churches and Monasteries in Egypt . . 347-352 II. Supplementary Geographical Index 353-35^ III. Index of Personal Names 359-373 IV. Index of General Names 374-382 4% PREFACE TO THE TEXT AND TRANSLATION. The History attributed to Abu Salih the Armenian is here edited for the first time, by the kind permission of the Minister of Public Instruction and of the Administrator of the National Library in Paris, from the unique MS. purchased by Vansleb in Egypt in the seven- teenth century, and now preserved in that Institution. The present edition is based upon a copy made by the editor from the original, which he afterwards had the advantage of comparing with another copy most liberally placed at his disposal by M. I'Abbe Hyvernat, together with the results of a collation by Professor Ignazio Guidi. To these eminent scholars, therefore, the editor begs to express his deepest gratitude. Professor Margoliouth has also had the goodness to look through both the copy of the text and the translation, and to elucidate many points of difficulty. Mr. Alfred Butler, whose book on the Coptic Churches forms the only work of importance existing on that subject, has generously consented to aid in the interpretation of an obscure author by his knowledge of Coptic history and archaeology ; and his contributions to the work are by no means limited to the notes which bear his initials. The system adopted in the transcription of Arabic names is similar to that used in Mr. Butler's Coptic Churches. It does not pretend to be perfect, PREFACE TO THE and among other defects does not express the J of the article before the ' solar letters/ or the shortening of the long final vowel in y\ and other words before the article, or the Hamzah except in the middle of a word ; nor are the nuances in the pronunciation of the vowels indicated ; but perhaps no other system is preferable to this. The vocalization of the Arabic forms of names of places is, where possible, that of Yakut, as being in use at the time of our author. In the transcription of the text the original has been closely followed, the diacritical points alone being added where they were wanting. Some of the deviations, however, from classical ortho- graphy and grammar are indicated by foot-notes on the first few pages of the text. The existence of the work has long been known to scholars through the references made to 'Abu Selah,' and the passages quoted from him by Eusebe Renaudot and Etienne Quatremere. Recently also, M. Amelineau, in his Geographie de l£,gypte a Fepogne copte, has made some little use of the history of Abu Salih, although he has by no means extracted all the information which the book affords on the subject of Egyptian geography. M. Amelineau seems to be fully aware of the value of the work of Abu Salih, at least in certain portions. On the other hand, he seems to have an exaggerated idea of the difficulties presented by the MS. 'It is very badly written in point of language,' he says, * and most of the diacritical points are wanting ; yet I have translated ' the whole of it, in spite of the difficulties which it presents. I believe ' that the MS. is incomplete in several parts, and has been badly ' bound together. The possessor of the MS. has erased the Coptic 'numerical figures at the top of each leaf, in order, no doubt, that 'the absence of part of the MS. might escape notice. Nevertheless, ' the figiires are still visible, and enable me to conclude that a con- A TEXT AND TRANSLATION. vii ^siderable part of the MS. is wanting, and that the leaves are not 'arranged in their proper order. Moreover, it is often impossible to 'translate, because the sense cannot be completed.' The French scholar here seems to overstate the case. From an examination of the MS. made by the authorities of the National Library, the editor is able to say that, while it is true that no less than twenty-two leaves are wanting at the beginning of the book, the rest of the leaves are bound in their proper order, according to the Coptic ciphers, which are still visible, as M. Amelineau states ; with the single exception of the leaf which formed the thirtieth folio of the MS. in its original state, but which is now wanting. The reader, therefore, will understand that there is a lacuna between fol. 8, accord- ing to the new or Arabic pagination, and fol. 9, which bears in the MS. the Coptic number 31 ; and that the words at the beginning of fol. 9, 'This revenue,' &c., do not refer to the preceding estimate of the revenues of Egypt. The owner of the MS. seems to have supplied the first folio himself, and to have given a new pagination in Arabic figures to the remaining portion of the original book, so that folio 23 became folio 2, and so on. It should be added that the Coptic figures are wanting on fol. 38, which formed fol. 60 of the complete MS., and also on the last two folios. The word hs^j on fol. 12a is translated as 'Extreme Unction,' a meaning which the word bears at least in Africa. In late Arabic, however, i-sr^j is also a nonien verbi of , and signifies ' to marry ' or ' marriage,' so that our author may perhaps here refer to a practice of marrying within the prohibited degrees then existing among the Copts. The statements of the Coptic Synaxarium, occasionally quoted in the notes to the present edition of Abii Salih, are not guaranteed as being always historically accurate. For instance, the Emperor Diocletian is usually represented, without reference to his colleagues in viii PREFACE TO THE TEXT AND TRANSLATION, the empire, as himself carrying on the persecution which goes by his name, although in reality he abdicated two years after the promulgation of the edict which sanctioned and originated it : and, to take another example, St. Theodore is called ' magister mihtum,' although this office was not instituted until the reign of Constantine. Nevertheless valuable traditions of early Church history, and in particular of the great persecution itself, are embodied both in the Synaxarium and in the Coptic Acts of the Martyrs, on which it is partly founded. INTRODUCTION. The sole indication which we possess of the name of our author is to be found in the title inscribed on the first page of the MS. This title, however, was supplied, as it has already been said, by a later hand ; and it is, moreover, obviously incomplete. No name is there given to the work, beyond the meagre designation of ' chronicle ' or ' history ; ' and this is so contrary to the rule of Arabic literature that it is enough by itself to prove that the original title had been lost. The author is designated by his praenomen only, as 'Abu Salih the Armenian.' It is a recognized fact in Arabic orthography that the proper name Salih ( ^11^) is one of those which may by common custom be written defectively without the 1 ; see Vernier, Grammaire arabe, i. p. 91. Hence there is no reason to adopt the form 'Abu Selah,' used by Renaudot, Quatremere, Amelineau, and others. It must, in the absence of further proof, re- main doubtful whether 'Abu Salih ' can be taken as the true praenomen (ktinyah) of the author of the present work. His nationality, on the other hand, may be inferred, not only from the title, but also from the internal evidence of the book, for the lengthy description of the Armenian churches, and of the affairs of the Armenian patriarch, would tend to show that the writer had a special connexion with the Armenian ^nation ; and, although he often speaks as though his sympathies and interests were bound up with those of the Copts, we must remember that this very Armenian patriarch, of whom we have spoken, was consecrated in the presence of Gabriel, the seventieth patriarch of the Copts (Renaudot, Hist. Pair. pp. 507-509) ; and there are many other proofs of friendly intercourse between the two races. Moreover, on fol. 3 a, the Armenian form of the name Sergius (lJ«#^if^f/, Sarkis) is, as Mr. F. C. Conybeare recognizes, correctly transcribed in Arabic as o-^, Sharkis, and explained as being equivalent to ia^.*., Sir j ah. It may be maintained, therefore, as a proba- ^ [11.7-] CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. bility, that the author of the work was Armenian by nationality. It is surprising, however, that M. Amelineau says that ' Abou Selah (sic) visited Egypt at the moment when the Armenians were all-powerful in that country.' It is surely much more probable that Abu S^lih, if that was his name, was not a mere visitor to Egypt, but rather a member of the Armenian colony, the ancestors of which had settled there at the end of the eleventh century of our era, under the protection of Badr al-Jamali, the Armenian vizier to the caliph Al-Mustansir ; and that our author had been born and bred in the country. This would explain his Arabic name, the fact of his writing in Arabic, and his familiarity with the history of Egypt. As for his being in Egypt at a time of Armenian preponderance in the state, the facts are precisely the contrary. There is no proof that the Armenians were in special favour under the three last of the Fatimide caliphs, and the greater part of our author's life must have been passed during a time when the Armenians in Egypt had succumbed to the misfortunes which overtook them at the time of the Kurdish invasion, and had been much reduced in numbers. Of these misfortunes our author was an eye-witness. The work itself affords sufficient internal evidence of the date of its composition, for the author constantly refers to events which, he says, happened in his own time, and to incidents in his own life, of which he gives us the date. Thus on fol. 4 b he tells us of an interview which he had at Cairo with the physician Abu '1-Kasim al-*Askalani, in A. H. 568 = A. D. 1173. Again on fol. 61 a he mentions a visit which he paid in A. H. 569 = A. D. 1174 to the monastery of Nahya. But the latest date given in the book is that of the death of Mark ibn al-Kanbar in the month of Amshir A.M. 924 = Jan.-Feb., A. D. 1208. The composition of the work, therefore, may confidently be assigned to the first years of the thirteenth century of our era, when the writer had probably reached a considerable age. In spite of these distinct indications of date, however, M. Amelineau speaks as if the work had been composed at a much later period, for he begins his account of Abu Salih as follows : ' I must also ' speak of an author who wrote in Arabic, and who has left us a history 'of the churches and monasteries of Egypt, written in the year 1054 of *the Martyrs, that is to say in the year 1338 of our era. He was called IXTRODUCTIOX. xi *Abou Sclah (sic), and was an Armenian by nationality' {Gcogr. p. xxiv). The fact is that M. Ameh'neau is here speaking of the date at which the copy, now in the National Library, was made ; but his readers may certainly be pardoned if they understand him to be giving the date of the composition of the work. It is quite true that the copy was finished on Ba'unah 2, A.M. io54 = Dhu '1-Kadah 8, A.H. 738 = May 27, A.D. 1348, as the copyist himself informs us in his note at the end of the book. The title supplied by a later hand on fol. i b of the MS. describes the book as a ' history, containing an account of the districts and fiefs of ' Egypt.' As, however, the principal part of the work is taken up with an account of churches and monasteries, with regard to which it supplies us with much original information, I have furnished the new title of ' Churches and Monasteries of Egypt.' This new title is in accordance with the description of the MS. in the catalogue of the National Library, where it is called ' Histoire des eglises et des * monasteres de I'Egypte.' The object of the author would seem to have been to collect information of all sorts about Egypt and the neighbouring countries ; but he evidently desired above all to describe the churches and monasteries, and to narrate incidents of ecclesiastical history. It is to those concerned with this last-named branch of study that the work of Abu Salih should be of special interest. The only work now existing in Arabic of a similar character to the present work is that portion of the Khitat of Al-]\Iakrizi which contains an account of the Coptic churches and monasteries, and which is affixed as an appendix to this volume. Other Mahometan writers, however, besides Al-]\Iakrizi, composed works, which are now lost, on the subject of the Christian monasteries, and the most celebrated of them was Ash- Shabushti, who is quoted by our author and also by Al-Kazwini, Yakut, Al-Makrizi, and others. Indeed, one of the most interesting features of the present work is the constant reference which it makes to the relations between the Christians of Egypt and their Mahometan fellow-countr>^men. These relations, naturally, varied in their character from time to time. There were periods of disturbance, marked by outrages committed by the stronger race upon the weaker, by riots, incendiarism, murders, or even b 2 xii CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. by systematic persecution, as in the reign of the caliph Al- Hakim. But there were also periods when the two races lived peacefully side by side, and the adherents of the two creeds were on the best of terms with one another. Sometimes the Muslim governors would authorize and even assist in the restoration of the churches, contrary as this was to the written law of Islam. Mahometans were in some places allowed to be present at the celebration of the Christian liturgy, although the stricter among the Copts regarded this as a profanation. One of the most wealthy and magnificent princes that have ever ruled Egypt, Khamarawaih, the son of Ahmad ibn Tulun, used to spend hours in silent admiration before the mosaics, representing the Virgin and Child, attended by Angels, and surrounded by the Twelve Apostles, in the Melkite church at the monastery of Al-Kusair, where, moreover, he built a loggia in order that he might sit there with his friends to enjoy the scenery, and, it must be confessed, also to quaff the good wine, prepared by the monks and fully appreciated by the laxer followers of the Arabian prophet. The present work in its existing form is an abridgment of the original, as the copyist himself informs us in his final note. He adds that his abridgment has been unsuccessfully carried out, and while we may admire his modesty, we must of necessity agree with him on this point. Nothing could be worse than the present form of the work, which resembles rather a collection of undigested notes than a deliberate composition in its finished shape. That feature of the book which it is most difficult to understand is the repetition of passages on the same subject, and sometimes almost in the same words. We meet with a short account of some place, which is then dropped, and the history proceeds to the discussion of other matters, only to recur some pages further on to the subject which it had apparently left. Thus, for instance, the passage on the Fayyum on fol. 18 is repeated in slightly different terms on fol. 70 ; the description of Busir Bana and other places on fol. 17 occurs again, almost word for word, on fol. 68 ; and often after leaving a place, we are brought back to it and receive further information about it. There appears to be no arrangement or order in the work at all. We do not know what may have been the subjects which occupied the first score of leaves, now lost to us. It may, perhaps, be conjectured 4\ INTRODUCTION. xiii that they were filled with an account of the churches of Lower Egypt and Cairo, and of the monasteries of the Wadi Habib, which could hardly be neglected in such a work. Probably also we have lost part of the history of the Armenians in Egypt. The book, as we have it at present, opens with an account of the Armenian monastery and churches at Al-Basatin, a little to the south of Cairo. The latter buildings consisted of a ' Great Church,' or main building, to which a smaller church or chapel was attached after the manner of churches in Egypt. Sometimes these dependent churches were on the same floor as the principal edifice, and sometimes they formed an upper story to it. The mention of the Armenian monastery and churches leads our author to a digression on the recent history of the Armenians in Egypt, and on the misfortunes which had befallen them during his own lifetime. He then starts off upon quite a different matter, namely the revenues of the Coptic church and of the Eg}^ptian rulers; but this is a subject to which he recurs quite unexpectedly in one or two subsequent paragraphs. Then comes what is almost the only uninterrupted narrative or descrip- tion in the book, that is the account of the so-called heretic Mark ibn al-Kanbar. Next follows a list of certain remarkable features of Egypt and of distinguished men who have lived in that country ; but in the middle of this is inserted a note on the churches of Biisir Bana and other places. Then, after a note on the boundaries of Egypt, comes an account of the city of Al-Fustat and its churches, which would seem to be fairly system- atic and complete were it not for notes on king Aftutis, the revenues of Egypt, Nebuchadnezzar and the patriarch Demetrius, inserted in the middle of it without any apparent occasion for them . After describing the churches of Al-Fustat, our author proceeds up the Nile, noticing the churches and monasteries in the towns and villages, principally, of course, on the more populous western bank ; but he does not go straight on in his journey; he frequently dashes from south to north, and then again from north to south in a manner which would horrify us in a modern guide to the Nile ; and he still keeps up his trick of inserting notes from time to time on perfectly irrelevant matters. After reaching Nubia, our author returns again down the Nile for a short visit to certain places in Eg}-pt which he had passed over ; and then he suddenly takes us to Abyssinia, xiv CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. to India, to North-Africa, and even to Spain, and the shores of the Atlantic, ending up with south-western Arabia, and with the mention of certain ancient cities, the foundation of which is referred to the remotest antiquity. The most valuable part of the present work is probably that part which the author based upon his own experience, and did not borrow from other writers. Much of the information with which he supplies us on the churches and monasteries of Egypt seems to be of this character. Thus he himself tells us that great part of his account of the Monastery of Nahya is derived from what he saw and heard during a visit which he paid there for devotional purposes in the year 569 of the Hegira. A young monk whom he met in the monastery on this occasion seems to have been questioned by him, and to have discoursed to him at some length on the history of the place. It may be taken for granted that our author had also visited in person the churches and monasteries of Cairo and its neighbourhood, and had made similar enquiries of the priests and monks as to the foundation and restoration of these buildings and other matters of interest concerning them. But. how far our author had travelled up the Nile is doubtful ; and perhaps he had not himself seen the great White Monastery of Saint Sinuthius, opposite to Ikhmim. If he had been in that neighbourhood, he would surely also have spoken of the ' Red Monastery.' Similarly, it is probable that he had not paid a personal visit to the Monastery of Saint Anthony near the Red Sea, for if he had, he would have given a fuller account of the neighbouring Monastery of Saint Paul. Some of our author's statements with regard to these churches and monasteries which he had not himself seen, probably rest upon the testimony of some of his friends and acquaintances whom he questioned on the subject. Part, however, of what he tells us is borrowed from the Book of the Monasteries of Ash-Shabushti, a work in prose and verse much read at the time. The author, Abu '1-Husain 'All ibn Muhammad ash-Shabushti, was a Mahometan, and his work is a proof of the constant practice on the part of Muslims of resort- ing to the Christian monasteries, for the purpose of sauntering in their gardens, sitting in their galleries and loggias, and drinking their INTRODUCTION. XV wines. Besides Ash-Shabushti. other writers, such as Abu Bakr Muhammad al-Khalidi, Abu 'Uthman Sa d al-Khalidi, and Abu '1-Faraj al-Isfahani, composed works on the monasteries in the course of the tenth century of our era, and Ibn KhaUikan tells us that many other books were written in the Arabic language on the same subject. The work of Ash-Shabushti contained an account of all the monasteries of Al-*Irak, Al-Mausil, Mesopotamia, Syria, and Egypt, with all the poems composed on them, and a history of the events which concerned them. It is unfortunate that this work is lost, and only known to us through quotations made from it by other writers. Ash-Shabushti, who is said to have died at Al-Fustat or 'Old Cairo ' in A.H. 388 or 390, was private librarian and reader to the Fatimide caliph Al-'Aziz, and his agreeable manners and conversation led the sovereign to make him his constant boon-companion. It is in accordance with this character that he wrote of the monasteries chiefly as places for enjoying pleasant social inter- course and drinking wine. The surname Ash-Shabushti is difficult to explain, and Ibn Khallikan says that he ' repeatedly made researches to * discover the origin of the surname, but that all his pains were fruitless, ' until he found that the chamberlain to the Dailamite prince Washmaghir * ibn Ziyar was also called Ash-Shabushti, from which it appears that * this is a Dailamite family name.' Part of our author's information with regard to the churches and monasteries of Egypt, and to the ecclesiastical history of that country, is derived from the Biographies of the Patriarchs, compiled in the ninth century by Severus, bishop of Al-Ushmunain, and from the continuation of the Biographies by a later writer. The name of this work is well known to scholars, because Renaudot based upon it the greater part of his Historia Patriarcharum Alcxandrinoriim J acobitariim ; but the work itself has never been published, either in the original Arabic or in a translation, although copies of it are to be found in European libraries. The publication of this work is much to be desired, as it affords a great mass of information on the ecclesiastical history of Egypt, since the schism of Dioscorus, which is not supplied from any other source ; and although Renaudot has revealed to the learned world part of its contents, there is a very large part only to be known xvi CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. at present through a study of the original Arabic MSS. It is from these patriarchal biographies that our author borrows the greater part of what he tells us on the subject of the history of the Coptic patriarchs, and part of what he says on the churches and monasteries. It is thence that he takes, for instance, his account of the visit of Al-Kasim to the White Monastery. The Patriarchal Biographies of Severus of Al-Ushmtjnain are based in their earlier portion, as he himself tells us, on Greek and Coptic documents preserved in the ancient Monastery of Saint Macarius in the Nitrian Valley. In the later part the compiler has inserted the works of certain writers almost without change, such as the biography of the patriarch Kha'il or Michael by John the deacon, a contemporary and acquaintance of that patriarch, and a considerable portion of the series written by George, archdeacon and secretary of the patriarch Simon. Many of our author's quotations are taken from the life of the patriarch Michael. Another writer, to whom our author is considerably indebted, is better known to European readers, since his history was published in 1654-6 by Pococke, at Oxford. This is Sa id ibn al-Batrik, the Melkite patriarch of Alexandria, whose name was translated into Greek in the form Eutychius. He was a famous physician, as well as a priest, and composed a medical work in addition to his historical labours. His chief work, however, was that from which our author quotes, namely the Nazm al-Jauhar or Row of Jezvels, to which the European editor has given the Latin title of Eutychii Annales. It is a history, beginning with the earliest events narrated in the Bible, and continued down to the author's own time ; but its most valuable part is the ecclesiastical chronicle of Egypt which it contains. The author was born at Al-Fustat in A. H. 263 = A. D. 877, became Melkite patriarch of Alexandria in A. H. 3^1 = A. D. 932, and died in the latter city in A. H. 328 = A. D. 940. Our author makes more references than one to a writer whom he calls Mahbub ibn Kustantin al-Manbaji, that is ' Mahbub, son of Con- ' stantine, a native of the city of Manbaj.' This writer also bore the Greek name i^gapius, corresponding to his Arabic appellation. He composed a history of the world in two parts, of which a copy of the first part is INTRODUCTION. xvii preserved at Oxford, and a copy of the second part, relating events from the Incarnation onwards, exists at Florence. The latter work, however) has been carried on by a continuator down to the year A. D. 1312, and this has occasioned the erroneous belief that Mahbiib himself lived in the fourteenth century. Mahbub is a writer several times quoted by Al-Makin in the first part of his history. According to the Florentine MS., Mahbub or Agapius was a Jacobite or monophysite bishop of Manbaj. Use was also made in the work now edited of a History of the Cotmcils, of the homilies of the patriarch Theophilus, and of a Guide to the Festivals. It seems that there were several of such Guides in the ecclesiastical literature of Egypt, and the SynaxaiHa were partly based upon them. Our author was^ moreover, acquainted with some at least of the biblical books, and he quotes from the Pentateuch, the Prophets, and the Gospels. He would seem to have read the romance of Aura, which still exists in Arabic, and was probably translated from the Coptic. The curious work called the Book of Clement or Apocalypse of Peter is also quoted by our author at the end of his history. Copies of this work exist in Europe, as, for instance, in Paris and at Oxford. Our author does not tell us whence he derived his accounts of Nubia, of Abyssinia, and of the Indian Christians. Of Nubia he may have read in the work of 'Abd Allah ibn Ahmad ibn Sula'im, quoted by Al-Makrizi. Of Abyssinia he may have learnt something from the envoys who frequently arrived in Egypt from that country, as bearers of despatches addressed to the Coptic patriarch. Of India he may have received information from the mouths of Christian travellers ; or perhaps those Indian priests who at the end of the seventh century came to Egypt, to beg the Coptic patriarch to send out a bishop to their fellow-countrymen, may have left behind them some account of the state of Christianity in India. In those parts of his work which treat of the general history of Egypt, our author chiefly follows Ibn 'Abd al-Hakam and Al-Kindi. Copies of the Futuh Misr or History of the Conquest of Egypt by the Muslims, composed by the former of these two writers, exist in Paris. C [II. 7 ] xviii CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. The author, 'Abd ar-Rahman *Abd Allah ibn *Abd al-Hakam, seems to have written at the end of the second century of the Hegira, but the work was continued by his disciples, and in the Paris MSS. goes down to the end of the third century. There is little legend in the work, which consists chiefly of pure history, and in this respect compares favourably with later histories, such as those of Al-Makrizi and As- Suyuti. Al-Kindi, who is called by Haji Khalfah the first Arab historian of Egypt, died in A. H. 247 = A. D. 860, or according to others in A. H. 350 = A. D. 961. The title of his great work was Khitat Misr or Topography and History of Misr, its object being to describe the foundation of the city of Misr and its subsequent alterations. This work seems to have been the basis and model of the later works named Khitat, such as that of Al-Makrizi. Two other works of Al-Kindi exist in manuscript at the British Museum, namely a History of the Governors of Egypt and a History of the Cadis. Al-Kindi also wrote a book called Fadd'il Misr or Excellences of Egypt, which is quoted by our author more than once. The full name of Al-Kindi is Ablj 'Umar Muhammad ibn Yusuf al-Kindi. Some of his works were continued by Abu Muhammad al-Hasan ibn Ibrahim ibn Zulak, who died A. H. 387 = A. D. 997, and who is once quoted by our author, through a copyist's error, as An-Nasr ibn Zulak. The great history of At-Tabari had also formed the subject of our author's studies, as he shows by his reference towards the end of the work. Finally, our author, although a Christian, shows on more than one occasion that he is not unacquainted with the Koran itself, thus giving a fresh proof of the friendly feeling which existed between Christians and Muslims at the beginning of the thirteenth century of our era. From the account given above of the plan, or rather want of plan, of Abu Salih's work, it will be seen that it resembles a note-book which has not yet been put into order, rather than a formal composition. It is clear then that such a book could hardly be worth publication were it not that, in the words of the author, ' he has here collected information which i&'not to be found in the work of any other writer.' The present work is full of allusions to the history of Egypt, and INTRODUCTION. xix especially to the more important periods, such as the Mahometan conquest, the overthrow of the Omeyyad dynasty, the rule of Ahmad ibn Tulun and his son Khamarawaih, and the invasion by the Fatimide caliph Al-Mu'izz. The conquest of Egypt began in A.H. i8, when 'Amr ibn al-'Asi entered the country by the Syrian frontier, and subdued the imperial forces in a battle near Pelusium, where the Arab town of Al- Farama afterwards stood. 'Amr then advanced upon the fortress of Babylon, about ten miles to the south of Heliopolis, which was, after a long siege, ceded to him by the treachery of George son of Mennas. the ^Mukaukis.' After this it was necessary to attack the capital of the country, Alexandria, and here again serious resistance was offered to the Muslims. The siege of Alexandria lasted several months, so that the conquest of Egypt was not completed until the first of Muharram, A. H. 20 (a. D. 641). The conqueror did not, however, select Alexandria as his capital, but chose a spot easier of access from Mecca and Medina, namely the Fortress of Babylon and its neighbourhood, as the site of the new city which he founded and named Fustat Misr. From the time of the conquest, Egypt was governed by walis, appointed by the caliphs, who rarely visited the country themselves. The last of the Omeyyad caliphs, however, Marwan II, who reigned from A.H. 126 to 133, took refuge in Egypt from the armies of the new claimant to the caliphate, As-Saffah, the Abbaside. The Khorassanian troops of the latter pursued Marwan, who set fire to the city of Fustat Misr, and, having crossed the Nile, destroyed all the boats upon the river in order to stop the progress of the enemy. A vivid picture of this disastrous conflict is given us by an eye-witness, the contemporary biographer of the Coptic patriarch Michael, whose life is included in the compilation of Severus of Al-Ushmunain. The Khorassanians soon found boats with which to cross the river ; and they pursued Marwan as far as Busir Kuridus, near the entrance to the Fayyum, where they put him to death. His head was sent round the country as a proof of the extinction of the Omeyyad dynasty and the victory of the Abbasides. The Omeyyad caliphs had resided at Damascus, and the Abbasides established their court in A. D, 750 at the newly-erected city of Bagdad, so that Egypt was still ruled by walis, who, on account of their remote^ c 2 XX CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. ness from the seat of the central government, soon became practically independent. One of the most celebrated governors of Egypt was Ahmad ibn Tiilun, who ruled the country from A. H. 254 to 270. By this time the importance of the city of Fustat Misr had greatly diminished. The Hamrds or quarters to the north of Al-Fustat, founded at the time of the Arab conquest, had fallen into decay, and the ground had become bare of houses ; but upon the flight of Marwin into Egypt, the Abbaside troops had settled upon it, and gave it its new name of Al-'Askar, and here the emirs who ruled Egypt resided. It was in this quarter, now called the quarter of Ibn Tulun, that Ahmad built his great mosque. He no longer, however, chose to reside here, but founded the new quarter of Al-Kata'i', which extended from the lowest spurs of the Mukattam hills to the mosque of Ibn TQlun. Neither Al-'Askar nor Al-Kata'i' was destined to exist long. When the Fatimide caliph Al-Mu*izz sent his general Jauhar to invade Egypt, the latter demolished the houses between Al-Fustat and his own new city of Cairo, which formed these two quarters, and they thus entirely disappeared, save for the Christian monasteries and churches, which, as Abu Salih tells us, still remained in the Hamras, as the antiquaries of Egypt continued to call the place. Between the fall of the Omeyyads and the appearance of the Fatimides, it would seem that the Christians of Egypt enjoyed greater prosperity than had been their lot during the later days of the fallen dynasty. Nor do the Fatimide caliphs appear to have treated their Christian subjects with harshness, with the notable exception of the fanatical Al- Hakim, the great persecutor of the Copts and Syrians. The work now published is full of instances of benevolence shown to the Copts, and practical favours conferred upon them by Mahometan rulers and officials. The work of Abu Salih was composed immediately after a great revolution in the affairs of Egypt, following the invasion of the Kurds and Ghuzz under the leadership of Shirkuh and Saladin. This invasion was due to the unscrupulous intrigues of Shawar as-Sa'di, the vizier of the las-c- of the Fatimide caliphs, Al-'Adid li-dini 'llah. Shawar had been in the service of a former vizier, As-Salih ibn Ruzzik, who A INTRODUCTION. xxi appointed him vvali of Upper Egypt, a post only second in importance to the vizierate ; and in this capacity Shawar had shown much ability, and gained great influence over the principal officials of the country. On the death of As-Salih, hov/ever, in the year 556 (a. d. 1161), his son and successor in the vizierate, Al-'Adil, jealous of Shawar's influence, deprived him of his office, in spite of the warnings against such a step which had been uttered by Ibn Ruzzik upon his death-bed. Shawar assembled a body of troops, marched to Cairo early in the year 558, and, on the flight of Al-'Adil, pursued him and put him to death, himself assuming the reins of government as vizier, under the nominal supremacy of the Fatimide caliph. In the month of Ramadan of the same year, however, a fresh aspirant to the vizierate appeared in the person of Ad-pirgham, who, collecting a body of troops, forced Shawar to flee from Cairo, and put himself in his place. Thus, in the course of the year 558, the post of vizier was held by three statesmen in succession. Shawar, however, took the bold step of making his way to Syria, and applying for aid to Nur ad-Din, the most powerful Mahometan prince of his time. Accordingly, in the month of Jumada the First of the year 559, Nur ad-Din despatched a body of Turkish and Kurdish troops to Egypt under the command of a Kurdish general, then in his service, named Asad ad-Din Shirkuh. On the arrival of the army of Nur ad-Din, Dirgham was defeated and slain, and Shawar was restored to his post of vizier. He, however, now refused to perform his part of the contract, and would neither grant money nor land to the troops, nor send to Nur ad-Din that portion of the revenues of Egypt which he had promised. Upon this, the Kurdish general seized the city of Bilbais, and great part of the province of Ash-Sharkiyah. The unscrupulous vizier, however, instead of satisfying the just expectations of his auxiliaries, sent messen- gers to the natural enemy of his countrymen and his religion, the Frankish king of Jerusalem, offering him a sum of money if he would defend Egypt against Nur ad-Din and his troops, who, he said, had formed the design of conquering the valley of the Nile. Complying with this request, Amaury led a body of troops to Egypt and besieged Shirkuh at Bilbais during three months, but without success in spite of the low CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. walls and the absence of a moat. Suddenly the news came that Nur ad- Din had captured Harim, and was marching upon Baniyas. On hearing this, the Franks hastened homewards to defend their own country, after inducing the besieged general, who was ignorant of any cause for the Prank- ish retreat, to make terms by which he bound himself to leave Egypt also. In the year 562, Asad ad-Din Shirkuh was again sent to Egypt by Nur ad-Din, who was now filled with the desire of subduing that country, and had obtained from the Abbaside caliph Al-Mustadi a sanction for his enterprise, which made it a crusade with the object of extinguishing the rival dynasty of the Fatimides. Amaury, however, was again induced by a bribe to come to the rescue of Shawar and his nominal master Al-'Adid, and this time actually entered Cairo, while a sandstorm destroyed part of the army of Shirkuh, who was forced to retreat. In the same campaign, part of Amaury^'s army was defeated by Shirkuh, and Alexandria submitted to the Kurdish general ; but finally the latter retired from Egypt after a blockade which drove him to make terms with the king of the Franks. The third and final campaign of Shirkuh in Egypt began in the month of Rabi' the First of the year 564. The Frankish king had soon broken off his alliance with the Fatimide caliph, on the plea of treachery on the part of the Egyptians, and making a sudden descent upon Al- Farama, the ancient Pelusium, he had put the inhabitants to the sword. Shawar now once more asked for help from Nur ad-Din, whom he had treated so unfaithfully, and Shirkuh with his nephew Yusuf ibn Ayyub Salah ad-Din, known to Europe as Saladin, led an army to the frontiers of Egypt, where they found the Frankish troops who had been detained there by a stratagem on the part of Shawar, and who now had to beat a hasty and disastrous retreat. Shirkuh now took possession of Egypt, under the sanction of the Fatimide caliph, whose nominal rule he for the present maintained. The assassination of Shawar, however, was a natural and rapid consequence of the Kurdish occupation ; and Shirkuh became vizier in his place. After filling this post for two months and five days, Shirkuh died, and was succeeded in the vizierate by his nephew-'Salad in. The history of Saladin is well known to European readers. He was INTRODUCTION. xxiii the son of AyyOb the son of Shadi, a member of the noble Kurdish tribe of Rawadiyah, natives of Duwin, a town of Adharbaijan, and was born A. H. 532 at Takrit, where his father and uncle were in the service of Bihruz, who was acting as governor of the district under the Seljucide sultan Masud ibn Muhammad Ghiyath ad-Din. When Saladin became vizier of Egypt he at once began to give free rein to his ambition, and to display his capabilities for administration and for military activity. By his amiable demeanour and by promises of money, he won the emirs and the soldiery to his side, and was soon able to carry out the project of extinguishing the Fatimide dynasty, and once more proclaiming the Abbaside in Egypt as the true caliph. In the year 567, on the 2nd day of the month of Muharram, the KJnitbah of Al-'Adid was stopped by command of Saladin, and the name of Al-Mustadi was put in its place. The last of the Fatimide caliphs, however, was seriously ill at the time of this change, and never knew that his high position had been lost. A few days later the deposed caliph was dead. Saladin now took possession of the palace of the caliphate. Treasures of fabulous value are said to have been found there, hoarded up by the rulers of so large a part of the Mahometan world during two centuries of religious and political supremacy. We read of a carbuncle weighing seven- teen dirhams or twelve mithkals, of a pearl of unequalled size, and of an emerald four finger's breadths in length and one in width. There was also a most valuable collection of books, in spite of the loss of a great portion of the library of the Fatimide caliphs in the reign of Al-Mustansir. Saladin, however, sold all the treasures of the palace. The rejoicings at Bagdad were great when the news came that the Abbaside caliph had been prayed for in the mosques of Egypt, and that the rival dynasty had been overthrown ; and the city was decorated while the revolution was publicly announced during several days. Al-Mustadi sent robes of honour to Nur ad-Din, and to his general Saladin in Egypt. The effect of these political changes upon Egypt in general, and upon the Copts in particular, had been striking. On the approach of the Franks, Shawar ordered that Misr should be burnt, and that the inhabitants should remove to Cairo. The results of this burning of the already decaying city, which had suffered so greatly from the famine xxiv CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. and plague in the reign of Al-Mustansir, are noticed on several occasions in the work attributed to Abu Salih. Churches and monasteries were destroyed, although they were afterwards in part restored. When the Kurdish general Shirkuh had taken possession of Egypt in the name of Nur ad-Din, a considerable part of the land was taken away from its owners and settled upon the Kurds and Ghuzz, who formed the invader's army. In this way the Coptic church lost, for the time, all, or great part of, her landed property. The Ghuzz, who are so often mentioned in this work, and who seem to have formed perhaps the largest and most efficient contingent in the army of Shirkuh and Saladin, were a Turkish tribe whose original home lay • beyond the river ' of Central Asia, in the region which the Romans called Transoxiana. They removed, however, into the regions of Meso- potamia in the first centuries of Islam, and in the twelfth century entered the service of Nur ad-Din. The theory of land tenure among the Muslims was that all the land had been placed by divine providence at the disposal of the prophet Mahomet and next of his successors the caliphs, who had the right to settle it upon whom they would. Acting upon this principle the prophet himself settled land in Syria upon Tamim ad-Dari, even before the conquest of the country. Some of the titles to landed property in Egypt at the time of our author, and later, were traced back to the earliest caliphs. In general a rent or land-tax was paid to the government in return for such property ; but in later times a system of military fiefs was introduced, similar to those held under the feudal system of western Europe. The present work supplies us with several instances of the rent paid for land held under the Fatimide caliphs. The philological features of the present work form a subject too large to be discussed in an introduction, and would be better treated in a grammar of the Middle Arabic language. It must be remembered, however, that the author is represented in the title as an Armenian, and that his acquaintance with Arabic was probably imperfect. It is also quite clear that the copyist was no more equal to the task of correctly transcribing, than to that of judiciously abbreviating the book. Apart from these considerations, the orthography and grammar of the MS. INTRODUCrrOX, XXV seem to be those of other MSS. of the same period. Among purely orthographical faults \ is sometimes written for (j, ^ for and A? for ^ ; once or twice even ^ for J:,. The distinctions of case have been almost entirely lost, and the accusative is written where the nominative should be, and vice versa. In the case of the word j>.^ = ^J the confusion of cases is especially frequent. Mistakes in gender are also common, especially in the demonstrative pronouns sj^a for IXi, diij* for dJi, and vice versa. The dual sometimes appears, especially in the numerals, even when they are not in the oblique case or construct state, with the termination ^- for ^Jl or J\— ; compare Spitta, Grannnaiik des arabischen Vulgdrdialectes von Aegypten, p. 132, where such forms as ^Ij 'two-thirds,' (j^^ 'two- fifths,' are said to be used in all cases and states in the official language of the Divans, and to have passed thence into the vulgar tongue. At other times the oblique case in is used for the nominative, just as in the plural takes the place of ^j— . On fol. 64 b an adjective in the feminine singular is placed in attribution to a dual masculine, according to the rule in modern Arabic, although a few lines afterwards the masc. plur. is used. On fol. 93 a there is a noticeable form of the 2nd pers. plur. masc. of the perf., viz. for the classical instead of the more modern l^.:;..:. ^ ; but this may be a proof of the greater purity of the Arabic spoken in the Oases. It is a peculiarity of the present work that in certain parts the language is far more classical than in others ; but this may be because the author has in some places closely followed some writer of the first ages of Islam, such as Ibn 'Abd al-Hakam or Al-Kindi, and in other places has composed his sentences for himself. d [11. 7.] CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. HISTORY Fol. 1 b COMPOSED BY THE SHAIKH ABU SALIH, CONTAINING AN ACCOUNT OF THE DISTRICTS AND FIEFS OF EGYPT. Armenian Monastery and Churches at Al-Basatht. Section I. Let us begin ^ with the help and guidance of God. In this our own time, namely at the beginning of the year 564^ (Oct. 4, A. D. 1 1 68- Sept. 23, 1 169), took place the rebuilding of the [Armenian] church, named after Saint James, which stands in the district of Al-Basatin^ one of the districts of Egypt, in the neighbourhood of the hills. This was in the days of -k- ^ -Jf , who was an emir*, and ruled Egypt on behalf of the Fol. 2 a ^ Folio I b was not part of the original ]\IS., of which, in reality, the first twenty-two leaves are wanting, but was added by its owner, who perhaps compiled it from mutilated fragments of some leaves now missing, to supply a beginning to the incomplete book. Hence the abruptness, obscurity, and inaccuracy of the text. See Preface. This date must be rejected ; it is the date of the dispersion of the monks (see fol. 2 a), not of the rebuilding of the church, which must have taken place many years before. ^ Or, in the singular, Al-Bustan. It Hes a few miles to the south of Cairo, on the right or eastern bank of the Nile, near the Mukattam range, in a region of gardens, as the name implies. It is now included in the district of Badrashain, in the province of Jizah, and in 1885 had a population of 1,698; see Recensement de VEgypte, Cairo, 1885, tome ii. p. 65. (A. J. B.) * This first page of the MS. is so little trustworthy in its present form, that it can hardly be determined who this emir was. Since the events here related b [II. 7.] 2 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. caliph. He was a friend to all Christians, whether high or low. He received a monthly revenue of ten dinars from the lands [of the monastery] which he held in fief ^. He then undertook and carried out the reconstruction of this church of Saint James, which had been burnt down ; he built for it, above the sanctuary ^ a lofty dome, which could be seen from afar ; he erected arches and vaults ; and he completed the whole by setting up the great doors. These, however, were afterwards carried away, and accordingly he renewed them once more ; the same thing happened a second time, and again he renewed the doors. He also completed the rebuilding of the [adjacent] church, which, however, he did not cause to be consecrated, nor was the liturgy celebrated in it. When the emir died, he was buried in this church. Now the monastery, [in which this church is contained,] stands in the midst of gardens and plots of vegetables and cornfields ; and it is reckoned among the most charming of resorts for pleasure. § When the Ghuzz* and the Kurds took possession of the land of cannot really belong to the year a. h. 564, as they would seem to do if the date here given could be relied upon, it may be suggested that this emir was the Armenian Badr al-Jamali, who w^as vizier to the caliph Al-Mustansir from a. h. 467 to 487 = A. D. 1075-1094, and was known as Amir al-Juyush or emir of the troops, i.e. commander-in-chief. On account of his nationality and religion, Badr was a benefactor to the Christians of Egypt. Cf. Renaudot {Hist. Pair. pp. 459 and 508), who speaks of the Armenian settlement in Egypt in the time of Badr, mentioned by our author on fol. 47 b. ^ The dinar was a gold coin, slightly over 66 grs. in weight. 2 For remarks on the tenure of land in Egypt, see Introduction. ^ The word Askina (llxll or IXJx^l), from the Greek (TKi]vr], is used in this work in the sense of ' sanctuary,' and appears to be synonymous with Haikal (jilli). Cf Vansleb {Histoire de TEglise d'Alexandrie, Paris, 1677, p. 50), who speaks of 'la lampe de VAskeneoM du Tabernacle, ce qui est le choeur int^rieur.' The modern Copts, however, use the word to denote the baldakyn over the altar, such as may be seen, for example, in the church of Abu 's-Saifain at Old Cairo. See Butler, Ancient Coptic Churches, Oxford, 1884, vol. i. p. 114. (A. J. B.) ^ For remarks on the Kurdish conquest of Egypt, see Introduction. Our author, or more probably his copyist, by putting jaH and .jj^l in apposition ARMEXIAX MOXASTERF AXD CHURCHES. 3 Egypt, in the month of Rabf the Second, in the year 564 (a. d. 1168-9), calamities well known to all men overtook the Armenians \ who were then settled in Egypt. Their patriarch^, together with the Armenian monks, was driven away from that monastery of which we have been speaking ; its door was blocked up, and those churches remained empty, nor did any one venture to approach them. § Al-Bustan [or Al-Basatin] was next allotted as a fief to the Fakih Al-Baha^ 'Ali, the Damascene, who set apart for the Armenians the church of John the Baptist, built over'^ the church of the Pure Lady^, in the Harah Zavvilah^; and here the patriarch dwelt during the year 564 (a. D. 1168-9). seems to consider them as two names of the same nation. Perhaps there is some confusion between dj/^l jiJi, which would be correct, and ^ There were a large number of Armenians in Egypt during the eleventh and twelfth centuries. See Renaudot, Hist. Pair. p. 460 ff. Yakut, who died A. H. 596 = A. D. 1200, speaks of the Armenians among the mixed nationalities of which, as he says, the population of Egypt was in his time composed. See his Gcogr. Worterhuch ed. Wiistenfeld, iv. p. eci. Under the later Fatimides, high offices were frequently held by Armenians in Egypt, of whom the most distinguished were Badr al-Jamali, the vizier of Al-]Mustansir ; his son, AI-Afdal, vizier to Al-Amir ; and Taj ad-Daulah Bahram, the vizier of Al-Hafiz. ^ The first patriarch or catholicus of the Armenians in Egypt was Gregory, who, towards the end of the eleventh century, was consecrated at Alexandria by his uncle the cathoHcus, Gregory II. See Renaudot, Hisi. Pair. p. 461 ; and, for references to Armenian writers. Dr. Arsak Ter-I\Iikelian, Die armenische Kirche in ihreji Beziehungen zur byza?ili7iischen, Leipsic, 1892, p. 84. ^ Afterwards chief professor in the college called ^lanazil al-'Izz at Fustat, and preacher in the same city; died a. h. 584=a. d. 1188. See Ibn Shaddad, quoted by Ibn Khallikan, Biogr. Diet, trans. De Slane, iv. p. 421. In Egypt churches are frequently built one over another, forming two stories. ° A church of Al-Adhra (the Virgin) is still standing in the Harah Zuwailah, and is almost beyond question to be identified with the church mentioned in the text ; it bears marks of great antiquity. See Butler, Coptic Churches, vol. i. p. 273. (A.J.B.) ^ The quarter of Cairo called Harah Zawilah, and now Zuwailah, was founded b 2 4 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. Fol. 2 b The Armenian Patriarch. § This patriarch had been bishop of Itfih^ ; and afterwards, during the caliphate of Al-Hafiz^, he conceived the idea^ of becoming patriarch by means of money which he gave in bribes. He made an agreement with Al-Hafiz, binding himself to give instruction in historical matters to the caliph, who granted him permission to appear at the palace of the caliph, together with the em.irs and officers of state, on two days in the week, namely Monday and Thursday*, and also on festivals, to pay his respects, and to bring any new information that he had discovered. In this way, during his visits to the Emerald Palace^, the patriarch imparted to Al-Hafiz all the results of his researches among biographies by the Berber tribe of Zawilah, who assisted Jauhar, the general of the Fatimide caliph Al-Mu'izz, in the conquest of Egypt, a. d. 969, and the foundation of Cairo. The Bab Zawilah or Zuwailah is one of the principal gates of the city. See Al-Makrizi, Khitat, Bulak, a. h. 1270 = a. d. 1854, vol. ii. p. Ibn Dukmak, Kitdb al-Inti&dr li-wdsitah 'ikd al-amsdr^ Bulak, a. h. 13 10 = a. d. 1893, v. p. rv. ^ Now called Atfili; generally written ^f^ai^l; see fol. 8 b, 10 a, 47 a, &c. The town lies south of Cairo, on the eastern bank, and is the Coptic TXeXIXe^^, the Greek Aphroditopolis ; it now gives its name to a district of the province of Jizah, and in 1885 had a population of 2,731. See Yakut, Geogr. Wori. i. p. ri 1 ; Amelineau, Geogr. de VEgypte a Ve'poque copte, p. 326. Under the Fatimide dynasty, and for some centuries after, Itfili was the capital of a province; see fol. 8 b; Ibn Dukmak, v. p. irr. 2 Al-Hafiz Abu '1-Maimun 'Abd al-Majid, the eleventh of the Fatimide caliphs, reigned a. h. 524-544 = a. d. 1130-1149. See Introduction. ^ J-^" should be jli^. * These were the two days of public reception at the palace during the rule of the Fatimide caliphs. See Al-Makrizi, Khitat, i. p. tai. ^ The Emerald Palace (iy^H ^ or was part of the Great Palace ^.^11) of the Fatimide caliphs, which stood in the east of Cairo, and was founded by Jauhar in a. h. 358 = a. d. 969. The name was taken from the Emerald Gate near wliich this palace stood. See Al-Makrizi, Khitat, i. pp. )F.e>, fro; Cf. p. TAi^ ff. THE ARMENIAN PATRIARCH. 5 and histories of wars, and chronicles and annals of former rulers, and carried on intercourse of this kind with Al-Hafiz until the death of the latter, which took place in the month of Jumada the Second, in the year 544 (A.D. 1 149). § Outside this monastery^, and in its neighbourhood, beside the pottery, there stands a small church, which was rebuilt in the caliphate of Al-Amir- bi-ahkami 'llah, for the use of the ^lelkites, instead of the church which had stood in the Harah Zawilah but was wrecked in the same caliphate, and later, namely in the caliphate of Al-Hafiz, was transformed into a mosque. Abu '1-Barakat ibn al-Laith wrote verses on the subject of this church which was thus restored. It was built upon vaults, and beneath it there was a burying-place for the dead. § On account of the ruin brought upon the Armenians by the Ghuzz and the Kurds, their patriarch left Egypt and departed to Jerusalem. He took with him seventy-five sacred^ books, among which was a copy of the Four Gospels with illuminations* in colours and gold, representing ^ The monastery of Al-Basatin, described above. ^ The tenth of the Fatimide caliphs, reigned a. h. 495-524 = a. d. 1101-1130. See Introduction. ^ The books here spoken of were perhaps brought by Gregory (see note on fol 2 a) from Armenia to Egypt. See Renaudot, Hist. Pair. p. 461, and Ter- INIikelian, Die armen. Kirche, Szc. p, 84. * Probably the miniatures here spoken of were the work of Byzantine or Syrian artists. Native Armenian miniatures are not met with earlier than the thirteenth century. See Strzygowski, Eas Etschviiadzin Evangeliar, 1891, p. 87. A native writer of the eighth century says that all figure-painting in Armenia was the work of Greek artists {ibid. p. 77 f) The Armenian gospels of Echmiadzin, of A. D. 989, have Syrian miniatures of an earlier date inserted at the beginning and end. An Armenian book of the Gospels now at San Lazzaro, Venice, and ascribed to the end of the tenth century, contains Byzantine miniatures repre- senting scenes from the life of Christ {ibid. p. 76). Another Armenian ]MS. of the same date contains a figure of the Evangelist Saint Luke with a Greek title (a)aoka2, proving the nationality of its designer {ibid. p. 77). A similar employ- ment of Byzantine artists was customary in the neighbouring country of Georgia {ibid. p. 78 ff.) 6 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. Fol. 3 a the miracles of Christ, to whom be glory ! The patriarch's journey was begun on Saturday the 15th of Hatur^, in the year 888 of the Martyrs, which is equivalent to the 23rd of Rabi' the First of the year 568 (a. D. 1 172). It is said that he founded a monastery outside Jerusalem, containing a church, and named after Sharkis, who is the same as Abu Sirjah ; and to this church he brought all the altar-vessels and golden dinars that he had in his charge ; and it is said that this Armenian monastery contained twenty monks. The patriarch appointed a priest at Cairo to act as his deputy, together with the son of the priest, for the purpose of reciting prayers, and performing liturgies at the proper time, in the church of John the Baptist, which stands over the chapel of the Pure Lady in the Harah Zawilah, as it has already been related ; and at this church there assembled a congregation of Armenians, both men and women. As for the monastery which belongs to this people, together with its churches, it was deserted, and its door was fastened up. § The news came that the patriarch had arrived at Jerusalem in safety, and that all the Christians had gone out to meet him with joy Fol. 3 b and gladness, chanting psalms, and carrying before him crosses and lighted tapers, and censers with incense^. ^ The Coptic Athor (^,■e(J0p) = Oct. 28-Nov. 27. According to the custom of antiquity upon the arrival or departure of guests \vhom it was desired to honour, and especially of bishops. So it was when Saint Athanasius visited the different parts of Egypt : ' He journeyed southwards, accompanied by some of the chief bishops and a great company, and with torches and candles and censers without number.' ^.q^T^.p^.^e e^JUL^,pHc epe g^enno^^fi enicKoiioc ^JULJU.^-q iULit oTJULHHoje e«A.aj(joq ^.tuo ^e^X^.JUL^^.c JULit g^ertKHpcJon jULit £,encijoTpK encenA.cyxi une JULJULooT^.n (Zoega, Catahgus Codicum C optic or um, &,c. cod. clxxiii; Am^lineau, Histoire de S. Pakhome, &c. p. 296). Ori'-the approach of the officers of Theodosius to Lycopolis, the modern Asyut, the bishop John gave orders for their reception in a similar manner : ' Let THE ARMENIAN PATRIARCH. 1 § After this, the patriarch lived for a time in happiness^ and then went to his rest in the mercy of God, to whom be praise, on the 5th of Tubah\ in the year last mentioned ; and he was buried in the monastery of James the son of Zebedee at Jerusalem. He was noble in character and beautiful in form ; he was of perfect stature ; his face was encircled by his beard and whiskers, which were growing grey ; and his age was nearly eighty years. § It is said that the Armenian bishop^ resident in Jerusalem, when he saw how men sought the society of this holy patriarch on account of his noble qualities, was filled with envy of him, and gave him poison to drink, which caused his death. But God did not show favour to this bishop after the patriarch's death, or grant him a happy life ; for he died only twenty days afterwards. God knows best in his hidden wisdom whether that which was told of the bishop was true. This patriarch of whom we have been speaking was a learned priest, understanding the divine books and able to expound them. But there were those who envied him on account of his good reputation among men ; and so they said that he was guilty of immoral conduct. This report arose among those who were most envious of his innocence. The author of this book declared as follows : I met Abu '1-Kasim Khalil, the physician and philosopher of Ascalon, who said that he had visited this patriarch one all the clergy of the city and the chief men take the holy Gospel of the Saviour and crosses and censers, and go forth and bring them into the city with honour, singing hymns.' jUL^.pe ueKXnpoc THpq nTUoXic juirt rtA.px^rt xi JULiieT- ^.vveXion exoT^.^.S. JULUccjoxnp JULit itecTpoc JUirt rteoH- jULi^.T-Hpion rtT-eT"itS^(JOK eS-oX £,KT-onf m-exnitT'OT e^onrrt eTTIoXiC ^nOT'fjULK JUtlt g^rt^nrJULnoC (Zoega, op. at. cod. ccxix. p- 542). ^ The Coptic Tobi (x 03^.1) = Dec. 27-Jan. 25. At the Armenian synod of Hromkla in a. d. 1180 an Armenian bishop of Jerusalem appears among the signatories who subscribed to the creed of Nerses IV. See Ter-]Mikelian, Die annen. Kirche, &c. p. 104. 8 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. day in his cell in the monastery of Az-Zuhri^ [and the result of the visit was that the patriarch was proved innocent]. Fol. 4 b The report was not spread until after he had departed to Syria and had died there. It was at the house of Al-A*azz Hasan ibn Salamah called Al-Bakilani. who was chief cadi^ at Misr, that I the poor author of this book met Abu '1-Kasim, on Monday, the :J7th of Shawwal, in the year 568 (a.D. 1173). Fate of the Armenian Churches of Al-Basdtin and Az-Ztihri. § Since no Armenian of authority was now left in Egypt, the Copts acquired possession of this large and ancient church^ by a decree of our Lord the Sultan, through the intercession of the Shaikh ar-Ra'is Safi ad-Daulah ibn Abu '1-Ma ali, known as Ibn Sharafi, his scribe. Then its fittings were renewed by the emir Sa id ad-Daulah Bahram the steward of the Armenians. When the Shaikh Safi ad-Daulah had fully provided all that was needed for the construction of the church, through Fol. 5 a the priest Abu '1-Wafa ibn Abi '1-Bashar, the patriarch Anba Mark"^, who was the seventy=third in the succession, came with Anba John, ^ Janan az-Zuhri or Bustan az-Zuhri was the name given to gardens between Fustat and Cairo, from the former owner of the land 'Abd al-Wahab ibn Musa az-Zuhri. The pool called Birkat an-Nasiriyah was excavated on their site in A. H. 721 by the Sultan Al-Malik an-Nasir Muhammad ibn Kala'fin. See Al-Makrizi, Khttat, ii. pp. 1 ii* and no. ^ The cadi of cadis (iil^l ^'^) ^^^^^ judge was the principal legal officer under the Fatimide caliphs and their successors. This high dignitary was distinguished by riding on a grey mule, and he held his court in great state on Tuesday and Saturday at the IMosque of 'Amr. See Al-jNIakrizi, Khitat, i. p. t*^.r f. ; As-Suyuti, Husn al-Muhddarah fi Akhbdr Misr wa 'l-Kdhirah, ii. p. I r . . Al-A'azz became chief cadi in a. h. 549. ^ I.e. the church of Al-Basatm or Al-Bustan spoken of above, fol. 2. * Occupied the see from a. d. 1174 to 1189. See Renaudot, Hist. Pair. pp. 530-554. The tide Anba transcribes the Coptic and means ' father.' FATE OF THE ARMENIAN CHURCHES. 9 bishop of Tamwaih^ and Anba Michael, bishop of Bastah-, and a body of priests and chief men and orthodox laity ; and the church was consecrated on Wednesday, the 17th of Ba'unah^ in the year 892 of the Blameless Martyrs ; and the liturgy was celebrated and the people communicated at the hand of the patriarch. This church became a patriarchal church, and the liturgy was conducted henceforth by the priests of the church of the Lady in the Harat ar-Rum* in Cairo. Abii Sa'id ibn az-Zayyat provided for the painting of the apse^ of this church, ^ On west bank of Nile, a little south of Cairo, and opposite Hulwan; see Yakijt, Geogr. Wort. ii. p. ^vi^. It is the Coptic TF', Ibn al-Athir, Al-Kdmil (ed. Tornberg), xi. p. rr'i ; Ibn Shaddad, Sirah Saldh ad-Din (ed. Schultens), p- 38 ff- ^ Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Abi 'sh-Shukr Ayyfjb ibn Shadi ibn Marwan, surnamed Al-Malik al-'Adil Saif ad-Din, brother of Saladin, was born a. h. 530 = A. D. 1 145 and died a. h. 615 = a. d. 12 18. He acted as Saladin's viceroy for Egypt from a. h. 578 to 579, but was now ruling Aleppo, handed over to him by his brother. In a. h. 596 = a. I). 1200 he became sultan of Egypt. See Ibn Khallikan, Biogr. Diet. iii. p. 235; Ibn al-Athir, Al-Kdmil, xi. p. rri ; Ibn Shaddad, Sirah Saldh ad-Di7i, p. 56 ; As-Suyuti, Husn al-Muhddarah, ii. p. rv ff. * Taki ad-Din 'Umar, surnamed Al-Malik al-Muzaffar, nephew of Saladin, had been appointed viceroy of Egypt by the latter, when he summoned Al-I\Ialik al-'Adil to Syria in a. h. 579 = a. d. 1183 (see fol. 6 b). Taki ad-Din was recalled to Syria towards the end of a. h. 582 = a. d. 1186, so that it must have been in this year that the envoys mentioned in the text arrived from Armenia. See Ibn Khallikan, Biogr. Did. ii. p. 391 ; Ibn al-Athir, Al-Kdmil, xi. p. rff" ; Ibn Shaddad, Sirah Saldh ad-Din, p. 64 ; As-Suyuti, Husn al-Muhddarah, ii. p. 50 ; Abu '1-Fida, Ann. Musi. iv. p. 60. 5 See fol. 3 b. ' See fol. i b. FATE OF THE ARMENIAN CHURCHES. II Baptist^ in the Harah Zawilah ; but the Fakih at-Tusi^ did not allow it, so the bishop compelled him. and stayed there several months, and then Fol. 5 b grew sick and died without carrying out his object. He was buried in the church of the Armenians in Az-Zuhri ; may God rest his soul. § On the Sunday of Olives ^ the first day of the eighth week of the Holy Fast, and the ist of Barmudah'^, in the year 892 (a. D. 1177) of the Blameless Martyrs, a body of priests came to this church, with the laity, among whom were Abil Sa'id ibn Abu '1-Fadl ibn Fahd and Abu 'I-Yaman ibn Abu '1-Faraj ibn Abi 1-Yaman ibn Zanbur ; and these two had with them a vessel containing pure oil with which they ate their peas ; and they placed it within the church, but afterwards when they looked for it, they could not find it. Then they suspected the Muslim guardians of the church, and allowed their servants to beat them; so the guardians went to the Fakih Baha ad-Din^ 'Ali the Damascene in a fury, on account of what had happened to them, and said to him : ' Shall the Muslims be struck in the face by Christians in the month of Ramadan ? ' Then the fakih at once informed the sultan of this occurrence, and it greatly angered him ; so he sent for Safi ad-Daulah Abu l-]\Ia ali ibn Sharafi, his scribe, and blamed him for it, and demanded of him the decree which he had received, empowering Fol. 6 a the Copts to take possession of this church ; and this, by ill luck, was in the sleeve of his garment. So he brought it out and handed it to the sultan, who commanded that the door of the church should be barred, and this order was obeyed at once ; and the door of the church was barred. After a short time, however, the sultan commanded by a new decree that the church should be restored to the Copts, and its door should be opened to them, and they should pray in it, and that none should molest them in any way without cause. After this the condition of this church remained prosperous, and one of the priests of the church ^ See fol. 2 a. ^ See fol. 6 a. ^ I.e. Palm- Sunday ; otherwise called Hosanna Sunday. (A. J. B.) * The Coptic Pharmouthi (c{)^.pJULOnfei) = I\rarch 27-April 25. ^ See fol. 2 a. C 2 12 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. of the Lady in the Harat ar-Rum was appointed to perform the prayers in it on Sundays and festivals. After this there came to the court from Tus ^ an Imamite Fakih, to whom Al-Bustan, of which we have spoken, was allotted as a fief, after the death of Al-Fakih Ali of Damascus, in whose hands it had been. The new-comer began to oppress the Christians, and required gifts from them in the form of bribes, so far as his power extended. Then he shut the two churches 2, after pillaging the Great Church, the door of which he barred with a plank until Friday the 13th of Shaban, A. H. 581 (a. D. 1185). There came an Armenian, who said that he was a friend of Taj ad-Daulah Bahram ^ the Armenian, who had been vizier to Al-Imam Hafiz ; and he said that he had buried money, belonging to Taj ad-Daulah the said vizier, Fol. 6 b in the Great Church and that he had arrived in order to bring it to light ; but no heed was given to him. It is said that he went on in his imaginings until the church was opened to him, and he dug in certain places. Then he said : ^ The money has vanished from this place ; those who pillaged the church have taken it.' Thus he com- plained that a wrong had been done. The church remained open for him, and he lived in it as long as the fancy held him ; only he placed a second seal upon it on the part of Al-Malik al-Muzafifar^; but nothing was restored there. * In Khorassan. * I. e. the two adjacent churches of Al-Bustan. ^ Became vizier to the caliph Al-Hafiz in the month of Jumada the Second, A. H. 529 = A. D. 1 135. Being a Christian, he aroused the enmity of the Mahome- tans, a body of whom collected under Rudwan ibn al-Walakhshi (see fol. 9 a), and marched to Cairo with intentions hostile to Bahram, who fled in the month of Jumada the First, a. h. 531= a. d. 11 37. See Al-Makrizt, i. p. rov ; As- Suyuti, op, ciL ii. p. \ te>\ Ibn Khaldun, iv. p. vr; Abu '1-Fida, Ann. Musi. iii. pp. 460, 468; Ibn al-Athir, xi. p. ri. For the subsequent fate of Taj ad-Daulah Bahram, see below, fol. 50 a. * I.e. at Al-Bustan. ^ rre. Taki ad-Din (see fol. 5 a and note), then acting as viceroy of Egypt for Saladin. CHURCH OF ISTABL AL-FIl. 13 When Taki ad-Din went away to Syria \ in Sha*ban A. H. 582 (a. D. 1 1 86), and Al-Malik al-'AdiP Abu Bakr came to Cairo, the latter ordered that these two churches should be separated from one another on the loth Ramadan in the same year, and the Copts and Armenians obtained possession of the two churches and began to make use of them. Now the time during which they had been closed was one year and fifteen days. So the Copts celebrated the liturgy in the Great Church on the first day of the blessed month of Kuhiak ^ in the year 903 * of the Blameless Martyrs ; and after this the Copts forbad the Armenians to make use of the Great Church. Then an assembly of the chief men took counsel on this matter ; and both the churches were restored to the possession of the Armenians. Church of Istabl al-Fzl. § The street called Istabl al-FiP lies near the two pools of ^ He was at first chagrined at being thus superseded in Egypt, but finally consented to remain in the service of Saladin, who made him prince of Hamah (Hamath). Taki ad-Din died a.h. 587 = a. d. 1191. Ibn Khallikan, Biogr. Diet. ii. p. 391 ; Ibn al-Athir, op. cit. xi. p. n^o; Ibn Shaddad, op. at. pp. 67 and 213. ^ He came as guardian to his nephew Al-]\Ialik al-'Aziz the son of Saladin, who superseded Taki ad-Din in a.h. 582 as viceroy of Egypt, and became sultan on the death of his father in a.h. 589. It was not until a.h. 596 = a. d. 1200 that Al-Malik al-'Adil became actual ruler of Eg}-pt for the second time, succeeding his great-nephew Al-]\Ialik al-Mansur, son of Al-IMalik al-'Aziz, as sultan. Al-Makrizi, op. cit. ii. p. rre ; Ibn Khallikan, op. cit. ii. p. 391 ; Ibn al-Athir, op. cit. xii. p. 1 .r. ^ The Coptic Khoiak (^OIld.nUI 1^ dLdUl 1 0 1 09 32 140^933 Fuwah and Al-Muzahamiyatain 13 10 3 6,080 An-Nastarawiyah 6 6 0 14.910 Rosetta, Al-Jadidiyah and Adku [3] 3 0 3,oco Jazirah Bani Na§r 64 41 23 62,508 Al-Buhairah 176 87 89 139.313 Hauf Ramsis [lOl] 0 lOI [59,080] Total 1.598 917 681 2,040,040 * O Lake of Al-Habash, at which I spent a day of unbroken pleasure and happiness, so that thy whole surface seemed to me like Paradise, and all the time I seemed to b# keeping festival. How charming is the young flax upon thee, with its knots of flowers or buds, and when its leaves like swords are unsheathed from thee, and the leeks have extended their canopy over thee. It seemed as if the towers upon thee were brides unveiling, while birds warbled round them. Would that I knew whether thy season would return, for my desires begin with it and return to it!' See Al-Makrizi, op. cit. ii. pp. 1 or- 100; Ibn Dukmak, iv. pp. eo-ov ; Amelineau, Ge'ogr. p. 162. M. Amelineau has overlooked the fact that Al-jNIakrizi speaks of the Arc! Habash as well as Abu Salih. d [II. 7.] 1 8 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT, rol. 8 b Fol. 9 a Total ■\T_ rif i\o. OI Places. Districts. Villages. Dinars. oOULnern iigypL 5<50 379 209 ip2o,953 Provinces : Al-Jiziyah 97 70 27 129,641 Al-Itfihiyah 17 13 4 39449 Al-Busiriyah 14 13 I 39>39o Al-Fayyumiyah 66 55 II 145,162 Al-Bahnasa'iyah 105 84 21 234,801 Al-Ushmunain III 54 57 As-Suyutiyah^ 54 22 32 Total 464 311 153 716,119 ^ Most of these names will be well known to the reader, but a few of them may be commented on. Al-Murtahiyah is now part of Ad-Dakahliyah. Al-Ab- waniyah was a small province near Damietta, named from the town of Abwan, the inhabitants of which were chiefly Christians ; in the fourteenth century it had become part of Al-Buhairah. See Ibn Dukmak, v. p. va ; Yakut, Geogr. Wbri. i. p. 1 . 1. Jazirah Kusaniya lay between Cairo and Alexandria, ibid. iv. p. 1 . . . An-Nas- tarawiyah lay between Damietta and Alexandria, and was named from its capital Nastaru, ibtd. iv. p. va.. Al-Jadidah is reckoned by Yakut in the province of Murtahiyah; but Al-Idrisi names Al-Jadidiyah as a separate district [p. 121] (ed. Rome). Hauf Ramsis was between Cairo and Alexandria; see Yakut, Geogr. Wort. i. p. v, is feminine in gender, and commented upon that fact, possibly to the same effect as Jerome. The Coptic metropolitan evidently presents us with a very crude statement of Ibn al-Kanbar's views. In Arabic may be masculine as well as feminine, and is used in the former ACCOUNT OF MARK IBN AL-KANBAR, 41 all eternity from the Father and the Holy Spirit ; and he explained that as the Father has no beginning, so the Holy Spirit proceeds eternally from him^, without beginning, and the Son also is begotten eternally from them both without beginning. He held that God never spoke to any of his creatures, but spoke to his Son and to his Holy Spirit ; and he contradicted all the words of God that came to his people through the divine books, both old and new. He held that the patriarchs and the prophets were tormented in hell on account of their sins ; and that they could not save their souls in spite of their piety towards God ; but were punished in hell until the Lord Christ saved them, being himself without sin. He held that the patriarchs and prophets were without the gift of the Holy Spirit, and next that the Holy Spirit never spoke by their mouths ; thus denying them the grace of the Holy Spirit. He said : If the Holy Spirit had been in them, they would not have gone down into hell." Next he supported these false doctrines by the assertion that all the good actions done by the patriarchs and prophets were reckoned by God to Satan, which is as much as to say that Satan helped them to do good deeds without Fol. 16 b the Holy Spirit. This doctrine he supported by his belief that the good works done by the disciples and the rest of the people of Christ are reckoned to Christ, because they did these works by the Holy Spirit. gender when it denotes the Holy Spirit, <^jiJl ^j^l or j^jllll The ancient form was ^jjJ\ ^j^, from the Syriac U,foi5? ^ Here the metropolitan of Damietta attributes to Ibn al-Kanbar the common doctrine of the INIelkites and Copts. Vansleb says of the latter : ' lis croient que le Saint Esprit procede du Pere seulement, se fondant sur la parole de notre Seigneur, quand il dit dans son fivangile : Cum autem venerit Paraclitus, quem ego mittam vobis, a patre meo,' &c. {Hist, de VEgUse dAlex. p. 122 f.) In the Catechism published in 1885 by Filta'us, the hegumen of the patriarchal church of St. Mark at Cairo, it is said (p. v) : Uji M^'i ^ ^\ ^\ ^jjJi ^^)\ jbj^i d^w. ^ui ' The third Person [of the Trinity] is distinguished by the appropriate character of procession, for He is the Holy Spirit who proceeds, that is to say, issues from the Father eternally.' g [11.7] 42 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT, He held also that none has died from the time of Adam onwards except for committing some sin for which he deserved death ; and that the body of Christ alone did not commit any sin, for which it deserved death ; and that when he died he received from his Father all that were imprisoned in hell, through the merit of his death ; and in one place he says, "he received from Satan all that were imprisoned in hell." Thus Mark implies that the Lady died on account of sin alone, and so others beside her who are justified in the Gospel and the Old Testament. He held also that after the death of men and their assembling in paradise, there happens to those who have not been chastised in this life^ the same that happened to Adam ; and he held that punishment and recompense in the next world belong to the ^ Vansleb says that although the Copts do not employ a term corresponding to the Latin ' purgatory,' yet ' il est bien vrai qu'ils croyent que les ames souffrent des peines & qu'elles re9oivent du soulagement par le Saint Sacrifice & par les oeuvres de piete qu'on fait pour elles, & il est vrai aussi qu'a cette fin ils font des obseques pour ces memes ames & qu'ils disent la Messe le 3 & le 7 jour, a la fin du mois, au quarantieme jour, au sixieme mois & a la fin de Tannic de leur tr^pas,' &c. iyHist. de VEglise d'AIex. p. 140). Perhaps the doctrine of Ibn al-Kanbar was more definite than that held by the majority of the Copts on a point on which, as Vansleb says, 'I'Eglise Copte ne s'est point encore expliqu^e.' The following is an extract from page oa of the Catechism of Filta'us, which has already been quoted : ^^j.J6^\ dJij ^JlIj ^jL-c»."^1 Jjtsj t«_flj^)l ^JlJ^l A<->*^i$sJl cul^Ls ^\ ^ ^ Ajj-j ^jjjj A*s»^l p'^J J^^^^ Hsj v -.L. W ^) l^j^, ,_^Uj [^jhx^, A U •; : U J-^j1^1 a>m>^:^ JW*-'^^ ajmUI l ^*^ \jtj.^Ls6 'L^^\ sjAj (J^istiJ\ * Question: Are the souls of the faithful profited by prayers and good works? ^Answer: Yes. The prayers of the church and the offering of the Holy Sacrifice and the performance of good works profit those souls which have died still tainted by some of the imperfecdons and weaknesses of human nature, but not those which are sunk in vice and are reprobate without hope of repentance or forgiveness. This truth has been taught by the universal Church of Christ from CERTAIN WOXDERS OF EGYPT. 43 intelligent and reasonable soul apart from the body ; but that chastise- ment in this world is for the body, in order that, to avoid the pains of penance, it may not again consent with the soul in the commission of sin; then it will be saved on the last day. 'AH the expositions of his wicked doctrines are found in the books that he wrote, such as that called The Ten Chapters, and that entitled Fol. 17 a The Teacher and the Disciple, consisting of eight parts ; and the work named The Collection of Fnndamental Principles, and others.' Certain Wo7iders of Egypt. § Section in which the fishing-place^ is described. In the neigh- bourhood of the Nile, there is a place at which on a particular day much fish collects ; and the people of that place go out and fish with their hands, and none of the fish escape from them ; so that the people of that place catch enough to be eaten or salted by all of them. But when the sun has set on that day not one of them catches a single fish more ; nor during that year are fish found at that place, until that particular day comes round again. § Account of the City of Stone 2. Everything in this city is of hard black stone. There is the image of a teacher, sitting with his boys, who stand before him in large numbers both small and great ; and there are the likenesses of lions and wild beasts and other things. § Account of the moving pillar^ in the land of Egypt. This is the first ages, and the Church of Israel bears witness in the second Book of Maccabees that Judas INIaccabaeus offered sacrifices for the departed warriors (2 Mace. xii. 43).' ^ This fishing-place is not mentioned by Al-]\Iakrizi among the * wonders of the Nile.' 2 Madinat al-Hajar, or the City of Stone, is still existing in the south of the Fayyto, close to the village of Al-Gharak. There is an ancient sculptured gateway and some columns and other remains of an ancient city. ^ Can this be a version of the story told of the minaret of Abwit near Al-Bahnasa, reckoned by As-Suyuti among the twenty wonders of Egypt, which constitute two-thirds of the wonders of the world ? He says it is g 2 44 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. a marble pillar, rising to the height of about seventeen cubits above the ground, and its diameter is two cubits. It moves on one day of the year, making one motion. § Account of the tree\ which only bears fruit when a man runs towards it with an axe, as if he wishes to cut it down ; and another man meets him and forbids him to cut it down, and guarantees to him on behalf of it that it will bear fruit. And in truth in the ensuing year it bears a quantity of fruit equal to that of two years. ' skilfully constructed, so that if a man pushes it it inclines to the right and to the left ; but the movement is not visible externally except in the shadow of the minaret in the sunshine.' {Husti al-Muhddarah, i. p. i«, .) Cf. Ibn Dukmak, who says, in speaking of Abwit : cslli U jJjo J-wJ^j^L^jj y^jAs. y^jC^ ^i^^ ^'^^ ''j^^j ' In this town there is a wonder, namely, its minaret, which is ascended, and, if it is pushed, yields to the push, and leans to one side ; and the cause of this is unknown.' {Op. at., v. p. r.) Al-]\Iakrizi tells a similar tale of the minaret of Barzakh, a suburb of Damietta; see Khitat, i. p. rr. ^ This is no more than a grossly exaggerated report of the w^ell-known sensitive properties of the Mimosa Nilotica, named in Arabic. Al-Makrizi gives the following account in his description of the wonders of Egypt : Juocall ^ 'i]alMj .5^&^U jAj ^_^4-iilj ^^\j'J>:L3 (»)Ijl5^3j dlJLi: \j)jic l^J jliLs j*^^ ' Among the wonders of Egypt is this : that in Upper Egypt there is a hamlet called Dashni, in which there grows a mimosa-tree; and if this mimosa is threatened with being cut down it withers away and shrinks up and grows smaller; but when they say to it, "We have forgiven thee, we will spare thee," then the tree recovers. It is a well-known thing and true at the present day that there is a mimosa in Upper Egypt which withers away if the hand is laid upon it, and recovers when the hand is removed.' {Khitat^ i. p. rr.) The fruit of the sant was used in medicine ; see 'Abd al-Latif, Mukhiasar Akhhdr Misr, ed. White, pp. 48, 50, BUSIR BANA. 45 § Account of the stones ^ which are found at a place called Al- Fol. 17 b Barmak, between Khuraij and Yakhtak. It is on the side of a moun- tain, and when a caravan or a troop of soldiers passes by^ they bind much wool on the hoofs of their horses, and so make the ascent ; for if these stones struck against one another, a dark mist would rise at once and would prevent their progress, and an exceedingly heavy rain would descend. It is said that the wise men of this country fixed these stones in this district ; and, when rain was slow in coming to them, they moved these stones by their arts, so that rain came to them whenever a rainfall was needed. This is related in the biography of Al-]\Iu'tasim- : and certain of the chronicles contain the account of it. which is a true one. CJitirches of Busir Band and other places, § The southern provinces of the land of Egypt. Busir Wana^ is named after a sorcerer" who lived there and was named Busir. The ^ The stones which cause rain if they strike together are not described in the Life of Al-Miitasim, published by INIatthiessen, Leyden, 1849. ^ The eighth of the Abbaside caliphs ; son of Harun ar-Rashid, and brother and successor of Al-]Ma'mun. Reigned at Bagdad from a. h. 218 to 227 = a. d. 833-842; see Abu '1-Fida, Annalcs, ii. pp. 166-176. ^ The following passage is repeated almost word for word below, fol. 68 b ff. It is also quoted by Quatremere, Mem. Hist, et Ge'ogr. i. p. 110 ff. Our author, followed by Quatremere, evidently confuses Busir Wana or Bana ^^■ith Busir Kuridus, which lies to the south of Cairo, at the entrance to the Fayyum. Busir Kuridus is, however, spoken of by name on fol. 92 b. Busir Wana or Bana is situated in the district of Samannud, in the province of Al-Gharbiyah, and is therefore wrongly placed, both here and on fol. 68 b, in Southern or Upper Egypt. The town has now 5,359 inhabitants. It is near the town of Bana or Wana, here called (beginning of fol. 18 a) Wana Busir. The Coptic form of Busir is B.01fCipi, and of Bana or Wana R^LIt^LT. Four Busirs are mentioned by Yakut : Busir Bana in the district of Samannud ; Busir Kuridus ; Busir Dafadnu in the Fayyum ; and Busir as-Sidr in the province of Al-Jizah. See Yakut, Geogr. Wort. i. p. vi.; Al-Idrisi (ed. Rome) [p. 117]; AmeHneau, Ge'ogr. pp. 7-1 1. On fol. 92 b, Busir Kuridus is also said to be named after a sorcerer. 46 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT, town contains a large church, very spacious, built of stone, and situated within the city, near the fortress. It was constructed in ancient times ; and as time went by, and the kings required the stone of which it is constructed, much of this material was taken away from it. The church is now a ruin, but its remains are still conspicuous ; they stand near the prison^ of Joseph the Truthful^ that is to say the son of Jacob, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham, the Friend of God, upon whom be peace. § The city of Wana^ contains the church of George^. ^ Here our author is making a fresh mistake. The 'prison of Joseph' was neither at Busir Bana nor at Busir Kuridus, but at Busir as-Sidr in the province of Al-Jizah. Al-Makrizi says : ^jQ^ dili> AS.** ^ * Al-Kuda i says : The prison of Joseph, upon whom be peace ! is at Busir in the province of Al-Jizah ; all the learned men of Egypt are agreed upon the authenticity of this spot/ [Khitat, i. p. r.v.) This passage of Al-Kuda i is also quoted by Yakut, Geogr, Wort. iii. p. i^v. Al-Makrizi goes on to state that the flat roof of the ' prison ' was called Ijdhat ad-Diid, — the ' answer to prayer,' — and that it was much visited at particular times by those who had special petitions to make : notably by Kafur al-Ikhshidi. As-Suyuti speaks of the prison as standing to the north of the pyramids, which are still known as the Pyramids of Abusir, and are a little to the north of Sakkarah, and about six miles to the south of Al-Jizah. Busir or Abusir as-Sidr is now in the district of Badrashain, and had in 1885 a population of 1,848. In the fourteenth century, as it appears from the revenue-lists, the place was of great importance. Amelineau, Geogr. p. 10. The pyramids of Busir and the mummies found there are described by 'Abd al-Latif, Muhhtasar Akhbdr Misr, ed. White, pp. 156, 158. ^ Wana or Bana is near Busir Wana, as it has already been remarked. It was the seat of a Coptic bishopric. It is also called, as it may be seen a few lines lower down, Wana or Bana Busir. It was named in Greek KwotvoKls, and in Coptic n09i inhabitants. The district is still a Christian centre, and contains the second monastery, in point of size and wealth, in Egypt. See Yakut, Geogr. Wort. i. p. voa ; Am^lineau, Geogr. p. 366 ff. (A. J. B.) ^ Now in the district of Biba, in the province of Bam Suwaif; and in 1885 had a population of 1,465. See Ibn Dukmak, v. p. ^ ; Rec. de ftgypie, ii. p. 303. * These churches at Tansa are mentioned again fol. 69 b. The name of Nahadah occurs in the case of this one church only, among the Egyptian churches. 'the valiant,' is an epithet especially applied to St. Mercurius and St. Theodore. ^ ' The capital of the Fayyum,' still existing, and having in 1885 a population of 25,799. It ^^'^s the Greek Arsinoe or Crocodilopolis. The name Fayyum is, as it is well known, the Coptic ({)I0JUL = 'the sea' or 'lake : ' a name given on account of Lake IMoeris, identified by some with the modern Bi'rkat al-Kurun, but by JMr. Cope Whitehouse with the low ground, now dry land, in the Wadi Rayan, to the south of the Fayyum. See Al-lMakiizi, K hit at, i. p. ri' 1 ; Amelineau, Geogr. p. 339 ff. The following passage on the Fayyum is repeated on fol. 70 f. As we shall see in several cases below, our author follows other Arab writers in deriving the names of places in Egypt from the names of real or h [II. 7.] 50 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. of his daughters who had brought dishonour upon herself, so that he banished her thither. The city existed before the time of Joseph^, the son of Jacob, the son of Abraham the Friend of God, upon whom be peace ! and Joseph rebuilt it. He also made the Nilometer-. And he built [Madinat] al-Fayyum and Hajar al-Lahun^, which was built with wisdom, founded with divine assistance, and constructed by the inspiration of God. Joseph also dug the canal of Al-Manhi*. He supposed personages in remote antiquity. Many towns were supposed to be named after sons of Kift, who was said to have divided the land of Egypt among them. Most of these legends or traditions may be traced to the Arabic historian Ibn'Abd al-Hakam, who died in a. h. 257(?), and from whom Al-Kindi, Al-Kudai, Al-Makrizi, and As-Suyuti borrowed so much of their work. See As-Suyuti, Husn al-MuTiddarah, i. p. r.. The name Kift was in reality borrowed from the town of Kift or Coptos, and from its resemblance to the Ai*abic term denoting the Egyptians, namely Kibt (la-J, an apocopated form of Ai-yun-noy, turned by us i^to 'Copt'), gave rise to the legend of an ancestor of the whole nation, of that name, the founder of that city. ^ All the Mahometan historians of Egypt, following Ibn 'Abd al-Hakam and Ibn Ishak, state that Joseph superintended the digging of the canals of the Fayyum • and the building of its towns. See below, fol. 69 b f. 2 Al-]Makrizi quotes Ibn 'Abd al-Hakam's own words, to which without doubt our author is referring : ^_g;a> (LiLil* ^-ej U-P..^ j>^\ J*-^^ ^ J^^ ' Ibn 'Abd al-Hakam says : The first who measured the rise of the Nile in Egypt was Joseph, upon whom be peace ! who set up a Nilometer at Memphis.' Cf below, fol. 68 a, 69 b, 70 b; cf. also Diodorus, Bibl. Hist. i. cap. 36, who speaks of the earliest Nilometer as being at Memphis; and Herodotus, ii. cap. 13, who impHes the existence of a Nilometer at Memphis under king Moeris. ^ I.e. the great dykes and sluices of brick and stone near the village of Al-Lalifin, which regulated the supply of water into the Fayyum. This ancient stiucture, attributed by the IMahometan historians to Joseph (Al-Makrizi, Khitat, i. p. ri^v f . ; Yakut, Geogr. Wort. iv. p. r^Ff, As-Suyuti, Htisn al-Muhddarah, i. p. r^), was destroyed by French engineers early in this century, and a new lock erected. (A. J. B.) * Also called from its reputed author Bohr Yusuf or 'Joseph's River.' It is THE FAVYUM, 51 cultivated the land of Egypt. The Fayyum contained three hundred and sixty-six districts, according to the number of days in the year^, each district corresponding to a day ; and the yearly revenue from each canton was a thousand dinars. The lands of this district are laid under Fol. 18 b water when the river rises twelve cubits ; but are not entirely submerged with eighteen cubits. There are here tracts of common land^, in which no one has the right of property ; for men are allowed to make use of still in working order, and flows from a spot named Rds al-Manhi or ' Head of Al-Manhi,' near Darwah Sarabam (fol. 77 b), to Hajar al-Lahun, where it branches out into the many canals which irrigate the Fayyum. See Yakut, Geogr. Wdrt. iii. p. "irr ; Mardsid al-Ittila ad voc. ; Al-I\Iakrizi, Khitat, i. p. v 1 . ^ That is of the Coptic, not of the Mahometan year, which consists of 354 or, in the intercalated years, of 355 days. The Coptic year consists of twelve months of thirty days each, with five or six additional days called Nhsi. ^ Here our author quotes Al-Kindi's Facld'il Mis?'. Al-Makrizi says, quoting by name from the same book : ' In the Fayyum there is common land in which none has the right of property whether Muslim or of the allied peoples; and all, both rich and poor, may demand a share of it ; and it consists of more than seventy sorts of land.' Al-Kindi, followed by our author, is speaking of the different sorts of crops growm on the land. Seventy different crops seems a high number, unless every variety is to be separately enumerated. Al-Makrizi gives a list of the principal crops of Egypt, and names thirty-nine of them, without reckoning all the kinds of fruit-trees, and without counting all the different species and varieties of each genus. He names wheat, barley, beans, lentils, chick-peas, flat peas, flax, leeks, onions, garlic, lupins, water-melons, haricots, sesame, cotton, sugar-cane, colocasia, egg-plant, indigo, radish, turnip, lettuce, cabbage, vine, fig, apple, mulberry, almond, peach, apricot, date-palm, narcissus, jasmine, myrtle, beetroot, gillyflower, banana, cassia, lotus-tree. See the section entitled : 'Account of the different kinds of land in Egypt and of the various crops grown there,' in Khitat, ii. p. 1 . . ff . h 2 5a CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. it as they please, and to demand a share of it according to their circum- stances, and the land is of seventy kinds. The revenue of the Fayyum was estimated by Ibn Tarkhan in the time of Kafur al-Ustadh\ Emir of Egypt, generally known by the appellation of Al-Ikhshidi, under the Abbaside dynasty^, in the year of the Arabs 355, when the revenue amounted to 620,000 dinars^ ; and this equals the amount calculated to come from Ar-Ramlah* and Tiberias and Damascus. ^ Abu 'l-INIisk Kafur al-Ustadh, or the eunuch, was the son of 'Abd Allah. He was a negro slave, sold, it is said for eighteen dinars, in a.h. 312 = a.d. 924 to Abii Bakr Muhammad ibn Tughj al-Ikhshid, governor of Egypt, who subse- quently emancipated him and appointed him guardian over his two sons. When Al-Ikhshid died in a.h. 334 = a.d. 946, his eldest son Abu '1-Kasim Anujur became ruler of Egypt, but the state was actually administered by Kafur, who is known as Al-Ikhshidi on account of his having belonged to Al-Ikhshid. When Anujur died in a.h. 349= a.d. 960, his brother Abu '1-Hasan 'Ali succeeded to the government of Egypt, and Kafur acted as his lieutenant, as he had acted for his brother. 'All died in a.h. 355 = a.d. 966, and then Kafur became uncontrolled ruler of Egypt, as the son of 'All was too young to reign ; and this state of affairs continued until the death of the negro in a.h. 357 = a.d. 968. Kafur is celebrated as the most successful and powerful of all the black eunuchs who rose to eminence under Mahometan rule. The poet Al-Mutanabbi wrote in his praise. See Abu 'l-Maliasin, ed. Juynboll and Matthes, ii. pp. rvr-r^r; Ibn al-Athir, viii. pp. i*r^-t«^ri ; Al-IMakrizi, Khitat, i. p. rri; Ibn Khallikan, trans. De Slane, ii. p. 524 ; As-Suyuti, Husn al-Muhddarah, ii, p. 11*. (A. J. B.) ^ The Abbaside caliph reigning at Bagdad in a.h. 355 = a. d. 966 was Al-Mutf, who was proclaimed in a. h. 334 = a. d. 946, and abdicated in a. h. 363 = A.D. 974. ^ This statement seems to be borrowed from Ibn Zulak : u^jisj (JJjlSCiJ AjA ^ J^^jJ^ ^^la5^ (J (j^jj Jlsj j^^^ t L^/^J J^-^ ajU:^ ij'^tiljj ^*«*v>5 ii-j ^J^. iL-Jl sAa * Ibn Zulak says in Al-Kindi's book of information on the emirs of Egypt, that the Fayy^jm was reckoned for Kafur al-Ikhshidi in this year, namely the year 356, as yielding a revenue of more than 620,000 dinars.' {Al-]\Iakrizi, Khitat, i. p. ri^i.) ^ I.e. Ar-Ramlah on the coast of Syria, a httle to the south of Yafa or Joppa. 0 THE FAY YUM, 53 There were in this province thirty-three monasteries within its borders. In the patriarchate of Theodore \ the forty-fifth in the order of succession, the name of the bishop of the Fayyum was Anba Abraham^, and the revenue received into the treasury of the govern- * Occupied the see from a. d. 727 to 737, Renaudot, Hist. Patr. p. 201 f. ^ The form Afraham, is intended to reproduce the Coptic pronunciation of Ji\ dliA ^jlS^ »-Uil ^\ ^ Julian" j^JJjJLs jLlo dJUjdj (sUo Jo_^l J Jlii ^si ^.-^]j>}^ {^JJLJI J Jlii dl ^'3 2^ ^?t^^J^ »J l^Ju^ U^-ia.li ^U^^ doUillll J Jlii sJLo Ij^/^j ^^U-^ Jj^-^* (jUaLJl JU (jjJl ' And the bishop Anba Abraham, bishop of the Fayyum, was present on matters of their business. And when we entered the presence of Al-Kasim the next time, he called one of his odalisques who was from Western Africa, and he said to Anba Abraham : " This is thy daughter ; " and he laid the bishop's hand upon her hand, for his heart was as the heart of children. And he said to the bishop : " Thou knowest that I have loved thee deeply since my father's time, and all that thou didst ask of my father I will do for thee." And the holy Abraham said to him: "It is good." So Al-Kasim continued: "I desire of thee 300 dinars." Then the archdeacon who accompanied the bishop, and whose name was Simeon, and who was afterwards found worthy to succeed him as bishop, came to him and 54 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. ment, from the crops grown on the lands of these monasteries, amounted to five hundred dinars yearly. It is said in the Book^ of the Conqiiest of Egypt by the Muslims he said to him : " Bring the 300 dinars." So he brought them and gave them to Al-Kasim. Now Anba Abraham had much money derived from church property; for he had in his diocese thirty-five monasteries, in the Fayyum ; and he was the administrator of their goods ; and he was bound to pay a land-tax of 500 dinars into the public treasury of the government on their account. He was the head of all of them, and the merchants of Egypt sold to him and bought from him.' MS. in Bib. Nat. Paris, numbered Anc. Fonds Arahe 139, p. 142, lines 5-13. ^ By Ibn'Abd al-Hakam,who probably wrote at the beginning of the third cen- tury of the Hegira, and who is the source from which subsequent historians drew. It is unfortunate that this work, which is still extant, has not been published. See article in Zeitschr.fiir die Kunde des Moj'genlandes^ vol. iii. p. 329 ff., 1840, on Geschichte der muhammedanischen Eroberung Aegyptens. Yakut quotes the passage of Ibn 'Abd al-Hakam as follows : t R-j^_ 0JI9 dJu-j iuL sjlm* i^^-j cL?^ l/* c:a.»Ioc jqj^ jdo^ eiAil^ !^ b^.o:s? ^ ^it, Lo ^ Jliii Jxj Jja)! dJJu isj^^jls: 'ii^ ^ j^^jV, J^i^ J^rJI *U iiUi ^1 ».*=..l ^1 JI5 dJi (^^^1 ^^yLx» (2111] L4JI ^— ft-^?. ^1 \^j> &C. ^jA^ll ijj^^ (Jfi^^ jCxli «— a-o^ ' 'Abd ar-Rahman ibn 'Abd Allah ibn 'Abd aJ-Hakam says : I learnt from Hisham THE FAYYUM. 55 that the Fayyum was known as the Waste Ground ; it was an outlet for the waters of Upper Egypt. Joseph the Truthful dug the canal here, and brought the water through it, and the Nile began to flow into it. Joseph was of the age of thirty years, in the reign of Ar-Rayyan^, the ibn Isliak that when Joseph governed Egypt his dignity was increased by Pharaoh. And, when Joseph's age had passed a hundred years, the viziers of the kingdom said, "Joseph's understanding has decayed, and his reason is disturbed, and his wisdom is departed." But Pharaoh reprimanded them and denied their statements and softened down their words, and they refrained from repeating them. Then after some years they repeated their charge, so Pharaoh said to them, " Come, suggest something by which we may try him ! " Now in those days the Fayyum was called the Waste Land, and moreover it was an outlet for the superfluous waters of Upper Egypt ; so they all agreed that this should be the test by which to try Joseph. So they said to Pharaoh, " Desire Joseph to spread abroad the waters of the Waste Land, so that fresh territory may be added to your dominions and fresh revenues to your revenues." So he called Joseph, and said, " Thou knowest the place of my daughter such an one ; I have determined when she grows up to seek for her a city, and I have not found any for her except the Waste Land, which is a small town, near to us, but which cannot be reached from any part of Egypt except by passing through deserts and wildernesses up to this time. For the Fayyum is in the midst of Egypt as Egypt is in the midst of the countries, for Egypt cannot be reached from any part except by passing through deserts. I have settled this district upon my daughter. Do not therefore leave any means untried by which thou mayest gain thy object." So Joseph answered, "Yea, O king, if this be thy desire I will perform it." Pharaoh said, " The sooner it is done the better it will please me." Then an inspiration from God came to Joseph that he should dig three canals; one from the further part of Upper Egypt, from such a place to such a place, and one in the east from such a place to such a place, and one in the west from such a place to such a place. And Joseph disposed the workmen and dug the canal of Al-Manhi, from a point above Ushmunain to Al-Lahun.' Yakut, Geogr. Wort. iv. p. AjU l^i* lol^c jS^J^ J**" A^^jU L^^Jl j^'l^jJi e>i^ u-^ajli ^jJi Ajl^iJoj (J***:* ^->' J«U 4ijl:> J^/^^ (*^"^ 5 Jui eiJA^j ' Dabik is a town in the neighbourhood of Damietta, which gives its name to the sumptuous robes and the dyed turbans of sharb, and the trimmings of Dabikt interwoven with gold. Turbans of sharb, interwoven with gold, were made there ; each turban being 100 cubits in length, and bearing designs woven with gold of the value of 500 dinars, without reckoning the price of the silk and the hnen thread.'^ These turbans and the rest were brought into fashion in the time of Al-'Aziz bi 'Hah, son of Al-Muizz, who reigned from the year 365 (a. d. 975) until he died in the month of Shaban, in the year 386 (a. d. 996)/ Khitat^ i. p. m. CERTAIN MATTERS CONCERNING EGYPT. 63 stuff, not interwoven with gold, of which garments are made, of the value of ICQ dinars, except the stuffs of Tinnis^ and Damietta, and Al- Manhab (?) and SiHlli^. The Egyptians make woollen garments, and robes of goats' hair of Sam^lus, which are not to be found anywhere Pol. 20 a in the world except in Egypt. The natives of this country can boast of the wonderfully prolific nature of their horses, mules, and asses. They Cf. Quatremere, Mem. i. p. 340, where this passage is translated in Quatremere's usual loose manner. Barjawan, a black eunuch and vizier to the Fatimide caliph Al-'Aziz bi'llah, left at his death in a. h. 390 = a. d. iooo, one thousand pairs of trousers of the stuff called Dabikt; see Ibn Khallikan. The name DaMM \n2l?, extended to other brocades or damasks besides those actually made at Dabik, and was applied to the fabrics of Usjut and even of places beyond the borders of Egypt; see Glossary to De Goeje's Bib. Geogr. Arab. p. 232. See also Yakiit, Geogr. War/, ii. p. cfA ; Mardsid al-Iltila ad voc. ; Al-Idrisi (trans. Jaubert), i. p. 320. The town of Dabik no longer exists. ^ Al-Makrizi likewise says : Jci^ aoU i^jii j^^-^. J^^ '^J^^ j))^ ^'^^ u**^1j * There is no brocade in the world with a foundation of linen, of which a single garment, not interwoven with gold, fetches a price of 100 dinars in cash, except the brocade of Tinnis and Damietta.' Khitat, i. p. 1 w. Cf. Quatremere, M^m. i. p. 308, who makes the mistake of translating ' cotton.' Al-Makrizi says that the robes made at Tinnis for the caliph, in which a large quantity of gold was employed, were worth 1,000 dinars a piece; and that the sale of these fabrics at one time brought in a yearly receipt of 20,000 or 30,000 dinars from Al-'Irak alone. Cf. Al-Idrisi (trans. Jaubert), i. p. 320. I.e. Sicilian tissue. As in many other cases, a name derived from the place where the material was originally manufactured is retained, even when the manufacture is no longer confined to that place Sikillt was also made in Spain. See Al-Mukaddasi (ed. De Goeje), pp. and rr^. 64 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. have the gold-mines^ and the emerald-mines^, and red and yellow ochre ; ^ In the Wadi 'l-'Alaki, which lies to the south-east of Aswan, in the country of the Bajjah or Bishans. The mines have not been worked for many centuries, but were known in the time of Rameses 11. See Al-Idrisi (trans. Jaubert), i. pp. 36, 41; Al-Makrizi, Khitat, i. pp. no, nv, lU ; Abu '1-Fida, Tab. Aeg. p. 35 f. ^ Quatremere gives an interesting chapter on the emerald-mines of Egypt i^Mem. ii. p. 73 ff.) He first quotes an extract from Al-Makrizi [Khitat, i. p. rrr), who copies however from Al-Mas'udi, and Al-Mas'udi's informant was 'Abd ar-Rahim, sometime government clerk at the mines. The mines are said to lie in the midst of a waterless desert at Kharbah, a place seven days' journey to the south-east from Kus or Kift, the nearest town on the Nile. They are in a mountain range in the territory of the Bajjah, north of the great peak called Karkashandah. Various names are given of the different species of gems obtained, and the estimation in which the several sorts of emerald are held in different countries is stated. Al-Makrizi adds that the mines were regularly worked till about 1358 a.d., when the vizier 'Abd Allah ibn Zanbur put a stop to the mining. But it is related that Ibrahim Pasha, who governed Egypt about the end of the tenth century of the Hegira, in travelling through Upper Egypt, came to a place called ' the well of emeralds,' whence he took a vast number of gems. Prosper Alpinus mentions a well of emeralds, which produced a famous stone belonging to the Grand Seigneur. Maillet states that the situation of the mine is lost: while Bruce {Voyage to the Sources of the Nile, vol. i. p. 229) speaks of a Jebel ez-Zumurrud or Emerald Mountain, which he visited, and where he saw several sinkings or shafts. But as this mountain lay in an island, it cannot be (concludes Quatremere) the emerald-mine which Oriental writers agree in placing on the continent. So far Quatremere. But the mistake of Bruce, whose island was probably that of Zabargad, led to the rediscovery of the lost mines in 18 19 by a French explorer named Cailliaud. The results of his visit were published in a large work by the French Academy \ and the ruler of Egypt, Muhammad 'Ali, was so convinced of the value of the mines that he sent a number of miners to work them under Cailliaud's supervision. Cailliaud, however, seems to have spent but a short time at the work, before he was called away to join Ibrahim Pasha's expedition to the Soudan. From that time provisions ceased to arrive for the colony of miners, who gradually melted away, and the place was once more abandoned. So it remained till 1891, when Mr. Floyer, an Englishman in CERTAIN MATTERS CONCERNING EGYPT. 65 and marcasite^ of gold, silver, and copper ; and the Lake of Nitre, and command of an expedition sent by the Khedive Taufik, once more set foot on Jebel Zabara. For an account of this visit and for many topics of surpassing interest in relation to the desert between the Nile of Upper Egypt and the Red Sea, I refer the reader to M. Floyer's learned and ingenious work, l^tiide sur le Nord-Elbai Caire, Imprimerie Nationale, 1893). See also Yakut, Geogr. Wort. ii. p. t^iv; Al-Makrizi, Khitaf, i. p. 1^1^, and Al-Idrisi (ed. Rome) [p. 22]. (A. J. B.) ^ ]\Ir. Fisher, of Oxford, has kindly supplied me with the following note on this mineral : * The term marcasite is now used by mineralogists for one species of pyrites, but was at one time of wider signification, and synonymous with pyrites in general. It is a compound essentially of iron ^ith sulphur (FeSg), containing 46-7 per cent, of iron and 53-3 per cent, of sulphur, but the forms found in nature contain other metals such as copper, gold, silver, tin, &c. ; arsenic also is commonly present. In colour it varies from a brass-like or golden appearance to a silvery white, and is usually glistening and metallic-looking. " Marcasite of gold " may have reference to its appearance, or to the fact that gold could be extracted from the specimens so named. The synonyms are numerous, e. g. anivosy nvpiTTjs {\i6os), marchasita (Arab.), kis (Germ.) or kies, mundic (English miners), schwefelkies (Germ.), besides xanthopyrites, chalcopyrites. The name mar- casite or marchasite is of Spanish or Arabic origin. When weathered by exposure to air and water it produces sulphate of iron (and copper), termed at one time kupferwasser, which is perhaps corrupted into copperas in the vulgar tongue. ' On account of the large amount of sulphur the mineral is combustible (whence the name pyrites from nvp), and gives sparks when struck.' The word l£^S^ seems to have come into the Arabic from the Syriac which translates the Greek TTvpirrjs (Bar Bahlul). The medicinal use of marcasite was borrowed by the Arabs from the Greeks (Dioscorides, ed. Spengel, i. p. 8io = v. 142 ; Galen, opp. t. 13, p. 740; t. 12, p. 199; Pliny, 36, 19, 30, &c.) The Arab Gebr (Jabir al-Kufi) gives a chemical analysis of marcasite ; see IMangeti, R/d. Chcin. i; cf. Wiistenfeld, Gesch. der arah. Aerzte, p. 12 f. Ibn al-Baitar says : ' Marcasite is sometimes gold, sometimes silver, sometimes copper, sometimes iron : each kind resembles in colour that metal after which it is named ; and each kind is mixed with sulphur and gives out sparks when struck k [II, 7.] 66 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. the salt lakes ^. In Egypt is found the clay of Aswan, which is called the ' clay of art,' and of this the jars intended to contain the drink called ftikka'^ are made. The manufacture ^ of white paper exists here; factories for boiling sugar ^ are found here; and presses for sugar- canes; and fields of rice^; and oil of turnip*^ and radish; and oil of balsam"^; and opium ^ and the abramis^ and honey-wine. against iron.' This paragraph is based upon the article by Sadebek and Hoffmann, * Ueber den Namen Markasit,' in the Neues Jahrhuch fur 3fineraIogie, Stuttgart, 1878, p. 289 ff. The word 'marcasite' must have come into the other European languages through Latin translations of Arabic medical works, or through the Spanish mar- caxita, modern marquesita; see Dozy and Engelmann, Glossaire des mots espagnols et portugais d&ives de F arabe, p. 301. (A. J. B.) ^ The salt lakes in the Wadi Natrun or Nitrian Valley, which lie about three days' journey through the desert to the north-west of Cairo, are still a source of revenue to the Egyptian government. There are other salt lakes in the Delta and Upper Egypt. (A. J. B.) A kind of beer made of fruit, ^ The Arabs first learnt the manufacture of paper about a.d. 750, probably from the Chinese, and the first place at which it was made by Muslims was Samarcand. The manufacture soon spread to other parts of the Mahometan world. See Miitheilungen aus der Sammlung der Papyrus Erzherzog Rainer, vol. ii. pp. 87-255, where there is a full discussion of the history and composition of Arab paper. There was a street and a khan of the paper-makers at Cairo, and a mill in the latter of these places; see Al-Makrizi, Khitat, ii. pp. 1 ., rr. Buri near Damietta was famous for paper, which was also made in the Fayyum. The chief constituent was linen. * Al-Makrizi gives an account of the method of cultivating the sugar-cane in Egypt in his time ; see Khitat^ i. p. 1 . f . The use of sugar in Egyptian cookery is described by 'Abd al-Latif, Al-Mukhiasar, ed. White, pp. 178-182. The sugar- factories of Egypt were very numerous ; Ibn Dukmak, at the end of the fourteenth century, names sixty-five of them in Cairo alone, from many of which the government derived a large revenue ; see op. at. iv. p, 1 . ^ 'Abd al-Latif says that rice was much used in cookery with meat and fish ; op. cit. p. 1 84. It was introduced into Egypt under the Mahometans. 6 7 8 9 Yox these notes see next page. THE NILE. 67 The Nile. § Moreover, the Nile of Egypt is one of the miracles at which the people of the earth marvel when they hear of them ; for it rises at the ^ 'Abd al-Latif, ^^ ho was a contemporary of our author, says of the Egyptians : ^^^Ij ^.A^b y*:*'^ v-^is^ j^J^.^J Ci^.^^^ ' They have a peculiar custom also of extracting oil from the seed of the radish and the turnip and the lettuce, and this oil they burn for light ; and they make soap of it also : and their soap is moist, and red, yellow, or green in colour/ ('Abd al-Latif, op. at., ed.Wiiite, p. 176.) 'Abd al-Latif also mentions oil of balsam among the products of Egypt, and says that it was only made at 'Ain Shams (Heliopolis) in that country ; remarking that no balsam was to be found in his day in Syria, where Galen and Nicolaus say that it grew in the greatest perfection; op. cii. pp. 22-26. See also Butler, Coptic Churches, ii. p. 331. (A. J. B.) * 'Abd al-Latif says that opium was made from the black poppy ((_^lsN-iii in Upper Egypt, and was often adulterated; op. cit. p. 48. ^ The ahramis was a fish found in the Nile. It is curious that our author should place it here among the vegetable products. Al-Idrisi says that the ahramis has a red tail, is called the king of fish, is very good to eat, and is a hand's breadth in length, and half that measure in thickness ; see Jaubert's trans., p. 29. The name of this fish is derived from the Greek a^panU, which occurs in Oppian's Na/ieutica, i. 244-7 • XCL^Kides av Bplaaai re Koi d^pajxldsi (popeovrai ddpoai, aKXoTe & aWov dXos rropov, rj nep\ nerpas 77 neXdyrj, do\i)(oi(rL t i-nebpafiov alyuiXoirriv, aUv dfiCL^opevai ^eivrjv 686v, rjvT aX//rat. ^° The Nile was naturally reckoned to be one of the twenty wonders of Egypt ; see As-SuyOti, Husn al-Muhddarah, i. p. ; Al-Makrizi, Khitat, i. p. ri . The following passage is a commonplace found in slightly different words in most ancient writers who have written on Egypt; see Herodotus, ii. 25, 26 ; Diodorus Siculus, i. 36; Strabo, xvii. i; Heliodorus, Aethiopica, cap. 28; 'Abd al-Latif, p. 4 fF. ; Al-Makrizi, i. p. 0. ff. See below, fol. 26 b. k 2 68 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT, time of the great decrease of water, when other rivers and springs fall or dry up ; and its rise comes at the very time when it is needed, and so likewise its fall comes when it is needed, by the special care of God for the inhabitants of Egypt. After the decrease of the Nile the wells rise, and the time of sowing depends upon it, and not upon the rains. The Nile flows continually down to the salt sea, and cleaves its way through it visibly. God has spoken of the Nile of Egypt by the tongues of his prophets ; for Isaiah the prophet says : ' God shall bless the people of Egypt, and those whom his hands created in Al-Mausil § The Gospel also says : ' The angel of the Lord appeared in Tol. 20 b a dream, and said : " Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee into the land of Egypt, and be there until I bring thee word^.'" And the Lord Christ and his mother, the Pure Virgin, and the blameless old man, Joseph, dwelt two years in Egypt. § And in the prophecy of Hosea, as the pure Gospel bears witness, it is said : ' From Egypt have I called my Son Scjottrners in Egypt. § That which causes Egypt to excel other countries is the sojourn in this land of our Lord Jesus Christ, in the flesh, with the Pure Lady Mary and the truthful old man, Joseph the carpenter, by the command of God ; and also the sojourn at Alexandria of Mark the Evangelist^, ^ Isaiah xix. 25. Al-]\Iausil, Mosul or Moussol, being opposite the ruins of Nineveh, was often confused with the latter city, and spoken of as ' Nineveh." IMoreover the territory of Al-Mausil ( J-^U (^1) forms part of what was once the kingdom of Assyria, and so the name was used as synonymous with ' Assyria.' Cf. e.g. Al-Masudi, Muruj adh-Dhahah (ed. Barbier de IMeynard), ii. 77 : — {^y-t? AJJXej J--^^ Ci)^ * The kings of Al-Mausil and of the city of Nineveh.' 2 Matt. ii. 13. 3 i^osea xi. i, and Matt. ii. 15. * j^'J^I or ^.j^)-^ is the Syriac 'my Lady Mary;' it occurs constantly in this work as the appellation of the Blessed Virgin. ° The Copts have, as it is well known, unanimously preserved the tradition, SOJOURNERS IN EGYPT. 69 who was the nephew of Stephen, the chief of the deacons, and first of the martyrs in Jerusalem. Some of the pure patriarchs^ also came into Egypt ; namely, Abraham, the Friend of God ; and Jacob, the son of Isaac, who lived here seventeen years and died here, and whose body was taken back to Syria ; and the fathers of the twelve tribes, w^ho were his sons. The posterity of the latter in Egypt increased to the number of six hundred thousand five hundred and fifty souls-, including the descendants of Joseph the Truthful and his sons Manasseh and Ephraim, without^ reckoning the sons of Levi, whose number amounted to twenty-two thousand two hundred and seventy-three souls. Joseph died in Egypt, and his body was carried into Syria ; and Moses prayed and worshipped at his prison ^ Among those who dwelt in Egypt were Moses, and Aaron his brother, and their sister Miriam. Lot also, the son of Abraham's brother, entered this country ; and Joshua the son of Nun ; and the Fol. 21 a also found in Greek and Latin ecclesiastical writers, that St. Mark was the founder of the church of Egypt, and the first bishop of Alexandria. The Arabic Lives of the Patriarchs, by Severus of Al-Ushmunain, begins with an account of the episcopate of St. I\Iark ; see British Museum MS. Or, 26,100, pp. 16-23. Cf the old Greek diptychs preserved in ]\ISS. of the Coptic Liturgy of St. Cyril, which give a list of the bishops of Alexandria beginning with St. I\Iark (jULaJl S^lssLlj j.eis ^1 ^L>j ^Jla. JaII Ij jivU 72 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. until they reached a fortress, buiit of stone ^, between Upper Egypt and the Delta-, which was called Bablun^. Here they pitched their tent, and all of them prepared to meet the Romans and to fight with them. And they called that place 'Al-Fustat' in their language; and the meaning of this word is ' The Tent.' In this way the Arabs called the Fort of Ash-Shama * at Misr ' Fustat Bablun.' jA^ jgHx^jJl ij^}o, * Then [ihe Arabs] crossed the hills until they arrived at a fort built of stone, between Upper Egypt and the Delta, which was called Bablun, and there they pitched their tents, that they might prepare to fight with the Romans. Then they named that place, that is to say the fort, Bablun Fustat in their language ; and that is its name at the present time.' (Brit. Mus. MS. Or. 26,100, p. 105, Hues 12-14.) ' The Roman fortress referred to is built with alternate courses of stone and brick, and has stone pediments over the gateways ; so that the use of stone predominates sufficiently to justify the expression in the text. I have given a plan of this fortress in Coph'c Churches (vol. i. chap. 4). (A. J. B.) ^ I translate (— s^l by 'the Delta' because that is its obvious meaning here. See note on fol. 12 a. ^ The Arabic form of Babylon (Ba.SvXwv, name given by the Greeks and Graecizing Copts to this town and fortress on the Nile ; see Diodorusj i. 56; Strabo, xvii. i, § 35; Josephus, Aiit. Jiid. ii. 15. Other Arabic forms are Babluniyah (a^o^.li), Babliyun (^j^.li), Bab al-yun {^y^\ c-jU), but the Arabs only knew the Greek form of the name, and never called the place Babil (Jjli) like the city on the Euphrates. * In my Coptic Churches (vol. i. chap. 4) I was unable to give any satisfactory account of the name Kasr ash-Shamd or * Casde of the Candle,' which is the familiar designation of the place to-day. Now, however, I am inclined to think that Shamd is a corruption of the old Coptic name ^KJULI, 'Egypt.' The town and fortress of Babylon were called by the Copts ^ ^ W'J;^ iojJjJsl^l ^ S^?^. u^^sJ^.^^ ^jjj^l* aJU* ^ I'jJlt^ (•y^J '^'j tJ^J SJclj dli^. j^^^^-Cat^-i? ' At the beginning of the caliphate [of 'Umar] George was appointed patriarch of Alexandria. He remained four years in possession of the see. Then when he heard that the Muslims had conquered the Roman's, and had vanquished Palestine, and were advancing upon Egypt, he took ship and fled from Alexandria to Constantinople; and after his time the see of Alexandria remained without a Melkite patriarch for ninety-seven years. ' When George took flight, Cyrus was appointed patriarch of Alexandria in succession to him ; Cyrus was a Maronite, and followed the religious faith of [the Emperor] Heraclius. Now there was a monk at Alexandria named Sophronius, who condemned the doctrines of the patriarch Cyrus ; for Cyrus taught that Our Lord Christ consisted of Two Natures with One Will and One Energy and One Personality ; and this was the doctrine of Maro.' Cf. Le Quien {Oriens Christ, ii. col. 447 ff".), according to whom Cyrus was elected patriarch in a. d. 632, deposed in 639, restored in 641, and died in 642; and Zotenberg, Chron. de JeaJt de Nikiou, p. 439. 1 [II. -.] 74 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. people of Al-Fustat dug a moat against the Arabs. Al-Fustat was then called Al-Luniyah^ ; but the Arabs called it Al-Fustat, because they said : ' This is the tent (fust^t) of the people, and their place of meeting/ *Amr, then, came thither with three thousand and five men ; but after- wards he was joined by Az-Zubair ibn al-'Awwam, with twelve thousand. *Amr took possession of the fortress ^ and captured it by force ^; and thereupon he gave up to plunder all the treasures that it contained. He spared the lives of the natives on condition of their becoming a ' protected people ' ; but he laid tribute upon them throughout their country. The governor of Al-Luniyah, or Al-Fustat, demanded a tax of two dinars from every adult : that is to say twenty-seven dirhems, all but one-third ; unless the man was poor. Every rich man was obliged to pay every year two dinars and three ardebs of corn. In this way *Amr raised a revenue of two millions of dinars from the poll- tax of Egypt ; and *Abd Allah ibn Sa id ibn Mufarraj* raised four millions of dinars. The government of *Amr ibn al-'Asi lasted ten years and four months, and that of ' Abd Allah ^ his son for two years. § It is also said that, when the Muslims came into Egypt, they made an enclosure of canes, extending from the road called Al-Farr to the place named Daurah Khalf ; and hither they assembled them- selves ; and it was called Al-Fustat, or the meeting-place of the people ; and the Arabs did not put up a tent, not being acquainted with the use of tents. ^ This is simply part of the word Bdblumyah (jUijJulj) or Babylon, which the Arabs supposed to be two words, meaning Gate of Luniyah. 2 Am^lineau, who has published a translation of the greater part of fol. 21 b {Geogr. p. 542), translates ^^a. by 'fosse ' ! He also reads, a line or two further down, • Louiiah ' instead of ' Lumyah,' not being aware that the latter is simply part of the form iUijlili (Babluniyah), used by Al-Makrizi for 'Babylon.' ^ For remarks on the conquest of Egypt, see Introduction. * Al-Makrizi (i. p. says that 'Amr raised a revenue of twelve millions, and 'Abd Allah ibn Sad ibn Abi Sarh fourteen millions. The latter succeeded 'Amr as emir of Egypt (op. cit. p. Our scribe has evidently altered the figures. ^ Some say that it was not 'Abd Allah the son of 'Amr who governed Egypt after the latter, but 'Abd Allah ibn Sa'd. / THE CITY OF FUST AT MI SR. 75 § 'Amr ibn al-'Asi conquered Egypt on a Friday, on the first day of the month of Al-Muharram, in the year 20 of the Hegira, and in the caHphate of 'Umar ibn al-Khattab, in a battle which took place ne^^r the fortress known as the Fort of Al-Hammam\ The number of the Fol. 22 a Copts who inhabited the land of Egypt, without counting the decrepit old men and the children below the age of understanding, amounted to six millions of souls. 'Amr imposed upon all of them a yearly tax^ of twenty-six dirhems and two-thirds ; but from the rich men, all alike, he exacted two dinars and three ardebs of wheat a head, in every place that he occupied. In this way the country produced twelve millions of dinars, without reckoning the tribute of the Jews in Egypt and its provinces. All this money was carried to 'Umar ibn al-Khattdb ; and it was the first money that was taken to him from Egypt. *Amr ibn al-*Asi had visited Egypt during the days of ignorance, and knew the roads leading thither, through trading there together with one of the tribe of the Kuraish^. * See x\l-j\Iaknzi, Khitat^ i. p. r^ ' Amr had visited Egypt during the days of ignorance, and knew the roads leading thither, and had seen the wealth of the country; and the cause of his visit to Egypt was that he travelled to Jerusalem for purposes of trade, with some members of the tribe of Kuraish,' &c. 1 2 76 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. § I found it stated in the History of the Church that the Muslims entered Egypt and took possession of it in the month of Ba'unah, in the year 321 of the Righteous Martyrs^. § The number of those that were slain in the conquest of Egypt, without reckoning those that were killed during the siege, was twelve thousand three hundred^. § The places named after the Arab tribes, who laid them out at the time of the conquest of Egypt in Muharram of the year 20 of the Hegira, were [the streets or quarters named after ^] Muharrah ibn Haidan ibn 'Amr ibn al-Haf ibn Kuda*ah ; Tajib Umm 'Adi ; Lakhm ^ Our author does not seem to have copied his authority very accurately here as regards the date. The passage in the life of the patriarch Benjamin runs as follows : (•J^^ C^"* j"^^^ ^J)y. ^ tJ^^ * The king [i. e. caliph] of the IMuslims sent an expedition, under one of his trusted friends named 'Amr ibn al-'Asi, in the year 357 of Diocletian the slayer of the martyrs ; and the army of Islam invaded Egypt in great force on the 12th day of Ba'unah, [that is to say] in the Roman month of December.' (Brit. Mus. MS. Or. 26,100, p. 105, lines 7-10.) Cf. Renaudot, Hist. Pair. p. 162. Ba'unah does not correspond to December, but to IMay 26-June 24. It is well known that the so-called Era of the Martyrs really begins with the accession of Diocletian, a. d. 284 (Aug. 29), and was originally employed by heathens as well as Christians. Al-Kindi makes the number of slain only 3,500 ; see Al-Makrizi, Khitat^ i. p. vsi" . ^ This passage seems to be somewhat corrupt. Perhaps the copyist did not understand it. It is doubtless borrowed from Al-Kindi's Khitat Misr. Al-Makrizi says : THE CITY OF FUST AT MI SR. 11 and Judham, the two sons of 'Adi ibn Murrah ; Rashidah ibn Jazilah ibn Lakhm ; the Banu '1-Maghafir ibn Ya far ; the Banu Wa'il ; (names were given to the Khalij and Al-Kantarah and the Quarter^); Habib ibn Mughaffal, who dwelt in the Wadi Habib ^ ; the Karafah ^ ; the Fol.22b Banu Hajas ibn Yusuf ibn Wa il ; Al-Malik Abu '1-Khair ibn Sharahil ; O^. u-W^ 1;^^ f> 1^'^ Ir^ ^j>. Ji^j ^J'^j^ ^0 * When 'Ami returned from Alexandria and settled at the place where his tent (fustat) had been pitched, the tribes assembled together and divided the place between them. Then 'Amr appointed as ste\vards of the quarters Mu'awiyah ibn Khadij of the tribe of Tajib, and Sharik ibn Simi of the tribe of Ghatif, and 'Amr ibn Kahzam of the tribe of Khulan, and Haiwil ibn Nashirah of the tribe of Maghafir ; and it was these men who appointed settlements for the Arabs and divided the place among the tribes; and this was in the year 21/ [Khitat, i. p. r^v.) The names of the Arab tribes here furnished by our author as those which laid out the different quarters of Al-Fustat, and gave their names to them, are also found in Al-]Makrizi {ibid) and Ibn Dukmak, iv. p. ^ f , with the addition of others. ^ This passage seems to be corrupt. ^ Habib was one of the companions of IMahomet, shared in his flight, and took part in the conquest of Mecca. Under the caliph 'Uthman, he retired into the Nitrian valley, which was therefore named after him. Wadi Habib is the most usual of the names given by the Arabs to the Nitrian valley (see fol. 20 a), which they also called Wadi Natrun, Wadi 'l-Muluk, Desert of Askit {^kvuBls, Scaetis), Desert of Shihat and ■Nlizan al-Kulub (Balance of Hearts). Of the last two names the former is simply the Coptic Shihit (cyig^KX), from which ^KvaOis and Askit are derived, and the latter is an Arabic translation of the two elements of which the Coptic name appeared to be composed, namely CLJI, ' measure,' 'weigh,' and g^KT, 'heart.' See Al-Makrizi, Khitat, i. p. ui ; As-Suyuti, i. p. in . ^ This is said to be the name of the tribe which settled on the plot of ground to the north-west of Al-Fustat which afterwards became the great cemetery of Al-Karafah ; but another account of the origin of the name ' Karafah ' is given on fol. 42 a. See Yakut, Geogr. Wort. iv. p. i«a . 78 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT, Wardan the Roman ^ the friend of *Amr ibn al-'Asi ; Shajaah ibn Mandaghan ibn Mahk ibn Ka b ibn al-Harith ibn Ka b. The market- place of Barbar^ was named after Barbar ibn Abi Habib. The street of Al-Khadiji was the settlement of 'Abd ar-Rahman ibn Mu'awiyah ibn Khadij ibn Hajar, emir of Egypt ^ in the caliphate of ' Abd Allah ibn az-Zubair^ at Mecca and of Marwan^ in Syria. § *Amr ibn al-'Asi ibn 'Adi is described as being dark and short, with a large head and prominent brows, wide-mouthed, with a long beard, broad-shouldered and broad-chested^. He died in the year 43 ; and he was buried in the Mukattam"^ hills, in the neighbourhood of the Ravine, on the road towards the Hedjaz. ^ Wardan is said to have been an Armenian. Under the caliph Mu'awiyah, he was the director of the tribute of Egypt ; and he was killed at Alexandria in A. H. 53. The market-place of Wardan at Al-Fustat was named after him. See Yakut, Geogr. Wort. iii. p. ni^ . ^ In Al-Fustat; see Yakut, Geogr. WorL iii. p. i^r. ^ From Sha'ban a. h. 64 = a. d. 684 to Rajab a. h. 65; he succeeded Sa'id ibn Yazid. Al-Makrizi calls him Abd ar-Rahman ibn 'Utbah ibn Jahdam. See K hit at, i. p. r. I f. ^ Abd Allah was the eighth caliph, but was not recognized in Syria and only by a party in Egypt. He reigned 128 days, during the latter part of a. h. 64 and the earlier part of a. h. 65. In the month of Jumada 'l-Ula, a. h. 65, the Omeyyad caliph Marwan invaded Egypt, and fought with Abd Allah and his emir Abd ar- Raliman, whom he defeated and slew, so that the Omeyyad dynasty was established throughout the Mahometan world. See Al-Makm, Tarikh al-Muslimm, ad ann. 64 and 65; Abu 'l-Faraj (ed. Pococke), pp. 194-8; Abu '1-Fida, Annales, i. p. 402 If.; Al-Makrizi, i. p. r.i f. ; As-Suyuti, Husn al-Muhddarah, ii. p. a. ^ Son of Al-Hakam, and fourth of the Omeyyad caliphs ; reigned from a. h. 64 = a.d. 684 to A.H. 66 = A. D. 686. See Abu 'l-Faraj, p. 197 f • ; Ah\i'\-¥\di^,,Amiales, i. p. 404 ff. ; Al-Makm, ad ann. 64-66 ; AI-]\Iakrizi, i. p. r . 1 f. ; As-Suyuti, ii. p. a . ^ This description is taken from Ibn Abd al-Hakam. See An-Nawawi, Ktidb Tahdhib al-Asmd (ed. Wtistenfeld), p. f'vA ff. ' The well-known hills to the east of Al-Fustat and Cairo, about which many legends were told by the Arabs ; see Al-Makrizi, Khitat, i. p. 1 rr . KING AFTCTIS. 79 Kifig Aftiitts. \ I found it written in the history of Mahbub"^ ibn Kustantin Al- Manbaji (now the city of Manbaj- is also called the ancient City of the Priests, and is on the banks of the Euphrates), in the first part, that a king named Aftutis^, in the time of Isaac son of Abraham, was the ^ Otherwise called Agapius {^y^\s^ ; see Introduction. ^ The Syriac Mabug (j^joslc^ , see Assemani, Bib. Or. ii. p. 22 ; cf. ' Mabog,' Pliny, H. N. v. 19), and the Greek Hierapolis, in northern Syria, to the east of Antioch and not far from the right or western bank of the Euphrates. It is now called IMenbij or Benbij. and by the Turks Kara Bambuj or Buguk ]\Ianbej, but is in a ruined state. In the time of our author it was a flourishing city and renowned for its salubrious climate (Yakut, Geogr. Wort, ad voc.) Eutychius incorrectly identifies it with ]\Iegiddo [A?i?iales, i. p. 242). ' The City of the Priests ' (^14^1 Ajj-u) is a translation of the Syriac name of the place, )Jo»3 ]^Z^ or jlojcni which the Greeks converted into Hierapolis. This parenthetical passage of our author is based upon the words of INIahbub, son of Constantine, himself: \^\^\ iJ^X* ^ W. ^^^^^^ Co/**^ '^^^^ o'^^ 3 fij t^jJl [sic] ^_^^^\ iijjH dij ^j-^jt^ tj'^^^ u^y^ * At that time [i. e. the period of Jacob] the queen Semiramis built a great temple to Kuyus the idol in a city on the bank of the Euphrates ; and she appointed seventy men priests to Kuyus. The name of this city was Hierapolis, the interpre- tation of which is '* City of the Priests," and it is the ancient city of ^lanbaj.' (Bodleian MS. Hunt 4.178, fol. 70 a.) If it may be conjectured that Kubbus {^J^) is the correct reading instead of Kuyus, the statue referred to may be that of Kombabos, of which we hear in the treatise De Dea Syra ascribed to Lucian, that it stood in the temple of the great goddess in whose honour the temple of Hierapolis was actually erected. Agapius accepts the tradition mentioned in the same treatise that Semiramis was the founder of the temple. ^ This name appears as Utis on fol. 57 a and b, but is more often found in 8o CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. first who discovered books and sciences and astronomy and arithmetic. He studied the latter in the books of the Chaldaeans and people of the East, and introduced them into Egypt, besides magic and the art of Fol. 23 a conjuring. At the same time, Sodom and Gomorrah were built ; and Babylon^ also was built upon the river Nile. This king, mentioned above, reigned for thirty-two years. Revenues of Egypt. § Under the administration of Joseph, son of Jacob, the land-tax of Egypt, after the country began to flourish through his enterprise, reached the sum of twenty-four million six hundred thousand dinars^. The Pharaoh of the time of Moses drew a revenue of ninety millions of dinars; his name was Al-Walid ibn Mus'ab^; and he dug, by the the shortened form Tutis (j^^^^Js^), the name of a king whom Al-Makrizi calls the son of Maliya, son of Kharaba ; see Khitat, i. p. 1 1« . ; As-Suyiiti (Husn al-Muhd- darah, i. p. r i) calls Tutis the son of IMaliya, son of Kalkan, son of Khartaba. ^ For a different account of the foundation of the Egyptian Babylon, see fol. 60 b. The generally accepted story of its origin is given by Strabo, Geogr. xvii. cap. I, § 30, and Diodorus, i. cap. 56, § 3 ; cf. Josephus, Ant.Jud. ii. 15. The recently-discovered tablets from Tall al-Amarna show that intimate relations existed between Egypt and Babylon on the Euphrates, at least 1,500 years before our era. (A. J. B.) ^ Al-Makrizi says 97,000,000 dinars, and adds that according to the compu- tation of Ibn Dahyah 90,000,000 Pharaonic dinars were equivalent to 270,000,000 dinars of his ow^n time. Ash-Sharif al-Harrani says that from a Sahidic list translated into Arabic he found that the revenues of Egypt in the time of Joseph amounted to 24,400,000 dinars, thus nearly agreeing with our author. The same figures are given by Al-Hasan ibn 'All al-Asadi. See Al-Makrizi, Khitat, i. p. vo . ^ This is the name commonly given by Arab writers to the Pharaoh of the time o? Moses ; see Al-Mas'udi, ii. p. 397 f.; An-Naw^awi, Tahdhib al-Asmd, p. 0 . . ; Al-I\Iakrizi, Khitat, i. p. ii'r ; As-Suyuti, Husn al-Muhdda7'ah, i. p. rc . Other names, however, are mentioned by Ibn 'Abd al-Hakam. I REVENUES OF EGVPT. 8t agency of his officers Karun and Haman\ the canal of Sardus^ which has more windings than any other. The Romans derived a revenue of twenty milHons of dinars^ from Egypt. The country was placed by Heraclius under the government of George, son of Mennas, the Mtckaukis^, on condition of receiving * Haman, the minister of Pharaoh, is mentioned in the Koran, Stirat al-Khas, V. 5 and 7 ; al-Ankabiit, v. 38; al-Mtimin, v. 25 and 38 ; and (Karun) Korah in al-Kisas, v. 76; al-A?ikabiit, v. 38; and al-Mu'min, v. 25. Korah is represented in the Koran, following the Talmud, as a man of immense wealth, and insolent towards his fellow-countrymen. Our author is doubtless borrowing from Ibn 'Abd al-Hakam, who says that Haman was commanded by Pharaoh to dig this canal, and that the people of the villages in whose neighbourhood it was to run offered him money if he would allow the canal to be brought close to them, which could only be effected by its making many turnings; see Al-I\Iakrizi, Khttat, i. p. v. f . ; As-Suyuti, i. p. ro. Quatrembre identified the so-called canal of Sardus with the ancient Tanitic branch of the Nile, now named the Bahr INIu'izz {Mem. i. 301). ^ It is impossible to conjecture on what these figures are based. Very pro- bably the population was about eight millions, and there is nothing improbable in the statement of Abu Salih, which would give 2 J- dinars per head, or £1 5^-. od. of our money. But the Roman revenues were in kind as well as in money. Herodotus (iii. 91) makes the revenue from Egypt and parts adjoining, including Barca and Cyrene, 700 talents of silver, without counting the income from the fishery of Lake IMoeris, and 700 talents in coined money. St. Jerome, on Daniel xi. 5, says that Ptolemy Philadelphus derived from the countries under his sway 14,800 Egyptian talents, besides 7,000,000 bushels of corn. Towards the end of the Lagide dynasty, the revenue of Auletes was 6,000 talents, though Cicero puts the amount at 12,500; but even this would be only about £2,250,000 as against Abu Salih's £10,000,000. In the time of Augustus, the amount of corn sent by Egypt to Rome was nearly 3,000,000 quarters per annum, and if the value of this WTre included, a near approach would be made to Abu Salih's figures. See 'Abd Allah Simaika's Province Romaine d'igypte, p. 129 seq. (A. J. B.) * The position, name, and tide of this official, which have so long been a problem to Arabists, seem to have been settled as far as possible by Prof De Goeje in his memoir De MokauMs van Egypie^ and by Prof. Karabacek m [II. 7.] 82 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT, a sum of eighteen millions of dinars yearly. *Amr ibn al-*Asi drew, in the year 20 of the Hegira, one million of dinars ; but in the year 22, twelve millions. Under the Abbasides, when Egypt was adminis- tered by Ahmad ibn Tulun, it produced five millions ; and, when administered by Ya'kub ibn Yusuf, four millions ; and it finally went down to three millions^. § A survey of the provinces of Egypt, so far as the Nile waters them, was made in the days of Hisham^ ibn *Abd al-Malik, and their extent found to be thirty millions of feddans^. The annual revenue also of Egypt and its dependencies, during the government of Kafur in his article Der Mokaukis von Aegypten in the Mittheilungen aus der Sammlung der Papyrus Erzherzog Rainer, vol. i. pp. i-i i. The latter authority concludes that the full designation of the IMukaukis was probably Georgios son of Menas (Mennas) Parkabios, according to the Coptic custom of double names, thus explaining the name Farkab [y^j for given to his father by Yakut, Al-Makrizi, and As-Suyfiti ; and that his office was probably that of Pagarch, which corresponded to the more ancient office of Nomarch, with, perhaps, the post of Strategos held in addition. Strategos is found in the papyri translated into Arabic by di^l J-«U or di^Al and Pagarchos by ^l^ii Jx>U or simply J-oU; and Eutychius calls the Mukaukis ^ J*^, while As-Suyuti says that he was chief military officer as well as superintendent of the taxes. The term Mukaukis itself is believed by Prof Karabacek to be the Greek /icyaux"?? (v. Aeschylus, Persae, 641), an honorary epithet which would be analogous to /ieyaXoTrpeTreVraro?, ivho^oTaroi and evKXeearaTos, found in papyri of the time of the IMahometan con- quest and later as apphed to the Pagarchs. (A. J. B.) ' Cf. Al-Makrizi, EMat, i. p. r 1 1 . ^ The tenth of the Omeyyad caliphs; reigned from a. h. io5 = a. d. 724 to A. H. I25 = A. D. 744. ^ Taking the feddan as equivalent to an English acre, which it slightly exceeds, it is difficult to understand this estimate. ' The area of the cultivable tract of Egypt, which has remained unaltered since the remotest antiquity, is about 11,342 square miles' (Baedeker). At 632 acres to the square mile this g'Wes 7,168,144 acres or considerably less than one-third of our authors estimate. The statistics of revenue in the remainder of this paragraph are credible enough. (A. J. B.) NEB UCHA DNEZZA R. 83 al-Ustadh al-Ikhshidi, was added up, so far as it could be estimated, together with all the expenses, and it amounted to three million two hundred thousand and more than seventy thousand dinars ; but the expenditure exceeded the revenue by two hundred thousand dinars. Pol. 23 b In the year 162 (a.d. 779), in the caliphate of Al-Mahdi ibn al-Mansur\ the Abbaside, the revenue of Egypt was estimated at one million eight hundred and twenty-eight thousand five hundred dinars. Nebuchad7iezzar, § Nebuchadnezzar^, the satrap of the east, invaded Egypt, and ruthlessly pillaged the country for booty. Belteshazzar^ however, his son, restored Egypt after its devastation, which lasted forty years * ; and the first district which he restored in the country was that of Al- Ushmunain^. ^ The third of the Abbaside caliphs; reigned at Bagdad from a. h. 158 = a.d. 775 to A. H. 1 69 = A. D. 786. ^ A very distinct tradition has been preserved in Egypt of its invasion by Nebuchadnezzar, spoken of by Jeremiah (xliii. 16 ff. and xlvi. 13 ff.) and by Ezekiel (xxix. 19). See As-Suyfiti, i. p. f ; Al-Maknzi, i. p. ta^, &c. ; Eutychius, i. p. 253. It is well known that there exist fragments of a cuneiform inscription of the date of Nebuchadnezzar, which contained an account of his invasion of Egypt; see Schrader, Keilinschriftliche Bibliolhek^ iii. pt. 2, p. 140 f. ^ Belshazzar. Eutychius writes the name^Ui ; At-Tabari , and Ibn Khaldun -.-.l) . * This number seems to arise from a confusion with the true number of years in Nebuchadnezzar's reign, viz. forty-three years according to Berosus, the Canon of Ptolemy, and the Babylonian contracts ; see Strassmaier, Babylonische Texte : Inschrifien von Nahuchodo7iosor. ^ The classical Hermopolis or Mercurii Oppidum, and the Coptic CLJJULOTrt, on the west bank of the Nile between JMunyah and ]\Ianfal{it. It is now in the district of Raudah in the province of Usyut, and in 1885 had 2,312 inhabitants; but it has much declined from its ancient importance. See Yakut, Geogr. Wart, i. p. rAr; Al-Idrisi (ed. Rome) [p. 47]; Al-Makrizi, i. p. tta; Amelineau, Geogr, p. 167 ff. m 2 84 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT, The Patriarch Demetrius. § The first who appointed bishops for the land of Egypt and its provinces was Demetrius \ the twelfth patriarch. Restoration of Churches of Al-Fustdt. § The history of the church, in the biography of Anba^ Mark the Younger, the forty-ninth patriarch, testifies that the churches of ^ This statement is borrowed by our author from Eutychius : CijJl U^* ^ LJ^ 'From the time of Ananias (Annianus), who was appointed patriarch of Alexandria by Mark the Evangelist, until Demetrius the eleventh patriarch of Alexandria, there were no bishops in Egypt, and the predecessors of the last-named patriarch appointed none. But when Demetrius became patriarch, he appointed three bishops, and he was the first patriarch of Alexandria who made bishops. When he died, Heraclius was constituted patriarch of Alexandria after him, and appointed twenty bishops.' {Annates, ii. p. 330.) The assertion of Eutychius is contradicted by the patriarchal history of Severus of Al-Ushmunain, which not only states that St. Mark himself consecrated Annianus (i^iji lol) bishop of Alexandria, and left him there in that capacity during his sojourn in Pentapolis, but also mentions bishops in Egypt, other than the patriarch, in the lives of Avilius (^^^IJio) the third patriarch, of Celadion the ninth, and of Julian (u^yUy) the eleventh ; see Brit. Mus. MS. Or. 26,100, p. 21, line 18 ; p. 24, hne 5; p. 25, lines 9 and 19. I use the word 'patriarch' here as being that employed by Severus. ^ Occupied the see from a. d. 799 to 819 (?). See Renaudot, Hist. Patr. pp. 2 46'or266. This date of the restoration of the churches corresponds closely enough with my estimate of the date of, e. g. the church of Abu Sirjah in the Roman fortress at Al-Fustat ; see Coptic Churches, i. p. 181. (A. J. B.) RESTORATION OF CHURCHES OF AL-FUSTAT. 85 Fustat Misr were rebuilt, and that their restoration was commanded, under the superintendence of that patriarch^, after they had been * Our author is referring to the following passage in the life of the patriarch Mark in Severus' collection : ^SL-w»&. (jfl^^ dJ oJi9 Si ^.jlS iuLl=».j s.*Jia.lj sjts^j !S-«^ !^sr^^ sJi^^ j»LJ jjiyi (^JiIC l&^U da-Is*. ^ dJ jjlS^ ^-o-^ ij^l^ Ai>.U. iJL* c-JJoJ jjj d^^]^ ^1 jjixj dolkLoj dbts, ^ jjjij d^M ,kfts:^ ^ p^^. d^LJl sJ jUs dJ (j^^ IiaU U J\ diJ^U J1 c^^j Jl^ dJ-c 1^ sJf (J 4Jl Jjt^ dJ _^-o^U 'J^'^J J"^ W^j^. ^ j*-^^. ^ ^-1; ^1; islk-^J ''^^■^^^^ W^^^. ^ia-Ui ' When they understood the discourse of the wall, and his care for the affairs of the churches, Anba Michael, bishop of IMisr, said : Now is the time for us to take measures for the restoration of the churches, since it is evident that the wall bears an affection towards the Christians. Next day, therefore, the patriarch returned to the wall, who saluted him, and showed respect to him, and honoured him, and raised him from the ground, and made him sit beside him, and discoursed with him, saying : I told thee yesterday that I would perform whatever thou requirest, but thou hast asked nothing of me ; now, therefore, mention to me whatever thou needest, and it shall be done because of my love for thee. So the patriarch answered with soft words : ]\Iay the Lord preserve thy days and increase thy dignity and authority ! Thou knowest that thy servant has not been set as ruler over revenues and taxes, but over souls and churches ; and I beseech thy greatness — for we have here churches, some of which have been destroyed by the un- righteous one before thy coming to Egypt, therefore the Lord destroyed his houses and cut off his life from the face of the earth — but if it seems good to thee to command us to rebuild these churches, so that we may pray in them and intercede for thy greatness, the matter rests with thee. Then God quickly put it into the heart of the wall that he should order the restoration of those churches ; and all the churches in Fustat Misr were rebuilt.' (Bib. Nat. Paris IMS. Anc. Fo7tds Arabe 139, p. 211, 1. 17-p. 212, 1. i.) 86 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. destroyed in the patriarchate of Anb^ John\ the forty-eighth in the succession. § The city of Misr, outside which is Madinat ash-Shams ^ was founded by Mizraim, the son of Canaan, the son of Ham, the son of Noah, the son of Lamech the Blind, and it w^as called after the name of the king of the Egyptians, Mizraim. Beyond Egypt is the district between the two rocks, beyond Al-'Arish. Churches of Al-Fustdt. The first church built in Fustat Misr was that which is beyond Al-Kantarah^ ; it was built in the time of Maslamah ibn Mukhallad al-Ansari ^. The name of Misr in Greek is Jibt'; and in Prankish Roman ^ it is Babylon the Fortress. The church above mentioned was in the ^ Occupied the see a. d. 775-799; see Renaudot, Hist. Pair. pp. 241-246. The destruction of some of the churches of Al-Fustat in his time is mentioned in Bib. Nat. MS. A71C. Fonds Arahe 139, p. 207, 1. 20. 2 Or 'Ain Shams: the Coptic con or neTpH, the Hebrew On (P«) or Beth Shemesh i^^^}^ T\'''l Jer. xliii. 13), the classical Heliopolis, a few miles to the north of modern Cairo. The only remaining vestige of the famous city is the obelisk which stands near the village of Matariyah. See Al-Makrizi, i. p. r 1 ; Yakut, Gcogr. Wort. i. p. 111; Amelineau, Geogr. p. 287. ^ Literally, ' The Bridge' or 'Arch:' a suburb of Al-Fustat, also called Al- Hamra al-\Vusta (fol. 29b); see Al-Makrizi. * The well-known 'Companion' of the Prophet; he governed Egypt, under the caliphs Muawiyah and Yazid, from a. h. 47 = a. d. 668 to a. h. 62 = a. d. 682 ; see Al-Makrizi, Khitat, i. p. r.i ; As-Suyuti (ii. p. v) names this first church. ^ Evidently an apocopated form of AtyyTrroy, and therefore a formation analogous to Kibt (Copts). As the Egyptians give the hard pronunciation to the ^, they would sound the word Ghibt. The Greek 7 becomes ^ in Arabic in the words Jirjis for Tecopyioy, Sirjah for ^epyios^jaghrd/iyd for yecoypacpia, and many others. ^ I. e. the tingiia Franca. Babylon, as the name of Fustat, or Fustat and Cairo together, was widely employed in Europe at the time of our author and later; see Mandeville's travels, edition of London, 1568, fol. ciiii verso: 'And who so w} ll go through the land of Babylon wher the Soudan dwelleth . . . hee CHURCHES OF AL-FUSTAT. 87 quarter, between Cairo and Misr\ running from the church of Saint George, called Al-Hamra. The church was in the middle of this quarter, which is also called Harat ar-Rum-, and was inhabited by Christians and Abyssinian monks and others. When the quarter was demolished, as the others also were demolished outside Misr, and the houses which it contained w^ere destroyed, the bricks and timber were carried off for other buildings in Cairo. A few ruined houses, however, remained, Fol. 24 a and were inhabited by the men of Maimun ^. The church of Saint George, called Al-Hamra, had fallen into ruin and disorder ; but Al-Mu*allim Sarur Al-Jullal undertook to improve and renew it in the caliphate of Al-Mustansir. The said Al-Jullal was full of wealth and honours. Thus when our lord Al-Mustansir went up to the manzarah called As-Sukkarah^ for the breaking of the dam of the shall goe from Gaza . . . and from thence men come to Babylone and to Kayre ; and in Babylone is a fayre churche of our lady wher she dwelled vii yere whan she was oute of the lande of Jewes, for dreade of kynge Herode. And there lyeth the body of Saynte Barbare vyrgyn, and there dwelled Joseph whan he was solde of his brethrene . . . There dw^elleth the Soudan, for there is a faire citie and stronge castelL' Mandeville is said to have travelled early in the fourteenth century. The Romaunce of the Sowdone of Bahyloyme, published by the Roxburghe Club in 1854, is well known. Cf. ' Saladino, Soldano di Babilonia ' in Boccaccio, Dec, Giorn. x, Nov. 9, &c. ^ Here we have Misr used as synonymous with Al-Fustat or Fustat j\Iisr, and in antithesis to Cairo, which was nevertheless sometimes called Misr al-Kahirah, and is now called Masr ; the remains of Al-Fustat being called Old ]Masr. ^ ' Quarter of the Romans;' see above, fol. 6 a. ^ Maimun al-Kasri was an officer in Saladin's army; see Ibn al-Athir, xii. pp. "Jr, 1.1, I CA . * This was a pavilion erected by the caliph Al-'Aziz (a. d. 975-996), on the western bank of the canal of Cairo near the Nile. It was surrounded by a garden. It was here that the Fatimide caliphs witnessed the breaking of the dam of the canal at the time of the high Nile, an operation which was conducted then as now with much ceremony. See Al-Makrizf s long description of it in Khitat, i. p. i*=v . ff. The pavilion seems to have been destroyed in the twelfth century {ibid). See also Ibn Dukmak, iv. p. 1 r . . 88 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. canaP dug by 'Amr ibn al-'Asi, emir of Egypt, in the caliphate of the Prince of the Faithful, 'Umar ibn al-Khattab, the Mu'allim Sarur al-Jullal offered to the caliph handsome gifts, consisting of different kinds of food and drinks and sweetmeats, and prepared for him many kinds of fresh fish and sugar in varied forms; and the caliph accepted them from him, and gave him a robe of honour, and granted his requests, and sent him to Al-Kulzum^, which is a fortress built to protect the country on the side of the Hedjaz ; and the name of the place is derived from the weaver's cord, with which a garment is held fast, and which is called kulzum^. Jauhar al-Mu'izzi* built a bridge^ over that canal, leading to Fol. 24b the bank of Al-Maksam. Here is the watercourse called Al-Majnunah^. Before this bridge, there was a bridge which was destroyed ; but traces of it are left on the east side, and part of it on the west side, below the garden, near the road constructed from thence to Az-Zuhri, for carrying provisions to the canal which runs from Cairo to Al-Kulzum, that they may be taken thence to Mecca and Medina, and also to the region ^ The famous Khalij or canal of Cairo, sometimes called Khalij Amir al- Mummin, or ' Canal of the Prince of the Faithful,' after 'Umar, the first who assumed that title. It runs from the Nile at Al-Fustat northwards to Bastah (Zagazig), whence it turned eastwards and terminated in the Red Sea, near Al-Xulzum. Its original purpose was to furnish Mecca and Medina with provisions from Egypt. The Khalij now only serves to convey water to the city of Cairo, and terminates at Matariyah, near the site of 'Ain Shams or Heliopolis. In constructing this canal, 'Amr had only to avail himself of and render navigable the very ancient Amnis Trajanus. For an account of the Khalij in Mahometan times, see Al-Makrizi, i. p. v i ; Ibn Dukmak, iv. p. i r . . ^ See above, fol. 19 b. ^ Intended, as Prof. Margoliouth suggests, for a transcription of the Greek * The general of the Fatimide caliph Al-Mu'izz, who conquered Egypt and founded Cairo in a. d. 969 ; see Introduction. ^ A complete list of the bridges over the canal, with a plan, is given in C. Niebuhr's Voyage en Arabic, 4to, Amsterdam, 1776, tom. i. p. 89. See also Al-Makrizi, Khitat, ii- P- it^i ff. (A. J. B.) ^ Al-Makrizi gives this name to a canal in the Fayyum ; see Khitat, i. p. n«i . CHURCHES OF A L- FUST AT. 89 of AI-*AbMsah. Our lord Al-Mustansir was crowned with the jewelled turban and the canopy was spread over him, and he was * * * ^ sitting on the dais of state, and the aforesaid Sarur came out to wait upon him, and the caliph saluted him ; and Sarur wore a garment of Nasdft, and a turban of Sikilli, bound round the middle with a band of Dabfkt, interwoven with gold ; and he was summoned by name on both occa- sions, when he went up [to Al-Kulzum], and when he returned to Cairo — I mean this Mu'allim Sarur al-Jullal. § Sarur was full of benevolence and virtue and usefulness to other men : to each according to his needs. For himself he provided a tomb, roofed with a cupola, and consisting of a vault under ground, contiguous to the apse^ of the church. His son, Najah, built over it a church, named after Saint John the Baptist, which was entirely of solid timber, decorated with carving. § The church of John the Baptist was restored by the Shaikh As-Sa id Abu '1-Fakhr, father of An-Najib Abu '1-Barakat, known as Ibn Said ; and it was consecrated in the month of Tut^ in the year 897 of the Blameless Martyrs (a.d. 1180). The Shaikh al-Wajih Abii Fol. 25 a '1-Hasan ibn al-Amahh, the scribe, provided for the improvement of the churches attached to the Great Church, in the year 892 (a.d. 1176) of the Blameless Martyrs. § The building lasted until the time of Shawar as-Sa di vizier in the caliphate of Al-'Adid, and of [the invasion of] the Ghuzz and the Kurds ^, who came with Yusuf Salah ad-Din ibn Ayyub, the Kurd, who became governor of Egypt, and was called, on the dirhems and dinars, ' Partner ^ Erasure in original. * jll is here correctly written ; compare jla. on fol. 5 a. ^ The Coptic Thoouth (oOJOTo) =Aug. 29-Sept. 27. * Vizier from a. h. 558 = a. d. 1162 to a. h. 564 = a. d. i 168 to the last of the Fatimide caliphs, Al-'Adid. See Introduction. As-Sa'idi is incorrect. ® Here the copyist has correctly written :>\y^\^ jkW instead of jl^l jill as on fol. 2 a and elsewhere. n [II. 7.] CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. of the Prince of the FaithfuP,' upon the invasion of the king of the Franks, on account of the victory gained over them during the year 559^ (a.d. 1 1 64). The Ghuzz and the Kurds attacked this church, with the mob of Cairoj-and it v^as burnt with fire^ and rased to the ground like the other churches, in the month of Jumada the First in the year 559 ^ Gold dinars of a. h. 571 have the following inscription : dole Jcj sJl Jsi_5 JuU ^ ^fj^\ h ^ d"-^"^ 'In the name of God the compassionate and merciful. This dinar was struck at Cairo in the year 571. There is no deity but God alone; he has no partner. Abft Muhammad Al-Mustadi bi-amri 'Hah is Prince of the Faithful. Mahomet is the Apostle of God, w^ho sent him under his guidance with the true religion, that he might reveal it above all religion, even if the polytheists are indignant thereat; may God bless him and his family and the most Victorious Prince Yusuf ibn Ayyub.' (Poole, En'/. Mus. Cat. of Or. Coins, iv. p. 63.) Silver dirhems of Damascus, a. h. 573, have the following superscription: ^Ul dOXl 4)1 Jj-.^ 4)1 lill .lid oj;i ^jj^ ' • ■ ' — '^'^yt.'i f^T^ ^.^ [j^j^^^ pfc^ «W . . . li*, under the title : SAVINGS OF MAHOMET WITH REGARD TO THE COPTS. 99 " God ! God commits the Copts of Egypt to your charge ; for you shall rule over them, and they shall be to you an increase of numbers, and a body of auxiliaries in the path of God." He said also ^ : " Take charge of the men with curling hair, the Copts of Egypt^ for truly they are your uncles and kinsmen, and your auxiliaries against your enemy, and your helpers in your religion." Then some one said to him : "But how shall they help us in our religion?" To which he replied: "They shall relieve you of the affairs of this world ^, so that you may be at leisure for religious worship." ' According to the tradition handed down from 'Abd Allah ibn *Amr ibn al-*Asi, Mahomet said^: ' The Copts ^ As-Suyuti says : ^^'^\ ^ . . . 4JJ1 U -Ujl ^yJl JU Ji- JUi iJllll ^ ^\ d)j Jl. ' Ibn 'Abd al-Hakam quotes from Miisa ibn Abi Ayyiib al-Yafa'i, who reports the words of a man of the tribe of Al-INIarbad to the effect that the Apostle of God . . . fell sick and swooned, and when he recovered, he said : Take charge of the men with curling hair. Then he swooned a second time, and when he recovered said the same words. Again he swooned for the third time, and said the same words. So the bystanders said : The Apostle of God commits to our charge the men with curling hair ; and when he recovered they asked him his meaning. So he said : The Copts of Egypt are our uncles and our brothers-in-law, and they shall be your auxiliaries against your enemy and on behalf of your religion. Then they said: How shall they help us in our religion, O Apostle of God ? Then he answered : They shall relieve you of the affairs of this world, so that you shall be at leisure for religious worship,' &c. (Htisn al-Muhddarah, i. p. v .) ^ See note on fol. 16. ^ Ab^ 'l-]\Iahasin quotes the following among the ' sayings of the Prophet with regard to Egypt : ' O 2 lOO CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. are the noblest of foreigners ; the gentlest of them in action ; the most Fol. 29 a excellent of them in character, and the nearest of them in kinship to the Arabs generally, and to the tribe of Kuraish in particular.' Mahomet also said emphatically^ : ' God ! God is among the protected people, the people of the desert, the blacks, the men with curling hair^. They are related [to the Arabs] and akin to them, in distinction from all the other protected peoples.' Mission from Mahomet to the Mukaukis. Mahomet sent Hatib^ ibn Abi Balta ah, of the tribe of Lakhm, to the Mukaukis, governor of Alexandria, to urge him to adopt the religion ' 'Abd Allah ibn 'Amr ibn al-Asi says : The people of Egypt are the noblest of all foreigners; the gentlest of them in action, the most excellent of them in character, and the nearest of them in race to the Arabs generally and to the Kuraish in particular,' i. p. rr . ^ Cf. Ibn Hisham in his Life of IMahomet : Jl5 HJls. ^Jj^ j*^ ^ 4)1 ^ u-aAj 4)1 IjjJ^ .sUil *b^Jl s^aII JaI i*jJl JaI J 4)1 4)1 ' 'Abd Allah ibn Wahb informed us, quoting from 'Abd Allah ibn Lahf ah, who reported the words of 'Umar the freedman of Ghufrah, that the Apostle of God said : God ! God is among the protected people, the natives of the black soil, the dark-coloured people, the people with curling hair,' i. p. ^. ^ It is said to have been the curling hair of Mary the Coptic maiden which attracted the admiradon of IMahomet. ' The mission of Hatib took place in a.m. 6=a.d. 628, at the time when Mahomet also sent envoys with the same object to the king of Persia, Hera- clius, emperor of the Romans, the prince of Ghassan, the governor of Yemen, and the Negus of Abyssinia. Ibn Hisham compares this proceeding of the Arabian prophet with the sending out of the twelve apostles by Jesus Christ. See At-Tabari (ed. De Goeje), ser. i. p. 100^ f. ; Ibn Hisham, Sira/i Miihammad, p. «ivi ; An-Nawa'wi, Tahdhib al-Asmd, pp. iF f.) mention the foundation of the three Hamras in terms similar to those employed by our author here and below, fol. 32 a ff. 102 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. Fol. 29 b The Hamra al-Wusta, which is known as Al-Kantarah^, is the place where the Red Standard stood at the time of the conquest of Misr by the Arabs ; and around it were gathered those who asked protection [of the Muslims], and marched in their rear-guard. On this account the place was called Al-Hamra^. Monastery and Chttrch of Saint Mennas. § The monastery^ named after the martyr Hennas'*, the owner of the three crowns^, which came down to him from heaven, who was a native ^ See above, fol. 23 b. ^ In this passage we have a different account of the origin of the name Al-Hamra, deriving it not from the appellation of a tribe, but from the Red Standard {Ar-Rdyat al-Hamrd). ^ Between Al-Fustat and Cairo, in the Hamra, which was afterwards called Kanatir as-Saba'. A church and monastery of Abu Mina are still existing, but better known to-day as Mart Mina. They are fully described in Coptic Churches, i. p. 47 ; and in ii. p. 362 a brief legend is given, identifying the saint with the church at Maryut. Under the Sultan An-Nasir Muhammad ibn Kala'un, the monastery and church of Abii Mina were wrecked ; but they have since been restored ; see Al-lNIakrizi, Khitat, ii. p. 0 1 r . (A. J. B.) ^ The festival of St. Mennas is kept by the Copts on Hatfir i5 = Nov. 11, and by the Roman Church on the same day. It is said that his father was a native of Nakyus, but was appointed governor of the province of Africa. Under Diocletian, Mennas, who was then serving in the army, was beheaded on account of his attachment to the Christian religion, and was buried near Lake Mareotis. See Bib. Nat. MS. Arabe 256 {Synaxarium), ff. 53 b-54 b. Amdhneau, Actes des MM. de V^glise copte, p. 88 ff. ; Eutychius, Annates, i. p. 402. St. Mennas is represented in Coptic paintings accompanied by camels, because some beasts from the sea like camels prevented his body from being carried away from the spot where it was destined to be buried, and when the body was laid on the back of three camels in succession, each refused to move in spite of blows; see Synaxarium. ^ Thjs is an allusion to the legend that St. IMennas saw heaven open, and the martyrs wearing beautiful crowns, such as were afterwards bestowed upon him. MONASTERY AND CHURCH OF SAINT MENNAS. 103 of Nakyus\ and whose pure body is buried in the church ^ at Maryut^, was restored in the caliphate of Hisham ibn 'Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan, when Al-Walid ibn Rufa ah was waU, at the expense of all the Christians who lived in that quarter, in A. H. 106 (a. D. 725). This was after the conflict with the Arabs, when the Christians com- plained to the wall that their women and children were not secure from molestation while going to and returning from the churches in Misr, especially on the nights of the Forty Days' Fast. In conse- quence of these outrages a great number of the Arabs were killed. There were in this quarter many chief men among the Christians ; so they were allowed to restore their churches, and they began to rebuild Al-Hamra, and to renew what had been destroyed there. They renewed the church [of Saint Mennas]*, and made for it beautiful ^ The Arabic Nakyus was called Nt/ct'ous or Ni/fiou by Greek authors, and Niciu in the Itinerary of Antoninus. It is a town frequently mentioned by Coptic writers. It is also called Ibshadi (;^jLij!) in the Copto-Arabic lists of names, and is the Coptic TICLJ^.^. The modern village of Ibshadi, which in 1885 had 1,059 inhabitants, is probably on the site of the ancient Nakyus ; it is in the district of Manuf, in the province of Al-Manufiyah, and a little to the east of the Rosetta branch of the Nile. See Yakut, Geogr. Wort. iv. p. a 1 . ; Quatremere, 3Iem. i. pp. 420-446; Amelineau, Geogr. pp. 277-283. ^ It is said that the grave of St. Mennas at Lake Mareotis remained for some time unknown, until a princess was cured of leprosy by mould from it. The emperor then erected a church over it, which was replaced by a larger church built by Arcadius and Honorius. See Synaxarium, loc. cit., and Amelineau, Acies des MM. p. 90. ^ This town, the Coptic JUL), Sirjah Tadrah Kurrah (s^), Andunah (ii^Jol), &c., and to Syriac forms such as Do,©, derived from the Greek vocative; see Noldeke, Syr. Gram., p. 79. Cf. Coptic KoXoe, &c. ^ Ibn Dukmak calls it AjJ>\>^ Jjic (jl^j ' The Alley of Sahl ibn 'Akil in the Hamra;' see Kitdb al-Intisdr li-wdsitah 'ikd al-amsdr^ iv. p. rt' . ^ Here follows an account of the laying out, at the time of the Arab conquest and of the first foundation of Al-Fustat, of the three quarters called respectively the Further, Middle, and Nearer Hamras. A similar account of the first laying out THE THREE HAMRAS. 109 Hamra ad-Dunya, and the first part of them was that which was laid out by the tribe of Bili ibn al-'Umar ibii al-Haf ibn Kuda'ah, from the street called Darb Az-Zajjajin, by which the market-place called Suk Wardan is entered, to the alley called Zukak Abu Farwah^ or its vicinity, and it ends at the passage called Khaukhat al-Istabl in the Hamra. That which was laid out by the tribe of Banu Bahr ibn Suwadah ibn Afsa extends from the Hamra ad-Dunya, opposite the Fol. 32 b mosque of Al-Kurun, to the covered passage called Sakifat as-Sari or its vicinity. That part of the Hamra al-Wusta which was laid out by Hadhil ibn Madrakah extends from the guard-house of Abu '1-Mahajir or its vicinity to the place called Bain al-Kumain"^. That of these quarters is given by Al-I\Iakrizi, Khi'tat, i. p. ru, and by Ibn Dukmak, iv. p. 1*= f. It is difficuk at the present day to identify many of the points described. ^ Bain al-Kumain is south of the Roman fortress where Dair Bablun and Dair Tadrus are situated. Jabal al-Kabsh is a rocky elevation in the quarter of Ibn Tulun, and upon it stood the well-known Kal'at al-Kabsh, of which a good illustration with an interesting note is given in R. Hay's Illustrations of Cairo, London, 1840, fol. The hill on which this castle stood was also called Jabal Yashkur. As far as I am aware there is no moat or canal at the foot of the hill now. But it is evident so far that Abu Salih is speaking of a quarter extending from the Bab Ibn Tulun across the present rubbish-mounds in a south-westerly direction to Dair Bablun. The mention of St. Mennas below gives another fixed point, if it may be identified with the present Dair IMari jNIina ; and this would show that Al-Hamra extended also west of the line from Bab Ibn Tulun to Dair Bablun, in the direction of the Khalij. Finally Dair Abu 's-Saifain, lower in the text, is described as situated in the Hamra ad-Dunya. Al-IMakrizi states that under the Abbaside caliphs the Further Hamra was again built over, and called Al- Askar, so that a plain which had grown bare save for the Christian monasteries dotted over it was once more covered with houses. See Hamaker's Expugnatio Memphidis, notes, p. 102. In the Memoires de la Mission ArcMologique Frangaise au Caire, 1 881-1884, there is an essay on the early topography of Cairo, illustrated with four plates, which are exceedingly interesting and, as far as they go, most valuable. But the author has strangely neglected this region of Old Cairo and Al-Hamra, devoting ail his learning and talent to the Fatimide city. On p. 417 (torn, i) there is a brief note upon Al-Hamra, which certainly makes the boundaries no CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. part which was laid out by the tribe of Banu '1-Azrak extended from the Hamra al-Kuswa to the street of Yashkur ibn Jazilah ibn Lakhm, and to Al-Kantarah and its road, down to the moat or canal, at the foot of the Jabal al-Kabsh, and to Al-Maja'iz and the monastery of Mary or its vicinity ; and the flat below the hill is all named after Yashkur, from the cemetery and the mosque of Al-Khaluk and the pool of Karun and the hill of Yashkur ibn 'Udwan ibn Lakhm. The Book of Al-Khitat also relates that the tribe of Banu Kindnah ibn *Amr ibn al-Kibr ibn Fahm laid out that part of the Hamra al-Wusta which extends from the alley of Sahl ibn 'Akil to the conduit where the wheat-sellers are, and the alley called Zukak at-Turmus, opposite the church of Saint Mennas ; and that the tribe of Banu Rubil, whose ancestor Rubil was a Jew, laid out part of Al-Hamra, as far as the monastery of Mary, north of the gardens of Hawi and the mosque of Al-Khaluk on the flat. The sons of Yashkur ibn Jazilah ibn Lakhm laid out part of the Hamra al-Kuswa, namely the open place of Ad-Dunya and that of Ar-Rayah, and the road of Khulan from the Darb al-Kantarah to the market-place of Wardan, and from the road Fol. 33 a of Al-Hamra and the part beyond it on the Nile, which is called the place of Al-Kab^'il, to the stable and to the baths of ' As-Salib ' or ' the Church^.' of the district too narrow : and it is not even marked on the plan which professes to show Fustat Misr in the year 969 a.d. The old bed of the river is well shown in contrast with the present line : but there again the plan seems to me erroneous, inasmuch as for the whole river frontage of Old Cairo the present line of the bank is given, and the divergence of the old channel from the present channel is made to begin at a point by the Fum al-Khalij and to extend only northward of that point, whereas there can be little doubt that even in the tenth century the bed of the river southward from Fum al-Khalij to Kasr ash-Shama was still eastward of the present line. (A. J. B.) ^ The baths of Al-Fustat and Cairo often changed their names. The bath of 'the Church' (a-m-jSJI) was named after the church of St. Sinuthius, which stood near it. "This bath was also called the 'Bath of the Vault' (j^iill pU^-). See Ibn Dukmak, iv. p. 1 .i . CHURCH OF SAINT ONUPHRIUS. Ill ChiircJi of Saint Onuphriiis. In the Hamra also is the church^ of Saint Onuphrius'^, the holy man, the pilgrim, the contemplative, which was restored by a woman named Turfah, according to the testimony of an [inscribed] board which was put up at the door of it, near the well which is now filled up ; and through this door the women entered. Near this church were the houses where lived Amin al-Umana Abu '1-Yaman Surus ibn Makrawah, son of Zanbur, who was nazir of the Delta, and his son the incom- parable vizier, the lord of those that wield the sword and the pen, Abu Sa'd Mansur ^. The latter was sent out to meet Nasir ad-Daulah ibn Hamdan and the tribes of Kais * and Lawatah^ the traitors, and a body of the chief officers of the army were with him ; this was in the caliphate of Al-Mustansir. Abu Sa'd remained vizier for a short time only, for the soldiers demanded their pay of him, and he promised it and then fled, and his career came to an end. At the entrance of the sanctuary in this church [of Saint Onuphrius], there was a threshold of black granite, upon which were figures carved ^ Ibn Dukmak (i. p. i .a) mentions this church as c^jJl Asr^^ Ja^yi ' The church called after Abu Nafar : this church is in the IMiddle Hamra in the street of Kibarah, near the mosque which is there.' ^ This saint, called in Arabic Abu Nafar. whose festival is kept on Ba'unah i6 = June lo, and by the Roman church on June 12, was a hermit in Upper Egypt. His life was written by St. Paphnutius (see below, fol. 65 b), of whom Onuphrius was an elder contemporary. See Synaxarhim, Paris IMS. Arabe 256, fol. 228; Acta SS. at June 12, where versions of the life by Paphnutius are given. Onuphrius would seem to have died about a. d. 400. ^ Vizier for a few days only to Al-]Mustansir. See As-Suyuti, Htisn al- Muhddarah, ii. p. i6i«; Quatremere, Mem. ii. p. 353. ^ The Kais were an Arab tribe who settled in Egypt soon after the Mahometan conquest. See Al-Makrizi, translated by Quatremere, Mem. ii. p. 207 ff. ^ The Lawatah were a tribe of North Africa, of Berber origin, w^ho settled in Egypt. According to Al-]\Iakrizi they pretended to be of Arab descent and connected with the great tribe of Kais. See Yakut, ii. p. nv ; Al-lMakrizi, trans- lated by Quatremere, Mem. ii. p. 207. 112 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT, and painted in the style of those in the ancient temples, and it was placed there to prevent the little birds from going into the sanctuary, or into the tank; and it is said that a man from Upper Egypt, who visited this church, passed the night here, and imagined that he could decipher certain letters upon the stone ^. In this way the tank was freed from the little birds which went into it. Pol. 33 b The church was burnt during the fire of Misr, in the month of Safar, A.H. 564 (a.d. 1 1 69), in the caliphate of Al-*Adid, and the vizierate of Shawar. It was afterwards restored, with its domes and arches, by the Shaikh Abu '1-Makarim ibn Hanna the scribe, and by other Christians. Among the churches attached to this church of Saint Onuphrius, there is, on the ground floor, a church dedicated to Saint Coluthus, restored by Abu '1-Fakhr ibn Furaij ibn Khuwair, [who was priest] in the church of the Island of Misr^; and, in the upper story, is the church of Saint Mennas, built by the Shaikh Sa*id ad-Daulah ibn Munja ibn Abu Zakari ibn as-Sarid. There is also a church of the Pure Fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, restored by the Shaikh Abu Sa id Gabriel ibn Buktur, known as Ibn al-AVaj, and afterwards by Kht '1-Fakhr, the scribe of salaries^, known as Sa'idan. There is also the church of Saint Or*, restored by the Shaikh Abu '1-Fakhr, the scribe of salaries of ^ This may, of course, have been a mere exercise of fancy, or it may point to a traditional knowledge of the ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics as well as of the hieratic and demotic scripts, long preserved in Upper Egypt. The bishop Pisentius, in the seventh century, learnt in a monastery to decipher demotic papyri containing the names of mummies ; see Amelineau, Contes et romans de V^gypte chret. i. p. xxxix. 2 The Island of Misr is north of Raudah or Roda, the large island in the Nile nearly opposite to Old Cairo. There was a Coptic monastery upon this island called Dair ash-Shama, doubtless from its proximity to the Kasr ash-Sha?na\ (A. J. B.) ^ I. e. one of the secretaries who superintended the payment of the officials of the government. ^ Hiir, whose festival is kept on Kihak 2 = Nov. 28, is a saint famous in the annals of Egyptian monasticism. His name appears as ^£2p in Greek, and as g^UOp in Coptic, and Or in Latin. He was an abbot in Upper Egypt. Sayings CHURCH OF SAIXT ONUPHRIUS. the Diwan al-Majlis^. The Great Church^ [of Saint Onuphrius] was restored by Abu '1-Faraj ibn Zanbur, in Barmahat of the year 899 of the Righteous Martyrs (a.d. 1183); and it became a patriarchal church in Tubah of the year 900 (a.d. i 183-4), through the agency of the aforesaid. It is stated, in the Guide to the Festivals^, that, on the 7th of Kihak, Ibn Katib al-Farghani was beheaded. It was he who superintended of his are among the Apophthegmata Patrmn. See his life in Rosweyde, Vitae Patrum, p. 714 f.; of. Zoega, Cat. Codd. Copt. p. 299; Sjnaxan'um (Paris IMS. Arabe 256), ad diem ; Ada SS. at Aug. 7. The prefix Aba (M) is the Coptic ^LU^L, and appears in Greek as ana (Greek inscriptions at Philae), or aima (Callimachus, Hymn, in Dianam 6, and Greek papyrus quoted by Karabacek). Whether it is a form of Abba, the S}Tiac generally written in Coptic as is disputed. It was sometimes applied to secular officers. ^ The preposition has been omitted by the scribe before ^1^.5. The Diwan al-]\Iajlis was the chief of the Divans or government boards in Eg}'pt, and was subdi\ided into several smaller boards, employing many scribes or secretaries; see Al-Makrizi, Khitat, i. pp. rlv-i*.. . The Great Church means, of course, the principal church, to which these smaller churches or chapels were added, whether above it, or contiguous to it on the same level. ^ It appears that there were several 'Guides to the Festivals' among the Copts. The Sjnaxan'um says at Hatur 1 7 : 'The 17th day of Hatur, on which, as it is agreed by the Guides of Alexandria, and the Guide written by Anba Jonas, bishop of Kift, and the Guide of the Melkites, the death of Saint John Chrysostom is commemorated,' &c. (Paris MS. Arabe 256.) The ordinar}' Synaxaria, however, do not mention the death of this Coptic martyr Ibn Katib. q [II. 7.] 114 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. Fol. 34 a the construction of the Kilometer^ in A. H. 2472 (a. D. 864), and his body is in the church of Saint Cokithus, which was a separate church in the caHphate of Al-Amir, and has ah'eady been mentioned, in connection with the church of Saint Mennas in the Middle Hamra. At the time of the fire already mentioned, the threshold of black granite, which has been described, was removed and placed at the outer entrance, near a well of running water, where there is a burying- ground. The garden which lies opposite to this church was its property, until it was sequestrated by the Diwan of the government, in the caliphate of Al-Amir. The material of all the houses in the neigh- bourhood, the property of Ibn Zanbur, was sold, and the ground was turned into a single courtyard, in which was a well with a water-wheel, skilfully constructed. All this property was bought, and devoted to the use of the church, by the Shaikh Sanfat al-Mulk Abu '1-Faraj, ^ This was in the caliphate of Al-Mutawakkil, the Abbaside, and under Yazid ibn 'Abd Allah the Turk, governor of Egypt. The date here given corresponds with that generally recorded by Arab historians for the completion of the Nilometer. Some repairs were carried out by Ahmad ibn Tulun twelve years later, but Al-Makrizi, As-Suyutt, and Al-Ishaki agree that the Nilometer had been very little altered up to their own time, and there is no doubt that it remains substantially the same now. The pointed arches used in the construction of this Nilometer are about sixteen years older than those in the mosque of Ibn Tulun, and they are of course much older than any example of the pointed arch in Gothic architecture. Lane thinks it probable that both the mosque and the Nilometer were built by the same architect. It was known that the mosque of Ibn Tulun was built by a Copt, and if Lane's theory is correct, we have his name in Ibn Katib al-Fargham, the Coptic architect of the Nilometer. See Lane's Modern Egyptians, vol. ii. p. 341 (App. F) ; S. Lane Poole's Art of the Saracens in Egypt, pp. 54-55 ; INIurray's Egypt, vol. ii. pp. 174, 232 (6th ed.). Pococke (vol. i. p. 29) gives a cut showing a plan and section of the Nilometer, and claims special credit for its accuracy ; but he exhibits circular, not pointed arches. ^Korden's section is better ; see his Voyage cCEgypte et de Nubie, Copenhagen, 1755, fol., plate xxvi. (A. J. B.) CHURCH OF SAINT ONUPHRIUS, "5 son of the Shaikh 'Ilm as-Su ada Abu '1-Yaman, son of the Shaikh Sanfat al-Mulk Abu '1-Faraj ibn al-Wazir, who handed over the management to the Shaikh Abu ' 1-Mak^rim ibn Hanna, and to those whom he should choose after him. This church was included within the fortress built by Shawar the vizier, who constructed a passage leading to the church, at which you arrive from the entrance of the mosque of Al-Kurun^, in the nearer Hamra. This mosque was built by As-Sahri ibn Al-Hakam. To this church belonged the hegumen Fol. 34 b Bashir ibn an-Xashr, a native of Munyat al-Umara-, who was wise and learned, a good priest, sweet-voiced, beautiful in countenance, perfect in stature, respected by men. The Shaikh Abu '1-Fadl ibn al-Uskuf, scribe of Al-Afdal Shahanshah, was assiduous in his prayers in this church, and communicated in it ; and when he had received the eucharist, each day that he came, he threw into the plate^ a dinar for this priest, on account of the pleasure which he took in his ministration and the sweetness of his voice. This priest was drowned in the Bahr al-Jizah ; may God give rest to his soul ! ^ According to Ibn 'Abd al-Hakam, whom our author is probably follo\^ing, this mosque was rebuilt by As-Sahri (or As-Sirri) ibn al-Hakam, after it had been burnt down, and was called IMosque of the Horns (^s/), because its pillars resembled horns ! See Ibn Dukmak, iv. p. . ^ A small town in the neighbourhood of Cairo, on the road to Alexandria. Yakut places it one parasang from the capital. It was famous for its Sunday cattle-market, and for the wine which was made there in large quantities. Of the latter commodity no less than 80,000 jars are said to have been destroyed in the inundation of a. h. 7i8 = a. d. 13 18. As it may be inferred from this statement, most of the inhabitants were Christians. The place was also called JNIunyat al-Amir and Munyat al-Shiraj. There seem to have been two other places called IMunyat al-Amir. INIina '1-Amir is now included within the district of Badrashain in the province of Al-Jiziyah, and had in 1885 a population of 2,935. See Yakut, Mushtarik, p. f ; Revenue-Hst of a. d. 1375 in De Sacy's Abd-Allatif^ pp.599 and 676 ; Al-Makrizi, Khi'tat, ii. p. ir. ; Ibn Dukmak, v. p. i*v; Rec. de VEgypte, ii. p. 218. Cf. below, fol. 61 a. ^ For the tabak or 'plate' see Coptic Churches, ii. p. 33. (A. J. B.) q 2 ii6 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. Church of Saint Merctirius or Ahic ^s-Saifain. The Hamra ad-Dunya was formerly called Al-Bawasir, and the river ran by it, and it was also called the Bank of As-Sa ir. The book of Al-Khitat bi-Misr testifies [that near] the Kaisariyat al-JamaP stands the important church dedicated to the martyr Mercurius^; and this church was upon the bank of the river, which has now receded from it. The church was restored by the father Anba Ephraim, the Syrian, the [sixty-second] in the order of succession^, in the caliphate of Al-Imam Al-'Aziz bi-'llah, son of Al-Imam Al-Mu'izz li-dini 'llah. In ancient times there had been a church dedicated to Saint Mercurius, on the bank of the river, but it was ruined and turned into a storehouse for sugar-canes. Then, in the time of this patriarch, enquiries were made about the creed of the Christians, whether they believed in the truth ^ The passage is slightly corrupt. The reference is, of course, to the Khitat Misr of Al-Kindi, from which our author so frequently borrows. There were many Kaisdriyahs in Cairo and Fustat Misr; and accounts of them are given by Al-Makrizi, Khitat, ii. pp. ai-^ i, and Ibn Dukmak, iv. pp. rv-i*. . They were quadrangles, enclosed by a colonnade, and used as market-places or bazaars. The name was borrowed by the Arabs from the famous Caesarium {KaKxapiov) of Alexandria, mentioned by Strabo, xvi. c. i. and by Pliny, H. N. xxxvi. 14, 4. ^ We are now coming to the history of the present church of Abu 's-Saifain. The tradition that the Nile came near it consists with the similar tradition con- cerning Kasr ash-Shama (see R. Hay's Illusti'ations of Cairo, where is an excellent sketch of the great Roman gateway and the two basdons adjoining ; see also note upon the plate). The main, and I think decisive, reason for this identification lies in the absolute certainty of the association of the existing church of St. Mercurius or Abu 's-Saifain with the legend attached to the church of St. Mercurius of the text. The story as related to me by the priest of the church, and the legend recorded by Al-Makin in the fourteenth century, are both given in Coptic Churches, i. pp. 124-127 : and the one-eyed water-carrier of the legend corresponds with the one-eyed tanner of Abu Salih's earlier version. (A.J.B.) ' Occupied the see from a. d. 977 (?) to 981 (?) ; see Renaudot, Hist. Patr. pp. 366-373. CHURCH OF SAINT MERCURIUS, 117 or in a lie. So the Christians assembled and went out to the mountain, Pol. 35 a and the Muslims and Jews went out at the same time, on account of a certain event which is related in the history of the church. Many of the Muslim sayyids^ came forward, and prayed, and cried Alldim akbar, and implored the assistance of God, but no sign appeared to them. Then the Jews followed them, and still no result followed. Then the patriarch came forward, and the tanner, for whom God had performed a miracle, followed him ; and all the orthodox people followed them. They prayed to the most high God, and burnt incense, and cried Kyrie eleison'^ three times ; and God showed his wonders, and the mountain moved : namely, that part of the Mukattam hills which is near the hill of Al-Kabsh, between Cairo and Misr. This miracle took place through the faith of the tanner, who had plucked out his own eye by the root, and in the presence of Al-'Aziz^ and the chief men of his government, and the cadis of the Muslims. When Al-'Aziz had witnessed this great miracle, he said : 'It is enough, O patriarch ; we recognize what God has done for you ; ^ and then he added : ' Desire of me what thou choosest, and I will do it for thee.' The patriarch, however, refused with thanks ; but Al-'Aziz begged him to ask for something, and did not cease until the patriarch had asked for a certain church, which had fallen into ruin. So Al-'Aziz Fol. 35 b commanded that this church should be restored for the patriarch, and it is said to have been the church of Saint Mercurius. When the patriarch was about to begin to work upon this church, the common people of the Muslims attacked him. For the church had fallen into ruin, and nothing was left to mark it except the walls, which were also in a state of decay ; and it had been turned into a storehouse for sugar-canes. So the command was issued that it should be restored by the patriarch, and that money should be allowed him from the ^ Or members of the family of the prophet Mahomet. ^ It is well known that this liturgical formula of the first Christians has been preserved in the original Greek in the Coptic ritual, as it has been in the Latin mass. ^ The caliph Al-'Aziz bi-'llah Abu Mansur Nazar, fifth of the Fatimides, reigned from a. h. 365 to 386 = a. d. 975 to 996. Ii8 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. treasury, as much as he should ask for. The patriarch, however, took the decree, but returned the money, with apologies, saying : ' God, to whom be praise, who has shown his great power, is able to assist in the erection of houses for his worship, and has no need of this world's money.' And he begged Al-*Aziz to restore the money to its place, and not to force him to accept it ; so the caliph consented to his request. And when the patriarch was hindered, by those who attacked him, from restoring the church to its original state, and when they raised disturbances and showed their indignation at the matter, news was brought to the prince of the faithful, Al-'Aziz bi-'Uah, that the common people would not allow the patriarch to carry out the decree for the restoration of the church. Then Al-'Aziz commanded that a body of his troops and his mamelukes should go and stand by during the rebuilding of the fabric, and should repulse any who tried to hinder it, and punish them as they deserved for opposing 'that which we have decreed to them^.' When the people saw this, they refrained from their attacks. Thus the work was begun. Now it happened at that time that the Shaikh Abu '1-Yaman Kuzman ibn Mina, the scribe, travelled to Palestine and the surrounding districts, and remained there a considerable time, employing himself in the work to which he had been called ; and in this way he gained much Pol. 36 a money. He lived a solitary life, for he was not married ; and none lived with him except his servants ; and he was abstemious and con- tented with little, and economical in his way of life. So he brought the money which he had laid by to the aforesaid patriarch, when he was about to return to Syria, to continue the work to which he had been called by the government of the caliph ; and he said to the patriarch : ' Spend all this money in the path of God ; in building churches, and in other pious works for the sick and orphans and the poor, according to the will of the most high God ; and may he impute it to me as a good deed ! ' So he departed to go to Syria ; but before he left he gave two thousand dinars to the monasteries in the desert ^ The^rst person is used in this last clause only, apparently a quotation from the decree. B URNING OF THE CHUR CH OF SA INT MER C URIUS. i j 9 of Saint Macarius\ and he begged the monks to remember him in their prayers, and to pray for the continuance of peace and a good end. So the patriarch began the restoration-, and a body of the chief men and the orthodox laity helped him in this work, and brought him that which he needed of various kinds for the restoration ; and the pages and soldiers and mamelukes of the prince of the faithful stood by with him, to prevent attacks that might be made upon him, until the work was finished with the help of God. Then the church was consecrated, and the first liturgy was celebrated in it, on the middle altar ; and that Fol. 36 b was a day of great joy and exultation over that which God had done from the beginning to the end. After this the patriarch began to restore dilapidated churches, and to renew those parts of them that were falling into decay. All this is related in the Lives of the Patriarchs^ ; but I abridge the account of it here, that it may not be tedious. Thus the churches were put into good order. Burning and Restoration of the Church of Saint Mercurius. § After the fire of Misr, caused by the mob of Mahometans of that city and of Alexandria, in the caliphate of Al-'Adid, and in the vizierate of Shawar, in the month of Safar, in the year 564 (a.d. 1168), [the church of Saint Mercurius also was burnt]. Now the patriarch Anba Jonas*, the seventy-second in the order of succession, had foretold that the last- named church should be burnt, and that this should take place in the time of another patriarch ; and so it came to pass. The cause of the burning of this church was that the Christians had brought many gifts to it, and had made for it many splendid vessels ; so the mob of Muslims desired to pillage it thoroughly, but were unable to do this. * That is the Nitrian desert, or Wadi Natrfin, where the principal monastery is dedicated to St. Macarius. (A. J. B.) ^ Of St. Mercurius or Abu 's-Saifain. ^ See Renaudot, Hist. Patr. pp. 368-371. * Or John; he occupied the see from a.d. 1147 1167. I20 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT, Tol. 37 a Then a large multitude of them assembled and gave way to their fury, and set fire to the church, so that nothing remained except the walls, and a small chapel within it, which was not burnt. This chapel was dedicated to John the Baptist^, and here the liturgy continued to be said, until the Christians decided to restore the Great Church aforesaid. So they restored it, and completed the sanctuary, and substituted for the roof of timber cupolas and arches of baked brick. The wooden baldakyn over the middle altar was renewed, and a wooden tablet was placed upon the latter. The wooden baldakyn over the middle altar was exceedingly handsome, of skilful workmanship, and supported on four pillars of hard marble^. All this was provided by the Shaikh Abu '1-Barakat ibn Abu Sa'id Hablan, the scribe, in the year 892 of the Righteous Martyrs (a. D. 11 75-6) 2, at his own expense; except the pillars, which were paid for out of the funds of the church, consisting of that which the chief men subscribed towards it, and that which was brought by the bishops, who were appointed to vacant sees, as a present from them. For this was in the patriarchate of Anba Mark*, who was known, before his promotion, as Abu '1-Faraj ibn Zar ah, the scribe ; and this patriarch forbad the acceptance of bribes for consecration, in obedience to the command of the law, ' Cursed is he who receives, and cursed is he ^ There is now no chapel of St. John the Baptist attached to the Great Church of Abft 's-Saifain, though there is a chapel dedicated to St. John the Evangelist. See the plan of Abu 's-Saifain in Coptic Churches, i. p. 78. It is possible that the chapel named in the text occupied the east end of the south aisle : and this conjecture is borne out by the subsequent statement of Abu Salih that the chapel of St. George also escaped the fire : for the chapel of Mari Jirjis is in the triforium, i. e. on the first floor directly over the south aisle ; see plan, ibid, p. 119. (A.J. B.) ^ This description of the altar-canopy resting on marble columns corresponds with that now existing. The wooden tablet or altar-board has already been explained. (A. J. B.) ^ This date, with that given below, roughly fixes a. d. 1170-90 as the date of the present building, although parts are earlier. (A. J. B.) * The seventy-third patriarch; he occupied the see from a. d. 1174 to 1189. RESTORA TION OF THE CHURCH OF SAINT MERCURIUS. 121 who gives ; ' and this was one of the good deeds of this patriarch. This was in the caliphate of Al-'Adid, and the vizierate of the most glorious Yusuf an-Nasir ibn Ayyub, brother of Asad ad-Din Shirkuh\ the Kurd, FoL 37 b under the dynasty of the Ghuzz. This restoration was superintended by three architects, among the principal architects of Cairo. This church had been the episcopal church, until the death of Anba Philotheus, bishop of Cairo ; but Christodulus^ transformed it into a patriarchal church^, and appointed an income for Anba Gabriel, the successor of Philotheus, which he continued to receive from it ; and arranged that he should say liturgies here at fixed times continually, as the manzarah^ bears witness. In the upper story of this church was the chapel^ of * Salah ad-Din (Yusuf ibn Ayyub) was, of course, nephew, not brother, of Asad ad-Din Shirkfth. The sixty-sixth patriarch; he occupied the see from a. d. 1047 to iioo. ^ This would be quite a century before the restoration of the church. The existing tribune and patriarchal throne show how the restorers marked the char- acter conferred on the church by Christodulus. See Coptic Churches^ i. p. iii, and plan on p. 78. (A. J. B.) * This passage refers to some inscription in the manzarah of the church. The manzarah was a gallery in the upper story of a house, church, or mosque, open at the side like an Italian loggia. There is a well-known example of such a manzarah in the still existing mosque of Ka it Bey. The word also denotes, as here, a reception-room on the ground floor: and even a separate pavilion, (A. J. B.) ^ The chapel of St. George (Abii Jirj or Mari Jirjis) is in the south triforium of the church of Abli 's-Saifain, and the cupola referred to is part of the external fabric, although it rises over the sanctuary. It is curious that Abu Salih here specifies this chapel as escaping the fire which destroyed the main fabric, when he had a litde earlier singled out the chapel of St. John as remaining uninjured, and so seemed to imply that no other part of the church survived. The expression * whole and untouched' is remarkable, and would seem to show, what is otherwise probable, that the fire was of a very partial character : unless the conjecture of a previous note holds good, that the chapel of St. John was actually under that of St. George. It must, however, be noticed that Abu Salili's expression only applies to the haikal and dome, and seems to imply that the rest of the chapel r [11. 7.] CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT, Saint George ^ with the lofty cupola, erected by the Shaikh Abu '1-Fadl Yuhanna, son of Kiil, the bishop ; whose father received the name of John at the time of his promotion as bishop to the see of Atrib^. The cupola and the sanctuary, that is to say the altar, and the walls of this chapel remained whole and untouched at the time of the fire. Ibn Abu '1-Fada'il ibn Farruj built an enclosure around this church, which he also whitewashed and paved ; and it was solemnly opened in the year 570 (a.D. 1 1 75). Church of the Archangel Michael. The church of the angel Michael^ was the patriarchal Cell from westward was burnt. I may be pardoned for quoting a description of the existing chapel written twelve years before I had seen Abfi Salili. ' The choir of this chapel retains part of the ancient panelled roof which probably once covered the whole triforium. The beams and coffers are sumptuously gilt, and coloured in the style of the thirteenth century : but only faint relics of its former beauty remain.' By putting the date somewhat earlier — and merely architectural dates in these churches are not very certain — one may possibly identify this ceiling as previous to the general restoration. If not, it certainly dates from that epoch. (A. J. B.) ^ The Arabic forms of the name George are various, but correspond to different Coptic forms of the same word. We have in Arabic Jirjiyils (^^^^^a^), Jirjis {xr^j=>:\ Jirj Jirj^h (ii^), and the diminutive form Juraij (^/^) 5 and in Coptic we find veuopVIOC, VeCJOpVI, Veopve, VGCJOpve, VeuopV, VeopV, and VGOp. See Mr. W. E. Crum's Coptic MSS. from the Fayytlm, Index I. (A. J. B.) ^ The classical Athribis and the Coptic y is full of discrepancies ! ^ The Coptic n^.X^I^ = ^P"l 26-May 25. CHURCH OF SAINT MACARIUS. formerly named Agia Sophia^ \ and the building was wonderful for its plan and its construction and its symmetry. It was restored at the expense of the Shaikh Safi ad-Daulah ibn Abu Yasir ibn 'Alwan, the scribe. Church of Saint Macarius. There is a church named after Saint Macarius 2, attached to the last- named church. Those parts of it which had fallen to decay were renewed by the deacon Abu Ishak ibn *Abd al-Masih. Church of the Four Living Creatures. There is the church of the Four Angels, who are the Living Creatures which support the most high throne'^. It was restored by the Shaikh Ibn Amin al-Mulk ibn al-Muhaddith Abu Sa id ibn Yuhanna, the Alexandrian, the scribe, who constructed for it a wooden roof of skilful workmanship, in the year 893 of the Righteous Martyrs (a.D. 1 1 76); [and it was opened] on Wednesday, the 8th of Hatur, which is the festival of the Four Creatures. The church contains their special altar ; and the altar named after the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple ; and an altar dedicated to the martyr, the valiant Fol. 39 a ^ There is no remaining church of this name near Cairo. It would seem to have been named after Justinian's famous church at Constantinople. The rough breathing is, of course, not pronounced in modern Greek. ^ There are three Saints Macarius especially celebrated in Egyptian hagiology : St. Macarius the Great, monk of the Nitrian Desert ; St. Macarius the abbot, of Alexandria ; and St. Macarius the bishop of Jerusalem. ^ The festival of the Four Incorporeal Living Creatures (Apocalypse iv. 7-9 ; Ezekiel i. 5 and x) is kept on Hatur 8 = Nov. 4. See Synaxarium (MS. Arabe 256) ad diem. 126 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. Theodore Basradiladus^. The church was restored by Al-Mu*allim Zavvin, who was damin^ of Cairo in the caliphate of Al-Hafiz. Afterwards it fell into decay and ruin, and was restored by the Shaikh Al-Makin Abil '1-Barakat, known as Ibn Kitamah ; and when it again fell into decay, it was restored by Amin ad-Daulah ibn al-Musawwif, who added on the south side of it a sanctuary named after the glorious angel Michael. The church was consecrated by Anba Gabriel, bishop of Misr, under the government of Salah ad-Din Yusuf^, the Kurd. Other Churches in the Hamrds. § There is the church of Poemen* the Confessor, adjacent to which IS a sanctuary named after the Lady, between it and the church of Saint Coluthus^ which has already been described. ^ Basradiladus is a transcription of the Coptic TieCT"p -j IIaIc (.^Jb. ClAjtSj U ' The fall of Aleppo has been dearly bought by the death of Buri.' (Abu I'Fida, Annales, iv. p. 58.) 134. CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. Monastery of the Nestoriajis. § In this quarter also is the monastery known as the monastery of the Nestorians, dedicated to Saint George, and enclosed within a surrounding wall of hewn stone. It is beautifully and artistically constructed, and greatly celebrated as a place of resort. The Shaikh Abu '1-Fada'il, the Nestorian, known as the physician of the tribe of Al-*Azamiyah, in the caliphate of Al-Amir, restored it at his own expense, and renewed it in an excellent style, with hewn stone ; and there were here many Nestorian monks. But when Al-Amir was informed of this restoration, he issued a decree against Abu '1-Fada'il, and acted extortionately towards him, and seized all his money ; and the decree remained in force until the caliph had built a mosque within the monastery. The originator of this act of tyranny was Abu '1-Fadl Ja far ibn 'Abd al-Mun'im, known as Ibn Abu Kirat, the metwalli of the Diwan al-Khass^ of Al-Amir. There was some land attached to this monastery and belonging to it, outside the enclosure, and this land was farmed by Abu '1-Barakat ibn Kitdmah, the Jacobite scribe. There was now no one in the monastery, which was empty, Fol. 43 a and deprived of liturgies and prayers. One of the stewards of Kitamah lived there, in a garden which was the property of his master; but the priest Yusuf, the Nestorian, gained possession of it, and let the land to Muslims, and sold the upper story of the church at Misr, including the bakehouse, and let most of the property with which the Nestorian churches were endowed at low rents to the Muslims, for long periods. There are no Nestorians with him ; but they live in the east, and in Persia, and in Al-'Irak and Al-Mausil, and by the Euphrates, and in Mesopotamia ; and in Egypt they are few in number and of a low class. This monastery [of which we have been speaking] came into the possession of the Copts of Misr in the patriarchate of Anba Mark ibn Zar'ah; the seventy-third in the order of succession, who made it * The board which regulated matters connected with the privy purse. MONASTERV OF THE NESTORIANS. 135 patriarchal, and dedicated the church in it to Saint Philotheus^ of Antioch. In the upper story of the monastery there are manzarahs ; and the whole building is of hewn stone, within and without. The church was solemnly opened and the liturgy was said in it the first week of the blessed fast, namely on Tuesday, the i6th of Amshir, of the year 899 of the Righteous Martyrs, which is equivalent to the 24th of Ramadan of the year 576 (a. D. 1181). [This change of ownership took place] because no Nestorians were left in Misr except one or two men. The monastery was solemnly opened by Anba Peter, bishop of the Fayyum. It contains three altars : one named after Philotheus of Pol. 43 b Antioch ; the second after John the Evangelist ; the third after Thomas the Disciple. Its expenses were paid by the Shaikh Abu l-Mansur ibn Bulus, who also paid for the liturgies and the eucharistic elements and the rest, and did not cease to supply all that was needed until the day of his death. His son continued to provide for [the expenses of this monastery], as his father had done — may God rest his soul! — and appointed ministers, both priests and deacons. The monastery is now prosperous, and the people of Upper Egypt come to it, and open its door. There is also a burying-place for the Coptic Jacobite Christians and the bishops of Misr, in the district of Al-Habash ; and the body of Anba Zacharias^, the sixty-fourth patriarch, is buried there, and the people receive blessings from it ; [and it was taken there] because he com- manded at his death that he should be buried among the people of Misr, on account of his knowledge of the pre-eminence of their faith, and what they had suffered in the caliphate of Al-Hakim^. In [the same burying-ground] also are the tombs of the bishops of Misr; and near * The festival of this martyr is kept on Tubah 16= Jan. 11. He was con- verted to Christianity in his youth, and martyred in the persecution of Diocletian. See Synaxarium ad diem. 2 Occupied the see from a. d. 1002 (?) to 1032; see Renaudot, Hist. Pair. pp. 386-408. On p. 401 Renaudot refers to this passage of Abu Salih. 3 See Al-Makrizi, Khitat, ii. p. t^io, and Renaudot, Hist. Patr. p. 390 ff., for an account of Al-Hakim's terrible persecution of the Christians, and the plunder and destruction of their churches. (A. J. B.) 136 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. it there are two wells of running water : one constructed by Abu '1- Hasan Sa'id ibn Mansur, the scribe, and the second made by Nasir, the grave- digger. In this burying-ground there is a conspicuous monument of syenite, sculptured with a cross of points^. Near the burying-ground is the Well of the Steps, with the sycamore beside it, and the guard- house. At the upper end of this ground, there is a cemetery of the Jews Fol. 44 a and Samaritans, and when they come near the Christian cemetery they see the sign of the cross, and then they return to that part of the ground which Anba Michael, the fifty-sixth patriarch^, sold to the Jews, at the time when Ahmad ibn Tulun extorted money from him. This patriarch also sold a church to the Jews^ in the Kasr ash-Shama', besides the property of the churches at Alexandria, and the herds of camels of the monks of the monastery of Saint Macarius. The Melkites, however, have no cemetery in the district of Al-Habash, but their burying-places are within their churches, and on the hill where the monastery of Al-Kusair stands. The Armenians and the Nestorians likewise [bury] in their churches. Church of Al-Martiiti. § The garden called Al-'Adawiyah*, or Munyat as-Sudan^'^, was * The 'cross of points' is doubtless the Coptic cross, such as that represented on the cover of my Coptic Churches. (A. J. B.) 2 Occupied the see from a. d. 881 to 899 (?) ; see Renaudot, Hist. Patr. pp. 319-398. He was the second of the name. ^ The church, sold by Michael or Khail to the Jews in a.d. 882, still belongs to that community, and is used as a synagogue, after a possession of 1,000 years. An account of it is given in Coptic Churches, i. p. 169, and its position shown on the plan facing p. 155. (A. J. B.) " Al-'Adawiyah and its monastery stand about eighteen miles to the south of Old Cairo, on the same bank of the river. The church of Al-Martiati, however, is not now in existence, possibly because the confiscation recorded by Abu Salih was permanent. Yakut calls Al-'Adawiyah a village on the eastern bank, possessing many gardens ; and he suggests other derivations of the name ; see his Geogr. Wort. iv. p. in* . (A. J. B.) ® Two villages of this name are now in existence, but neither of them is near CHURCH OF AL-MARTUTI. named after a woman called 'Adawiyah, who came from Western Africa in the days of Al-Mu izz. She had much money, and she took up her abode in this place, which was named after her. § The church of the Pure Lady Mary, called Al-Martiitt, is sur- mounted by a cupola. In ancient days this was a place of worship of the Israelites when they were in bondage in Egypt ; and when our Lord Jesus Christ came down into Egypt from Syria, with his mother in the flesh, our Lady the Pure Virgin, and the righteous old man Joseph the carpenter, they sat in this place, where there is now a picture of the Lady before the holy altar. The church was founded by the Copts Pol. 44 b under the name of the Lady, and was called Al-Martuit^ which is the Greek word Matir-td^y and means ' Mother of God the Word.' When this church grew old it fell into decay, and was restored by the Shaikh Ahix '1-Yaman Wazir, a native of Sanhur-, and metwalli of the Divan of the Delta, and by Abu '1-Mansur,his son, in the caliphate of Al-Amir, and in the vizierate of Al-Afdal Shahanshah. In its upper story Ah\X '1-Yaman built a beautiful inanzaraJi, called As-Salukiyah, and the priests assembled there, and he conversed gaily with them ; this was in the lunar year 478 (a. D. 1086), in the patriarchate of CyriP, and the episcopate of Daniel. He also caused a complete set of vessels of goldsmiths' work to be made for this church, for the liturgy and the incense and all the needs of the church. In the upper story of the church he built several depen- Al-'Ada\viyah ; see Rec. de VEgypie, p. 222. Cf. Yakut, Mushtarik, p. ^a. Al-Idrisi, however, mentions the place named by our author, saying, according to Jaubert's translation : ' Quand on part de IMissr pour se rendre en remontant le Nil dans I'Egypte superieure, on va de Fostat a IMiniet es-Soudan, joli port situ6 sur la rive occidentale (sic!) du Nil et environ a 15 milles de Missr.' (Tome i. P.3II-) ^ yir]Tr\p Geov. 2 A town between Alexandria and Damietta, now included in the district of Dasiik, in the province of Al-Gharbiyah. See Yakut, Geogr, Wori. iii. p. 1 v . ; Amelineau, Geogr. pp. 415-417. ' The sixty-seventh patriarch; occupied the see from a. d. 1078 to 1092; see Renaudot, Hist. Pair. pp. 449-470. t [II. 7.] 138 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. dences and offices. A small garden was attached to the church, and was entered from the interior of the building ; and the door gave proof of its existence. So the government laid its hand upon this garden, and it was taken away from the church. A certain Jew, named Abu '1-Fakhr ibn Azhar as-Sani*, became a Christian, and was converted to the religion of the Messiah, and was baptized in this church by Anba John, bishop of Tamwaih, in the province of Al-Jiziyah, assisted by the priest Abu Ydsir ibn Abu Sad Pol. 45 a ibn al-Kustal, in the caliphate of Al-Fa'iz, in the vizierate of Tala'i* ibn Ruzzik, and in the patriarchate of Jonas, the seventy-second in the succession ; this took place in the month of Rajab, in the year 554 (a. D. 1 159). God enlightened this Jew so greatly that he learnt to read Coptic, and translated it into Arabic ; and he was ordained deacon, on account of his peculiar merits, in the church of the Pure Lady^, in the Harah Zawilah, in the city of Cairo, by Anba Gabriel, bishop of Misr, on the 15th of Abib, in the year of the church 901 (a. d. 1 1 85). Adjacent to this church of Al-Martiitt, is a church which had fallen into decay, but was restored by Abu '1-Fada'il ibn Ash-Shubramuray- yiki^, with the assistance of a body of Christians, in the year 902 of the Righteous Martyrs (a. D. i i 86). The furnishing of the church was completed by the Shaikh Abu '1-Faraj ibn Zanbur, the scribe of As-Subast the Turk, wali of Cairo ; he paid the expenses himself, and he provided for it a dome and a roof, and constructed over the dome a beautiful dome of timber ; and he built in it two altars, one named after Saint George, and the other after the angel Michael. In the midst of the church he erected a long vaulted transept, in which he also opened a door which led to the altars in the old church ; and he separated them from one another. The number of altars in this church amounted to Fol. 45 b five, ancient and modern. Abu '1-Faraj completed the restoration of the church by whitewashing and painting it, and it was solemnly opened * See fol. 3 a and note. ^ Thte town of Shiibra Murayyik j/r^)? the province of Al-Gharbiyah, is mentioned by Yakftt, Mushiarik, p. r r v . CHURCH OF AL-MARTUTI, 139 on Monday, the 21st of Barmahat, the second day of the fifth week of the holy fast, in the presence of Anba Mark ibn Zar ah, the seventy- third patriarch, and Michael, bishop of Bastah and Al-Khandak, and Anba Gabriel, bishop of Misr, and Anba Simon, bishop of Al-Bahnasa^ and Anba Peter, bishop of the Fayyum, and an assembly of the clergy and of the chief men. In the upper story of this church, the steward, Sayyid al-Ahl, son of Thomas, the archdeacon, built a church in the name of Saint Mercurius, with a wooden altar-, and it was consecrated by Anba John, the seventy- fourth^ patriarch, on the loth of Bashans, in the year 910 of the Righteous Martyrs (a. D. 11 94). The Shaikh Abu '1-Yaman Wazir removed the body of Saint John from the church at Damanhur, near Cairo, to this church, because, so it is said, when he was in the neigh- bourhood of it on a certain night, he heard a voice from the shrine of the martyr, saying : ' I cannot remain in the church of the Lady ; there is no church for me except that in which I was at first.' Accordingly the body was restored thither. Fol. 46 a In this neighbourhood, the Nestorians had a large monastery like a great castle, within an enclosing wall of hewn stone, and containing, a large church, separate and conspicuous, of which all the architectural features remain to this day ; but the apse has been turned into a Kiblah^ and above it rises a lofty minaret, and, around it, the chambers, which belonged to the monks, are inhabited by Muslims ; and this change took place in the caliphate of Al-Hakim. ^ The classical Oxyrhinchus, and the Coptic TXeJULXe ; then the capital of a province. It stands on the western bank, at some distance from the stream. It was said that our Lord and his mother sojourned at Al-Bahnasa. The town is now ruined and contains about sixty inhabitants ; it is in the district of Bani Mazar, in the province of INIinyah. See Yakut, Geogr. Wort. i. p. w 1 ; Al-I\Iakrizi, K/u'tat, i. p. rrv ; Amelineau, Geogr. p. 90. ^ This is the only definite instance known to me of a Coptic altar constructed of wood; see Coptic Churches, ii. p. 3 IT. (A. J. B.) ^ Occupied the see from a. d. 1189 to 12 16; see Renaudot, Hist. Patr. PP- 554-567. t 2 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT, At the church of Al-Martuti, the history of which has been related, there was a priest named Abu Yasir, son of the priest Abu Sa d, known as Ibn al-Kustal, who maintained customs at variance with those pre- scribed by the pure Fathers : such as growing the hair long, and baring the head at the time of the liturgy ^ and christening infants without circumcision^, and giving permission to the bridegroom to see the bride before marriage^. If a priest with shaven hair and covered head said the liturgy, he would not communicate from his hand, but he had a second liturgy for himself Thus he divided the church into two parties; and, although he was often rebuked for this, he would not repent or change his opinions. The state of affairs required that in order to maintain the canons, he should be expelled from the church ; may God reconcile him to himself! To the church of this priest there was a garden attached, as it has Fol. 46 b already been related. This garden was seized by the emir Jabril, son of the Imam Al-H^fiz, who built opposite to the church, near the river, in the place called Al-KJiaimat al-kibliyah, for the survey of the taxes, a manzarah, which was visited by the Imam Al-Hafiz and the Imam Az-Zafir*, his son, during the lifetime of this emir Jabril; and after his death the Imam Al-'Adid came here. Each of them contributed to the support of this church, and received the food that was brought to him from the monastery. This church stands in the midst of the gardens, and from its upper story a view of the blessed Nile is obtained, as far as that part of the river bank on which Tamwaih, in the province of Al-Jiziyah, is situated, and as far as Munyat ash-Shammas^ and other places on ^ These two customs of wearing long hair and uncovering during the liturgy seem to refer to the priests only : neither of ihem is now practised. See above, fol. 9 b and 15 a. (A. J. B.) 2 I have before stated that circumcision on the eighth day is customary, but not obligatory, with the Copts ; while circumcision after baptism was always regarded as forbidden. See Renaudot, Hist. Pair. pp. 286, 497, 588. (A. J. B.) 3 In prohibiting this the Copts seem to have followed the INIuslims. * The twelfth of the Fatimide caliphs, who succeeded his father Al-Hafiz in A. H. 544^ A. D. 1149 and died in a. h. 549 = a. d. 1154. ^ There were two places of this name in the province of Al-Jiziyah, but this TURA. 141 the western bank. It is a place of devotion and of pleasure ; and the church is much visited because intercessions are accepted here, and visible miracles are performed for the faithful. § Al-Ajall Saif al-Islam Tughtikin^, brother of Al-Malik Salah ad-Din Yusuf ibn Ayyub, the Kurd, acquired possession of the garden, and of Al-'Adawiyah, and the church of As-Sudan, and the bank of the river near it ; and he rebuilt the manzarah, and added a gallery to the upper part of it; and he planted many trees in the garden and spent much money here. At Al-'Adawiyah are the quarries of yellow clay, of which the [pots called] khazaf are made ; and they are to the north, on the estate of the vizier Abu '1-Faraj al-Maghrabi. Tiird. The district known as Tura^, which leads to Itfih^, by way of the monastery of Shahran^ Under the southern sycamore, in the Fol. 47 a southern part of Tura, Moses the prophet prayed — upon him be peace, — and in the town there are monuments of 'Abd al-Aziz ibn Marwan^. Tura was allotted as a fief to the Ghuzz and the Kurds, when they conquered Egypt. Itfih is the name of one of the sons of Mizraim. Shahran is a large village, and was flourishing and populous. It is is probably that one which was also called Dair ash-Shama' ; see fol, 65 b. It is still existing in the district of Badrashain in that province, and in 1885 had a population of 883. See Ydkut, Miishtarik , p. i«.v; De Sacy, Abd-Alla/i/, p. 676 ; Rec. de V£,gypte, ii. p. 221. ^ Ruler of Yemen after a.h. 577 ; died a.m. 593. To the south of 'Adawiyah and to the norih of Hulwan, on the eastern bank. It is now in the district of Badrashain, and in the province of Al-Jizi) ah, and in 1885 had 1,335 inhabitants. See Yakut, Geogr. Diet. iii. p. oi.; Al- INIakrizi, Khi'tat, ii. p. 0.1 ; Amelineau, Geogr. p. 519. (A. J. B.) ^ See fol. 2 b, and note. * The site of Shahran cannot be identified. (A. J. B.) ^ Son of the caliph Marwan I, and wall of Egypt from a.h. 65 = a. d. 685 to A.M. 86 = A. D. 706. He attempted to make Hulwan the capital of Egypt; see below. CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. built on the side of the river ; and they say that Moses the prophet — ■ upon him be peace — was born^ there, and his mother cast him thence into the river, in the wooden ark. Shahran is celebrated as a spot frequented by visitors, on account of the beauty of its situation, and the views obtained from it of Misr and the river Nile ; so the Book of the Monasteries^ by Ash-Shabushti, testifies. Opposite this monastery of Shahran, in the mountain on the east, there is a large cavern^, supported by pillars like a house, which has been hollowed out in the side of the mountain, and is exceedingly extensive ; and it is said to be called ' the city,' and the end pf it is unknown. Monastery of Shahran^ near Turd, The monastery called Shahrin was restored by Poemen, the monk, who had been perverted to the religion of the Muslims, but returned to his own faith in the caliphate of Al-Imam al- Hakim, and became once more abbot of the monastery. This monk was the cause of the opening Fol. 47 b of the churches which had been closed, and of the changing of the costume^ which Al-Hakim had injoined, and which he had maintained for nine years, during which Zacharias, the sixty-fourth patriarch, was imprisoned^, and thrown to the lions, which did him no harm ; for God forbad the lions to touch the patriarch, on account of his holiness, and the strength of his faith in God. The instigator of this persecution was a monk from the monastery of Saint Macarius^, named Jonas^, because ^ On fol. 19 b, Askar is said to be the birthplace of Moses. ^ Doubtless one of the subterranean quarries in the Mukattam range near Tur^. These caverns were cut out by ancient Egyptian workmen quarrying for stone for the pyramids and other buildings. The Arabs have a great horror of mining in the dark, and tell marvellous legends of these openings into the heart of the mountain. (A. J. B.) ^ Al-Hakim had forced the Christians to wear black clothes and turbans, and to use black trappings for their mules and asses, forbidding them to ride on horseback. (A. J. B.) * See 'Renaudot, Hist. Pair. p. 391 ff. ^ In the Nitrian desert. ^ Or John. See the story in Renaudot, Hist, Pair. p. 388 f. MONASTERY AND CHURCH AT TURA. 143 he had solicited a bishopric from that patriarch, but was prevented from obtaining it by Michael, the patriarch's nephew, who had demanded money from Jonas, [but did not receive it] ; the whole of this story is told in the Lives of the Patriarchs. In the aforesaid monastery there is a tower, entered through the monastery, and it had a garden attached to it, measuring six feddans, in which were fruit-bearing palms and corn-plots. Al-Imam al-Hakim was fond of visiting the country at this monastery, and of taking the air here ; and from it he went out to the mountain, and made journeys into the country. Monastery and Church at Turd. § The monastery known as the Monastery of the Potter is dedicated to Saint Mercurius. It is said also to have been named after the martyr Theodore. There is also a church, named after the glorious Saint George, which is in the district of Tura, on the bank of the river. This church was small when it belonged to the Jacobite Copts ; but at the time when Gregory^, the patriarch of the Armenians, came to Egypt, and Amir al-Juylash Badr was surrounded by Armenians, in the patriarchate of Anba Cyril, patriarch of the Jacobites, and the district of Fol. 48 Tura was allotted to the Armenians, then they seized this church, and pulled it down, and built instead of it a large and spacious church, with several cupolas, which was dedicated to the name of Saint George. Above it there rose a tower, the door of which was within the church ; and the latter was enclosed within a wall, and within the enclosure there was a well and a water-wheel. Around the church there was a space planted with orange-trees, and two dtiwairahs^ which are fruit- bearing palms, and other trees. When, however, the series of misfor- tunes befell the Armenians, the church came back to the Jacobites, in the patriarchate of Anba Mark, known before his promotion as Abu '1-Faraj ibn Zar'ah, the scribe ; he was the seventy-third in the succes- ^ See note on p. 3. This passage is referred to by Renaudot {Hist, Pair. pp. 459 and 508), who writes Dora for Tura. 144 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. sion. In this church the priest named Abu Yasir, whose history has been related with reference to the church of Al-Mart^tt, which is called Al-'Adawiyah, restored all that was required for the furnishing of it ; and the people began again to frequent it at all times. Outside it, there are stone foundations visible on the surface of the ground, which are said to have been made for the purpose of building upon them a manzarah ; but it was never fully prepared, and now there is only one fragment of building in a cracked condition. When the patriarch came to this church to consecrate it, an assembly of bishops and priests and of the Christian laity were present. In another copy it is said that the monastery of Saint George came into the possession of the aforesaid priest Abu Yasir, known as Ibn Fol. 48 b al-Kustal, and was solemnly opened in the month of Ba'unah, in the year 559 (a. d. 1164), in the patriarchate of Anba John, with the consent of the Armenians. Abu Yasir built in the upper story a church to the martyr Saint Mennas, and a church in the name of the great saint John the Baptist and of Gregory. The latter church was to the south of the great central sanctuary, in the monastery of the Armenians at Tura, and it was consecrated on the 30th of Ba'unah, in the year (^01 of the Righteous Martyrs (a. d. i 1 86) ; and the expenses of the building were paid at first by Ibn Mashkur, and at the time of its consecration by Abu Mansur, the superintendent of the building of the walls of Cairo and Misr. In the same monastery there is a tower, and a mill, and a garden which belonged to the Armenians ; and, when it ceased to belong to them, it came into the possession of the Jacobites, after the year 600 (a. D. 1204). When the priest Abu Yasir died, the monastery became the property of his disciples, and of the Copts, permanently down to our own time. The Eastern and Western Ranges, The eastern hills known as Al-Mukattam, which was the name of the son of Mizraim, the son of Misr, the son of Ham, the son of Noah. Mukattam was the first who worshipped on this spot, and here he gave himself up to the service of God ; so that after his time the mountain MELKITE MONASTERY OF AL-KUSAIR. 145 was known as Al-Mukattam. It is situated near Tura, by the stone- quarry, and is contiguous to Tura lengthwise, and it is a holy place. § The western range unites itself to the mountain chain of Western Fol. 49 a Africa and to the western shores, which at last reach the land of Ibn ^ Ghawatah, and the Dark Sea^. The river Nile flows between these two mountain-ranges. Melkite Monastery of Al-Kusair. The monastery known as Al-Kusair is on the summit of the eastern mountain-range. From this monastery there is a view of the blessed Nile, and of the district of Tura. It was founded by Arcadius^, the Great, son of Theodosius the Great, emperor of the Romans, over the tomb of his teacher, Saint Arsenius, after whose name he called it. This Arsenius had fled from the emperor, and devoted himself to religious worship in the desert of Saint Macarius in the Wadi Habib ; but afterwards he removed to this mountain, and spent his time in worship there. This monastery was known as Kusair^ A great festival ^ A mistake for Baraghwdtah (aUI^)), which was a district in north-western Africa, inhabited by a tribe of the same name ; see Yakut, Geogr. Wort. i. p. 0 1 1* ; Al-Idrisi (ed. Rome) [p. 87]; Ibn Khaldun, vi. p. r.v . ^ The Atlantic. ^ Arcadius can hardly have founded this monastery in memory of his teacher, who is said to have outlived him by some forty years at least ; see Gibbon (Edinburgh, 1832), vol. v. p. 148 n. The association of Arsenius with the monas- tery is, however, probably authentic. The full name of the convent, according to Al-Makrizi, was monastery of John the Dwarf (Yuhannus al-Kasir or Al- Kusayyir), i.e. St. John Kolobos; see Khifat, ii. p. 0.1 . (A. J. B.) * Our author probably borrows this account of the foundation of Al-Kusair from Eutychius, with whose narrative the statements in the text agree; see his Annales (ed. Pococke), i. p. 537. Quatremere gives an article on this monastery in Mem. \\. pp. 499-502, which consists of translations from Al-Makrizi, Khitaty ii. p. 0 . r , where Ash-Shabushti is quoted, as by our author. Yakut also describes the monastery of Al-Kusair among the few monasteries which he writes of ; see his Geogr. WorL ii. p. iao. U [IL 7.] 146 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT, is kept there in honour of Arsenius, at which many people assemble. Below his church on the mountain-top, there is another church, hewn out in the rock with the pickaxe^, and in it there is an altar. The monastery is on the upper part of the mountain and stands on a terrace, on a peak of the mountain, and is fairly constructed and commands a beautiful view. It has a well hewn in the rock, from which water is drawn. In the monastery there are excellent pictures^ of extremely skilful and admirable execution. The monastery contains an upper room [built by] Abu '1-Jaish Khamarawaih ^, son of Ahmad ibn Tuliin, which has Fol. 49 b four windows in its four sides. The road to this monastery from Misr is difficult, but on the southern side the ascent and descent are easy. At the side of it there is a hermitage, always inhabited by a hermit. The monastery overlooks the village named Shahrdn and the desert and the monastery of Shahr^n, which is a large and flourishing village, on the bank of the river, according to the testimony of the Book of the Monasteries, by Ash-Shabushti. This Al-Kusair is one of the monasteries that are visited for worship, and also for the pleasure of sauntering around them. The patriarch Eustathius^ founded in this monastery the church of ^ This would be the church of St. John the Baptist named below on fol. 51a. Khamarawaih, son of Ahmad ibn Tulun, and second of the Tulianide dynasty, ruled Egypt and Syria, nominally under the suzerainty of the Abbaside caliphs, for twelve years, from a. H. 2 7o=a.d. 884 to a. h. 282 = a. d. 895. The annual tribute demanded from him by the caliph amounted to about 500,000 dinars. He was famous for his magnificence and his love of art. The story which our author tells of his admiration for the mosaics at the monastery of Al-Kusair is told also by Yakiit, Geogr. Wort. ii. p. \oo. 2 Eustathius succeeded Balatianus, as Melkite or orthodox patriarch of Alexandria, in the sixteenth year of the caliph Harun Ar-Rashid, i. e. a. d. 802, and occupied the see for two years. See Eutychius {Annates, ii. p. 410), who is the authonty from whom the statements in the text are taken. Eutychius explains ^_JJ^ as: Cf. Le Quien, Oriens Christ, MEL KITE MONASTERY OF AL-KUSAIR, Ml the Apostles, and he founded a cell for the bishops. The monastery is in the possession of the Melkites, and contains a body of their monks. There is kept every year the festival of Saint Arsenius, on the 13th of Bashansl This Eustathius was a linen-merchant, and he found a treasure in the place where the flax was beaten; and then he became a monk in this monastery, and built in it that which has been mentioned. After that, he was made patriarch of the Melkites, and the length of his patriarchate was sixty-four years 2. In this monastery there are eight churches, and they are enclosed within a wall. In it also there is a manzarah^ and a qemetery ; and below it there are many caves hewn in the mountain. The church of the Apostles in this monastery was destroyed in the caliphate of Al-Hakim, in the month of Shaban, of the year 400 (a. D. 1010); and a band of the common people came here, and seized the coffins of the dead, and the timbers from the ruins. Afterwards it was decreed that [the monks] should restore the ruined building, and Al-Yasal, the brother Fol. 50 a of Taj ad-Daulah Bahram, assigned to the monastery sixteen feddans of land as an endowment. There was in this monastery a mule, to carry the water from the river, and bring it up to the monastery ; and one of the monks went down with it to fill up the quantity required ; and the monk remained by the river, while the mule kept going backwards and forwards by itself, until he had finished his business. The monastery is enclosed within a stone wall ; but on one occasion a mob of Muslims went up, and by a ruse induced the monks to open the gate to them, whereupon they entered and sacked the monastery, and killed some of the monks. The monastery known as Al-Kusair al-Hakkani is within the desert, and is uninhabited ; it is half-a-day's journey from the monastery which is being described. The number of churches at the monastery of Al-Kusair, accord- * I.e. May 8. Cf. Synaxarhwi (Paris MS. Arahe 256) for that day. ^ This must be a confusion with the length of Eustathius' life. U 2 148 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. ing to a description, of the date of Barmahat, in the year 891 of the Blameless Martyrs (a. D. 1175), was ten. (i) In the upper part is the church of Saint Arsenius, the teacher of the sons of the emperors ; and his body is buried under the altar, which is the only altar ^, and is surmounted by a baldakyn; over the middle of this church is a long vaulted^ roof. Fo]. 50 b (2) A church named after our Lady Mary, the pure and holy Virgin, in which there is one altar, as in the former. (3) The church of the Apostles or Disciples, in which there was a picture of the Lady, carrying the Lord, with angels on the right and on the left, and pictures of all the twelve disciples, the whole being composed of tesserae of glass ^ and skilfully executed, as at Bethlehem ; ^ This is exceedingly interesting for two reasons : (i) It is unusual for a church to have less than three altars now, though Abu Salih proceeds to enumerate several with this peculiarity ; and (ii) I do not know any other so distinct and unquestion- able evidence of the practice of burying the body of a saint under the high altar of an Egyptian church, though ten or twelve years ago, writing on the subject of the Coptic altar in ignorance of Abu Salih's testimony, I had no hesitation in inferring that the practice existed. See Coptic Churches^ ii. pp. 12-16. (A. J. B.) ^ In technical language this means, I think, that the nave was roofed with wagon-vaulting, such as may still be seen in the basilica in the Harah Zuwailah in Cairo, in the church of Al-lNlu'allakah within the fortress, and in many others. (A. J. B.) ^ This is, as far as I know, with the subsequent statements of our author, the only direct evidence of the use of the Byzantine glass mosaic in the churches of Egypt, and it is fortunate that Abu Salih's testimony is of unmistakable clearness. The arrangement which he sketches is common enough, indeed is almost exactly reproduced in the haikal of Abu 's-Saifain {Coptic Churches, i. p. 112, see also p. 40). But there the design is painted on the wall, not wrought in mosaic : and as I have explained {id. p. 37 seq.), there is no known instance of a picture in glass mosaic remaining in the Coptic churches, or anything to show that this form of art ever flourished in Egypt, though mosaic of another kind constitutes some of the most splendid decoration in churches and mosques alike. There is, howevec Quatremere, Mem. i. p. 259. (A.J. B.) ^ This is evidently a transcription of the Coptic Pheremoun or Baiamoun. Both the Coptic name and the Greek UrfKovaiov, as well as the modern Arabic designalion At-Tih, have the connotation of ' mud/ (A. J. B.) This account of Al-Farama is borrowed from Al-Kindi; see Al-Makrizi, Khitat, i. p. r 1 1 . ^ During the invasion of Chosroes ; see Patriarchal History, Brit. Mus. MS. Or. 12,000, p. loi. * By Al-Kindi. Cf. Al-Makrizi (Khiiai, i. p. n r), who quotes Ibn Kudaid. ISHMAEL. 169 the tribes, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham the Friend [of God] — upon them be peace! — made his entry ^ ; and if perchance one of the kings who beUeve in God shall undertake to restore the gates, then their stones shall be found safe and in their places.' So the men went away and did not displace a single stone. Ishmael. § It was "Litis ^, the son of Khartaba, who gave to Sarah, the wife of Abraham the Friend [of God], her handmaid Hagar, in the thirty-fifth year of the life of Abraham ; or, according to another copy, in the eighty-fifth ; and the latter is the true date. By Hagar, Abraham became the father of Ishmael, who was called his son by Fol. 57 b Hagar ; and the Arabs call Ishmael their ancestor, because he took a wife from among them ; and they are called Ishmaelites, because Ishmael was their father, and because Ishmael grew up among the Arabs and spoke the Arabic language. Ishmael lived one hundred and thirty-nine years ^. He had, by his Arab wives, twelve sons"*, who ^ The allusion is, although somewhat incorrectly made, to the Koran, Surah YHsuf, ver. 67, where Jacob says to his sons when they are about to journey to Egypt : *My sons, do not enter by a single gate, but enter by different gates.' Cf. Al-Makrizi, Khitdt, i. p. nr. Cf. the Midrash Rabbah on Gen., Par. 91 (quoted by Geiger, Was hat Mohammed aus dem Judenthume aufgenommen ? p. 148) : nnx nnDn dd!?:) iDJsn npj;^ xirb -ids ' Jacob said to them : Do not all of you assemble at one gate.' 2 We have here another of our author's digressions. Utis is the ancient king of Egypt who is named Aftutis on fol. 22 b; see note there. 3 The Hebrew text and the LXX have 137 years. ^ See Gen. xxv. 13-15. The Arab writers naturally give somewhat corrupt forms of their names ; see e.g. Ibn Ishak quoted by Ibn Hisham, Sirah Muha7?i?}iad, p.»«. z [II. 7.] 170 CHURCHES AXD MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. were great giants among the Arabs ; and they were the [heads of] tribes. And Nabish^ was one of the sons of Ishmael. Now he, I mean "Otis, dwelt at Al-Farama. His name is also said to have been Saduk. He built many cities, and called them by the names of his sons : such as Tinnis and Damietta and Nubah^ and Dakahlah^; and he rebuilt Samannud. It is said that Pharaoh built Al-Farama, which was a lake of water ; and a thousand boats were sunk in it, and the sea over- whelmed a thousand men, and therefore it was called Alfa ramd^. Cleopatra, queen of Alexandria, built the wall of Al-Htijiiz^ , on the eastern side of the country, from Nubia to Al-Farama, and on the western side from Nubia to Alexandria, to fortify herself against Augustus Caesar, emperor of the Romans, who captured Jerusalem, and carried the Jews away thence to Rome. Invasion of Egypt by Baldwin I. Sirbaduwil^, king of the Franks in Syria, came to Al-Farama in ^ This is the form given by Ibn Ishak ; the Hebrew is Naphish ; see Gen. XXV. 15. 2 Nubah or 'the Nubians' is the name of a tribe, not of a town. ^ The Coptic TKeg^Xl. It is the town which gives its name to the province of Ad-Dak ahliy ah in the Delta. It stands between Damietta and Damirah, on the east bank of the Damietta branch, in the district of Faraskfir, and in 1885 had 1,197 inhabitants, having much sunk from its former importance. See Yakut, Geogr. Wort. ii. p. oai ; Amdlineau, Geogr. p. 509 f. ^ 'It cast a thousand;' the etymology reminds us of Virgil's derivation of Latium, ' his quoniam latuisset in oris.' (A. J. B.) ^ The Halt al-Hujuz or 'barrier-wall,' generally called Ha it al-Ajuz or fisr al-Ajuz, 'wall' or * dyke of the old woman,' has already been mentioned on fol. 19 b. It was generally said to have been built in remote antiquity by a queen called Dalukah; and our author's statement that Cleopatra built it to fortify herself against Augustus, is probably borrowed from Eutychius; see Annates, 4. p. 301. ® I. e. Sieur Baudouin or Baldwin I, king of Jerusalem from a. d. 1 100 to 1 1 1 8. AL-KULZUM. the caliphate of Al-Amir and the vizierate of Shahanshah al-Afdal, in the fifteenth year of the patriarchate of Anba Macarius\ the sixty- Fol. 5S a ninth in the succession. This king of the Franks came with his troops and his army, and plundered the city^ and burnt it. He made up his mind to march as far as Misr, in order to take possession of that city ; but he fell sick at Al-Farama on the third day after his arrival, and, as his sickness increased, he commanded his followers to carry him back to Syria. They did as he commanded them, and when he came near to Al-'Arish he died ; and so they embalmed him, and carried him back to Jerusalem,, where he was buried. Al-Eiilzum. § Al-Kulzum- was the fortress of the king, on the frontier bordering upon the Hedjaz. and he named it after the cord of the weaver's stand, which holds the garment, and which is called hulzum'^. Here is the church of Athanasius*. There is a monaster}^ in the district of R^nah, founded by the emperor Justinian. At Al-Kulzum was the end of the canal from Cairo. Here, between the two seas, namely the S\'rian Sea and the Sea of the Hedjaz, is the barrier or isthmus, which is the narrowest piece of dry land on the surface of the earth ; and it is the land lying between Al-Farama and Al-Kulzum, a distance of one day and one night's journey. A certain prince^ undertook to dig a canal between ^ Occupied the see from November a. d. 1103 to 1129 ; see Renaudot, Hisf. Pair. pp. 483-500. His fifteenth year therefore corresponds with a. d. 1118, the year of Baldwm's invasion of Egypt and of his death. ^ See above, fol. 1 9 b. ^ 1. e., as Professor ]\Iargoliouth suggests, the Greek /cXwcr/xa. * Anba Siyus is incorrectly written for Atanasiyus or Athanasius. His death is commemorated on ]\Iisri 29 (Aug. 22). See Synaxariuni at that day. Eutychius names the church of St. Athanasius at Al-Ku'zum, and states that it was buik by order of the emperor Justinian; see Annales. ii. p. 163. 5 It might be thought that this refers to the canal of Pharaoh Necho, who is said to have been warned by an oracle that his enterprise would only help the Z 2 172 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. these two places, in order that the two seas might be connected, the one with the other ; but he feared that the Romans might attack the shores of the Hedjaz with their ships. § Al-Farama is surrounded by a fortified wall of stone without gates, which is in a state of ruin. § It is said that it was in the sea of Al-Kulzum, which is the Red Sea, opposite to the monastery of Anthony, that God drowned Pharaoh and his host, and led the prophet Moses and the children of Fol. 58 b Israel over on dry land by twelve paths ; and some of them remain to this day, and witnesses to them are not wanting^ ; and this sea is the Bahr Siip. § The history of Said ibn Batrik, the Melkite, relates^ that the dearth was raging at Medina, near Mecca, and the people of Medina, of the Hanifite religion, were in great distress ; so *Umar ibn al-Khattab, in the eighth year of his caliphate, wrote from the Hedjaz to 'Amr ibn al-'Asi ibn 'Adi, emir of Egypt, to inform him of this. Then 'Amr ibn al-'Asi sent to 'Umar a caravan of camels loaded with corn, for which the point of arrival was Medina, and the point of departure Misr. Then 'Umar wrote to 'Amr commanding him to dig a canal to Al- Kulzum, that thus the transport of the corn might be facilitated. So 'Amr dug the canal, which passes through Al-Kantarah, and is called the canal of the Prince of the Faithful ; and thus boats brought wheat and barley from Al-Fustat along the canal to Al-Kulzum., whence they barbarians, i. e. Phoenicians. But all ambiguity is removed by a passage in Al- Masudi (quoted by Quatremere, Mem. i. p. 175), who states that the caliph Harun ar-Rashid contemplated making a canal across the isthmus, but was deterred by the representation that the Greeks would take advantage of it to gain command of the Gulf of Suez and attack the pilgrim ships on their way towards the holy places of Arabia. (A. J. B.) ' It would seem that these two clauses refer to the army of Pharaoh, some relics of which are said to have remained. 2 I.e. the Hebrew P|'iD-n"'. 3 Se€ Eutychius, Annales, ii. p. 321. This canal of Cairo, or Khalij Amir al-Mummifi, has already been spoken of on fol. 24. CHURCHES IN THE PROVINCE OF AL-JIZAH. were carried over the Salt Sea to Medina, which is the city of Afram, belonging to the diocese of Al-Kulzum, and the children of Israel built it for Pharaoh at that time. It is said that the canaP of Cairo starts from the dam near [the island of] Raudah at Misr, and finishes at As-Sadir, in the province of Ash-Sharkiyah, where there is a bridge, and where the wheat is transferred from the bank to the dealer who travels to Mecca and the Hedjaz. Churches in the Province of A I -J hah. § The western bank [of the Nile]. The province of Al-Jiziyah 2. Fol. 59 a The fortress of Al-Jizah was built by *Amr ibn al-'Asi, in the year 23 of the Hegira (a. d. 43), and was completed for the Hamdan^ This last is [the name of] an Arab tribe who settled there at the time of the conquest of Alexandria. * The present canal or khalij was doubtless the old Amnis Trajamis, and it starts from the Nile, as described, at the Fum al-Khalij, near the island of Raudah. Yakut {Geogr. Wort. iii. p. oi) speaks of As-Sadir as a marshy district on the eastern boundary of Egypt, being the first place arrived at by one coming to that country from Syria; and he adds that he had visited the place himself. Abii Salih means, I suppose, that the canal at the time of his writing, in the twelfth century, was still available for merchandise as far as As-Sadir, from which point transport to the east had to be made by camel. The greater part of the canal was disused as early as the eighth century, when the caliph Al-]\Iansur is said to have filled it up. (A. J. B.) ^ Al-Jizah, now pronounced Ghizah, is the name of the town or village on the west bank of the Nile, opposite Cairo, and it gives its name to the province. The Coptic name of Al-Jizah was '^nepCHC or nepCIOI. (A. J. B.) ^ The caliph 'Umar warned the Muslims not to allow any great river to intervene between them and their home in Arabia, so that if they had to flee back to their native country there might be no obstacle in their way ; but in spite of this the tribe of Hamdan insisted on settling at Al-Jizah on the further side of the Nile, and 'Amr built a fort for them there. See As-Suyuti, Husn al-Muhddarah, i. p. ai . 174 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. In the western part of Al-Jiziyah are the tombs of the kings ^ or Pharaohs, in which are their treasures, all traces of which have been effaced. In this district [of Al-Jizah] is the church of the martyr Victor^ son of Romanus ^, on the bank of the river ; it was built at the expense of Abu '1-Khair as-Sairafi, a native of Al-Jizah. A light was seen to proceed from the picture of the Lady in the apse of this church on several occasions; and this thing became celebrated, and was talked of by many of the faithful who had witnessed it, and by other persons of authority. The foundations of this church were inundated by the river, so that it almost fell into ruin ; but it was restored, and its foundations were strengthened, and an enclosure in the river was built for it, to give it strength, by the Shaikh 'Izz al-Kufat Abu '1-Fakhr ibn Sulaiman, the scribe, who spent much money upon it. This [shaikh] was celebrated in his time for his benevolence and his almsgiving. The Ghuzz and Kurds destroyed part of the aforesaid church ; but God on this account performed a great wonder, so that they never attacked it again ; and this was that by the end of the year not one of those who had attacked the church was living, rol. 59 b Adjacent to this church there is a garden. After a time the river gained upon the building; and the architects were unable to invent any remedy, so that the river carried away the eastern side of the building. Then Fakhr ad-Din, the wali of Misr, known as Ghul^m al-Baniy^si, carried off eighteen pillars, marked with the sign of the cross 2; and he built with them an inn and other houses for himself; but he was deprived of the governorship of Misr, and was fined soon after this, and all his property was seized to pay the fine ; and he died during his imprisonment. * The pyramids are, of course, intended. (A. J. B.) * The name is corruptly written here, but all other authorities make it Romanus; see Syjiaxarium (Paris MS. Arabe 256), which has ^^Uj^ ; Zoega, Cat. p. 239, &c.; Amelineau, Actes des MM. p. 177 ff. ^ Tnis allusion to consecration crosses cut or painted on the pillars is interesting. See Copiic Churches, i. p. 188, &c. (A. J. B.) CHURCHES IN THE PROVINCE OF AL-JIZAH. 175 The house of Fakhr al-Kufat^ stood by the river ; and he feared lest the river should destroy it, as it had destroyed the rest ; so he pulled it down, and carried away all the materials and the timber, and the timber of the roof of the church which has been described, with its materials, and rebuilt with them a church which had fallen into ruin, and which was named after Mark^ the Evangelist. This building he made wider and handsomer than the former church ; and it remained for several years in good order, until the Ghuzz and the mob of Muslims attacked it and wrecked it ; and after that no one restored it again ; but its walls are still standing, in a ruined state, and it is deprived of liturgies and prayers. This destruction took place at the promotion of Anba John, son of Abu Ghalib, the seventy-fourth patriarch. § There is a church of Saint Peter at Al-Jizah, on the bank of the Nile, the foundations of which are in the river. It was in this church Fol. 60 a that the Christians assembled, at a time when the Nile was slow in rising ; and they offered prayers on this account by night and by day, and fasted for the space of a whole week ; and at the end of the week God filled up the measure of the waters of the Nile, and they increased beyond that, after the rising of Arcturus, until they reached a height of seventeen cubits or more; and the Life of Anbd Michael states that they reached ^ eighteen cubits ; and men ceased to despair of the 1 'Izz al-Kufat. ^ Mentioned by Al-Makrizi, and by the Copto-Arabic lists (Amdlineau, Geogr. pp. 578 and 580). ^ I have inserted these two clauses here instead of lower down, where the copyist has misplaced them in the text. The history of this rise of the Nile in answer to the prayers of the Christians is borrowed by our author from the Life of Michael the forty-sixth patriarch, by John the Deacon, included in the patriarchal biographies. This writer describes the assembly of bishops at Al-Fustat, according to the custom which prescribed that all the bishops should meet the patriarch in synod, twice in the year ; and having stated that the Nile had not risen that year above fourteen cubits, he adds : .V 176 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. rising of the Nile. Then Narun, the wali of Misr, said : ' How does God receive the prayers of the Christians!' At Al-Jizah there is also a church named after the angel Michael, near to which lies the village of Al-Khaizar^niyah. It was to this ^jJiil J^'^lj '-'4^^ c^^J ^^'"^^ »^ u-^^ J^'^b »— a^-'l Cii^^ sils.-^ 4ll Jl LLi>.J^ ^A^j ^^;-J-i.b 'When the 17th of Tut came, which is the festival of the Glorious Cross, the clergy of Al-Jizah and of distant places assembled, with most of the lay people of Al-Fustat, old and young, and walked in procession carrying the Gospels and censers with incense. Then we entered the great cathedral church of St. Peter, the foundations of which lie in the river ; but the church could not contain the people on account of their multitude, so that they stood in the outlying places. Then the patriarch raised the cross, while Anba INIennas, bishop of Memphis, stood by him with the holy Gospel, and led us all forth, bearing crosses and books of the Gospel, until we stood on the banks of the river ; and this was before sunrise. And the patriarch prayed, and Anba Mennas, the bishop, prayed, and the laity did not cease crying Kyrie eleison until the third hour of the day ; so that all the Jews and Muslims and others heard our cries to the most high God. And he heard us, praise be to his glorious name ; for the river rose and increased in height by one cubit; and every man glorified God and gave thanks to him. And when Narun heard of this matter he was filled with wonder and fear, both he and all his troops.' (Paris MS. Anc. Fonds Arabe 139, p. 183, 11. 5-14.) Cf. Renaudot, Hist. Pair. p. 230, where he wrongly says that the church of St. Peter was at Misr. Al-Makrizi also mentions the event. The .subsequent rise to the height of eighteen cubits is mentioned in the MS. just quoted on p. 180, 1. 7. CHURCHES IN THE PROVINCE OF AL-JIZAH. 177 church [of the angel Michael] that Anba Michael, the forty-sixth patriarch, came with the bishops who were his fellow-prisoners, when they were released from the hand of Marwan al-Ja'di, the last of the Omeyyad caliphs. Afterwards the river inundated this church, and not a trace of it remained. § The monastery named after the glorious martyr Mercurius. The church belonging to it was destroyed by the Khorassanians^, when they were transported to the western bank of the river, in order to fight with Marwan, surnamed the Ass of War 2. § There is a church of Mark^, the evangelist and apostle, in the fort built by Khush^ king of the Persians, at the same time as the Kasr ash-Shamci at Misr. The king used to alight at both of them Fol. 60 b from his boat. § The church of the angel Michael, also called the Red Monastery^, is on the bank of the blessed Nile. In this monastery there is a church named after Cosmas and Damian, which has a conspicuous dome of stone. ^ The best account of the attack upon Marwan made by the Khorassanian troops of the Abbaside caliph As-Saffali is given by the contemporary witness, John the Deacon, in the life of Michael just quoted. ^ This sobriquet alluded to his vigour and tenacity. ^ This must be the church already mentioned on fol. 59 b. ^ I.e. Artaxerxes Ochus. The name is shortened from and the points over the ^ji are, of course, incorrect. Eutychius, after mentioning Artaxerxes INInemon, says : 'And after him reigned his son Artaxerxes, called Ochus.' Further down Eutychius says : *And Ochus, king of the Persians, built at Fustat Misr the fort which is now called Kasr ash-Shama! [An?iales, i. p. 267.) ^ This must still be in the province of Al-Jiziyah, and is not to be confounded with the Red IMonastery of Upper Egypt. a a [II. 7.] 178 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. Al-Khaizaraniyah ^ Here is the church of Saint Poemen, [the garden of] which contains fruitful palm-trees and an arbour of trees ^. Munyat Andunah ^. Here there is the church of the saint Abu Bimah * ; and a church named after Abu Bagham ^ the ^ This village or district was, as we have been told a few lines above, contiguous to Al-Jizah. Both the locality and its church of St. Poemen are named in the Copto-Arabic lists (Am^lineau, Geogr. pp. 578 and 580), thus * [Church of] Saint Poemen at Pouhit or Al-Khazraniyah/ Amelineau, in spite of his study of Abu Salih, has not discovered the mention of this place and church in our author, and therefore is totally at a loss as to the position of Al-Khazraniyah, or Al-Khaizaraniyah (op. cit. p. 363). The name of St. Poemen, M. Amdlineau assures us, is translated into Greek [sic] by ' Pastor ' ! ujUil, put by a clerical error for ^1^1, seems to denote trees, and is probably the Syriac JJ^^^y- ^ This village, on the west bank, a Httle to the south of Al-Jizah, is said to have been named after a Christian scribe of Ahmad al-Mada'ini, whose riches excited the cupidity of Ahmad ibn Tulun, so that he fined him 50,000 dinars. See Al-Makrizi, Khitai, i. p. r . a . * In Coptic ^LU^ eniJUte, which is more correctly transcribed in Arabic as ' Aba Abimah.' He was a celebrated martyr, born at Pankoleus in the nome of Pemje or Al-Bahnasa. Pankoleus appears to be the same as Jalfah, which is mentioned by our author on fol. 73 b and 74 a; see Amelineau, Geogr. p. 96. Epime or Abimah was a landed proprietor and the chief of his townsmen. In the persecution of Diocletian, he was ordered to bring forth the presbyters of the town and to hand over the sacred vessels, but answered that there were no permanent priests there, and that the vessels were of glass. The saint was sent to Alexandria, where Armenius, the governor, condemned him, it is said, to be thrown into a furnace at the baths, from which he emerged unhurt ; but finally he was beheaded, after manifold tortures, at Ahnas. His life was written by Julius of Akfahs; and his festival is kept on Abib 8 = July 2. See Synaxariiim at that day; Zoega, Cat. p. 22 ; Amelineau, Ades des MM. p. 134. ^ A soldier in the time of Diocletian, who, on account of his adoption of Christianity, was scourged and afterwards put to death. His festival is on Kihak 2 = Nov. 28. CHURCHES IN THE PROVINCE OE AL~J1ZAH. martyr, whose body lies within it, although his monastery is at Suyut \ § Wadab al-Kum. Here is one church. § Bunumrus^ or Kasr Khakan. There is here a church named after the holy martyr Saint George, which was restored by 'Ilm as-Sarf Abu '1-Mak^rim al-Wizan bi 'sh-Shafa'if ; and within it there is a tablet of wood fastened with thread. § Bulak^ Here is the church of Saint George, beside which grows an ancient lotus-tree ; and the church of the valiant martyr Theodore. At Mukhnan'* there is a single church. ^ Suyut or Usyut, now more commonly called Asyut, is the largest town in Upper Egypt, since it contained, in 1885, S'^SP^ inhabitants. It is the Coptic CICJOOTT and the classical Lycopolis; and it is now, as it was in the time of our author, the capital of a province. See Am^lineau, Ge'ogr. p. 466. " Called Aljfi 'n-Numrus by Al-Makiizi and others. It is now in the district of Badrashain, in the province of Al-Jizah, and had in 1885 a population of 2,593 inhabitants, besides 299 Bedouins. It was called in Coptic UonJULOrtpoC, and the Arabic form wiih y \ is, of course, the result of a popular assimilation to other names compounded with that word. See Amelineau, Ge'ogr. p. 361 f. ^ I.e. Bulak ad-Dakiur. The suburb of Cairo named Bulak was not founded until A. D. 1313 ; see Al-Makrizi, Khitat, ii. p. ir. . * This place, the Coptic JULO^onon, lay in the province of Al-Jizah, a little to the north of Cairo, on the east side of the Rosetta branch of the Nile, and was sometimes called Mukhnan Muna 'l-Amir, as being close to the latter place. M. Am^lineau's article on the name consists of the following words : 'Mokhonon, JULO^ortort, ^j^s.-*- Ce nom se trouve dans la liste des ^glises de r£gypte, qui est publi^e a la fin de cet ouvrage. II devait sans doute faire partie de la banlieue du Caire, comme la plupart des lieux cites dans cette liste. II n'a pas laiss^ de traces dans I'Egypte contemporaine, et dtait m6me d^ja perdu dans le xive siecle' {Ge'ogr. p. 585). It is remarkable that M. Amelineau here disregards the testimony of our author himself, of Yakut, and of the revenue-list published by De Sacy, although he expressly states that he has had recourse to these very authorities for the composition of his book. See Yakut, Geogr, Wort. i. p. AAi ; De Sacy, Relation de I'Egypte par Abd-Allati/^ p. 676. a a 2 i8o CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. Mund l-Amir^. Here there is a single church. Tamha. Here is the church of the martyr Theodore, which was restored by the Shaikh Abu '1-Yaman al-Bazzaz, who paid the expenses of it. § Wasim 2. Here is the church of the Lady, restored by the priest George, of Upper Egypt, scribe of Al-Ustadh Sandal al-Muzaffari. It is said that there were at Wasim 366 churches, in which the liturgy was celebrated every day, and to which priests and deacons were attached ; at which also the laity congregated. Fol. 61 a § Al-Muharrakah ^, contiguous to Bunumrus. Here there is an extensive church, and a large monastery containing many monks. Monastery of Nahyd. § The following is the history of the monastery of Nahya^ as I learnt it from Sa'id the deacon, son of Najah, who was a novice ^ See above, fol. 34 b. Near Mukhnan, and now included in the district of Badrashain, in the province of Al-Jizah, with a population in 1885 of 2,935. Mund {^) is the plural of Munyah, and the place in question was sometimes called in the singular Munjat al-Amir. Nevertheless M. Amelineau writes it ' Mina al-Emir ' (^^1 Ij--o), as if it were compounded with the Arabic Lu*, ' harbour.' The modern pronunciation Mina (^-o , less correctly l:^) arises from the present vocaliza- tion of the singular as Minyah (d^-^). De Sacy transcribes the name as Mona al-Amir. The place is called in Coptic UIJULOnH JULH^LJULepe. See Yakfit, Mushtarik^ p. ; De Sacy, Relation de tt,gypte par Abd-Allatify p. 676; Recensement de PEgypie, ii. p. 218; Amelineau, Geogr. p. 256 f. ^ On the west bank of the Nile, near Cairo, a litde to the north-west. It is now called Ausim, and gives its name to a district of the province of Al-Jizah. In 1885 it had 7,170 inhabitants. In Coptic it is KoTOJHJUL. See Yakut, Geogr. Wort. iv. p. F^; Recensevient de fltgypie, ii. p. 279. The insertion of the passage referring to Saft MaidCim here, in the midst of a descrip- tion of the province of Al-Jizah, is an illustration of the want of plan of the book in its present form. ^ The earliest mention of ' Mercurius ' or ' Hermes Trismegistus ' occurs in Tertullian, Adv. Valent. c. 15, and in Lactantius, if the passage of Manetho quoted by Georgius Syncellus is an interpolation. A papyrus of the reign of Gallienus speaks of Tpio-neyiaros "Epfirjs as the god of Hermopolis in Egypt, i. e. Ushmunain ; see Wessely in Miiih. aiis der Saviml. der Pap. Erzherzog Raiiier, v. p. 133 f. In the hieroglyphic inscriptions, Thoth, who was identified by the Greeks with Hermes, is called 'great, great,' i.e. 'twice great.' To this Thoth or Hermes was ascribed the authorship of all the sacred books which the Greeks called Hermetic ; and Clement of Alexandria says that there were forty-two of such works, forming a sort of encyclopaedia of knowledge. In the third and fourth centuries the name was adopted by the writers of various Neo-Platonic and Cabbalistic works, but it is doubtful whether any writer was ever known as Trisuu*gistus, although there are extant under the name many MSS. To the PYRAMIDS OF AL-jlZAH. 189 the art of alchemy, and was able to make substances. His birth- place was Memphis. He is said to have been the same as Idris, who is related to have been ' raised up to a high placed' The Sabacans Arabs the name was well known through the existence in Arabic of many treatises ascribed to Hermes Trismegisius ; see Haji Khalfah (ed. Fluegel), iii. pp. 53, 424, 480, 592; iv. pp. ICQ, 465; V. pp. 39, 41, 157, 171, 247, 5S7, where works of Hermes are mentioned on such subjects as alchemy, talismans, the mystic use of letters, astrology, the philosopher's stone or elixir {j^'^\ — ^Tf]pov). The belief that the pyramids of Al-Jizah were built by Hermes, or that one of them was his tomb, was widespread among the Arabs, who, however, generally say that they derived it from the Sabaeans; see Yakut, Geogr. Wort. iv. p. 969; 'Abd al-Latif, Mukhtasar (ed. White), p. 99 ; Al-Makrizi, Khitat, i. pp. 1 1 i-i n ; As-Suyuti, Husn al-Muhdclarah, i. pp. 1 v, 1^1^^ ^ ^a. J. B.) ^ The idendfication of Hermes with Idris, who is further identified with the Enoch of Genesis, is common to most of the Arab historians. The words placed in inverted commas are a quotation from the Koran, Siirah Maryam^ v. 27, where it is said : Ulc Ul5v* sIjljss^j LJ> U>wL^ jjlS ijl (j*o,:»l u_jUXJ1 ^ J^<^lj ' Make mention of Idris in the Book ; for he was truthful and a prophet, and we raised him up to a high place.' The last words, of course, refer to his translation to Heaven. See Al-Baidawi, Anwar at-TanzU, &c. (ed. Fleischer), i. p. c^r . Eutychius says that Enoch was called Idris by the Arabs {Annales, i. p. 30). Ibn al-Athir says that Enoch (^jLi.), the son of Jared, is the same as Idris the prophet ; that he was the first of the prophets, and the first to write and to study the stars and to calculate; that the learned Greeks (^^U^)l *ljic) call him Hermes the Wise, and hold him to be great ; that he exhorted the people to repentance, and that God raised him up when he was 365 years old according to the Pentateuch {Al-Kdmil, i. p. t*=r). As-Suyuti says that Enoch, Hermes, and Idris are the same person {Husn al-Muhddarah, i. p. iv). Haji Khalfah says that Idris, the son of Jared, the son of Mahalaleel, the son of Enos, the e on of Seth, the son of Adam, was the originator of all the learning that existed before the flood— *Ulxll JjS ^9 SJLC y^->jX^ Uil ^jU^l ^\ and that he is the same as Hermes, and is called the Chief Hermes CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT, make pilgrimages to the two great pyramids, and say that Hermes is buried in one of them, and Agathodaemon ^ [in the other]. The Sabaeans come to the pyramids from Harran, on pilgrimage^. There is not on the face of the earth a structure erected by the hand [of man], stone upon stone, higher than these two pyramids ^, which are the tombs of Hermes and Agathodaemon. It is said that the area covered by each of the two great pyramids is twelve feddans and in each of them there is a well, the site of which is not known. Monastery of tJie Vinedresser. Near this place there is a monastery, known as the Monastery of Fol. 65 a the Vinedresser^ but called by the heretics the Monastery of the Dogs. and the Threefold in Grace (a^sJb eJdl) ; and that he was the first to erect buildings, and was himself the constructor of the pyramids ; see Lex. Bibliogr. ed. Fluegel, i. p. 63. ^ Nothing is known from Greek or Latin sources with regard to Agathodaemon except that he designed maps for Ptolemy's Geography, and therefore probably lived at Alexandria in the middle of the second century of our era ; but the Arabs have more to say about him, since they claimed to possess treatises by him on amulets and on alchemy (Haji Khalfah, iii. p. 391, vi. p. 51), and identified him with Seth (ibid. i. p. 65 ; cf. the sources quoted in the last two notes). (A. J. B.) 2 As-Suyuti adds that they offer sacrifices and incense there. ^ The present height of the great pyramid is about 451 ft., but the original height was 480 ft. 9 in., which is nearly 20 ft. higher than the tower of Strassburg cathedral, the loftiest building in Europe ; St. Peter's at Rome being 429 ft., and St. Paul's in London 404 ft. high. The second pyramid is not much smaller than the first. The third pyramid, however, is considerably less, and was there- fore less famous than the other two ; not to mention the still smaller pyramidal structures which make up the group at Al-Jizah. (A. J. B.) ^ This is singularly accurate as regards the great pyramid, the present area of which is i2f acres, the former 13^. The pyramid of Chephren, however, is smaller, covering now about loj acres, and formerly about 11 J. (A. J. B.) THE WESTERN MOUNTAINS. There is also a third pyramid, besides the two former, the base of which is built of hard granite of variegated colour ^. The monastery is near the pyramids, on the western side ; and its church is called the church of Timothy^ the monk, a native of Memphis, whose body is buried in it. His intercession was powerful in this church, so that those who visited it and prayed to God in the power of faith, gained their requests ; and if any one were desirous ^ of entering upon some undertaking, and asked God to guide him according to that which was best, God revealed to him in a dream the advantages which would result from his undertaking, or else warned him not to enter upon it. This is attested by the Book of the Histories of the Councils. The Western Mountains. § At the foot of the mountain-range there is a town called Mastayah^. At the foot of the mountains in [the province of] Al- ^ Herodotus and Pliny call this granite ' Ethiopian stone ; ' Diodorus and Strabo ' black stone ; ' while the Arab writers, from the colour of the granite, name the pyramid the red pyramid. 'Abd al-Latif says : jjjuiJl laiLi.1 ^y^\ s^lstss*. &j5^ jsjlj yj^^ eJlill Ulj ' The third pyramid is less than the other two by about a quarter ; but it is built of stones of red granite, which is spotted, and of extreme hardness, so that iron makes no impression upon it except after a long time.' (Mukhtasar, p. 92.) (A. J. B.) * This must be the martyr Timothy of ancient Misr (i»j>jfiJl j^)^ ^ name given to Memphis by Arab writers, who is commemorated on Ba'unah 21 = June 15; see Synaxarium at that day. He was a soldier in the Roman army when the persecution of Diocletian broke out, and for proclaiming Christ before Arianus, the governor of the Thebaid, he was repeatedly tortured and at last beheaded. Such, at least, is the account given. ^ I transcribe this name conjecturally as Mastayah because De Sacy names a town called Mestayah in the province of Al-Gharbiyah. A few lines further down our copyist writes aili^ , Mastatah (.?). igz CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. Jizah there are fifty monasteries, flourishing and populous, which have been ruined and burnt by the heretics : [that is to say] at the hands of the Berbers of Western Africa, who do not know the truth, or obey the law, or distinguish between right and wrong. This western range of mountains is united with the mountains on the western bank of the Nile, but then branches off from them, until, after passing by Barca and the whole sea coast of northern Africa, it reaches the land of Baraghwatah^ and the shores of the Sea of Dark- ness. In this western mountain-range is the city called Mastayah, to which [in former days] they used to bring the dead bodies of the kings, with all their money and treasures ; and the greatest number of treasure-hunters haunt the environs of this city, which they call Dar Manuwil. Monastery of Ash-Shamd . Fol. 65 b § Munyat ash-Shammas^ [or Munyah of the Deacon], namely, of Paphnutius, the novice, is to the west of Tamwaih. The monastery called 'Monastery oi Ash-Shamd ^ See note on fol. 49 a, where the name is incorrectly written Ibn Ghawatah. See Ibn Khaldun (vi. p. >n), where there is a mention of the tribe of Baraghwatah and their native country in north-west Africa. ^ This place is said by Yakut to be in the province of Al-Jizah, and to be also called Dair ash-Shama or ' IMonastery of the Candle.' Compare the name Kasr ash-Shama' and its supposed derivation from £)(^HJULS , * Egypt.' The revenue-lists of a. d. 1375 also name the place as existing in the province of Al-Jizah. There were two places of the name in the same province ; but there is now only one Mit Shammas, which is in the district of Badrashain, in the province of Al-Jizah, with a population in 1885 of 883. See Yakut, Mushtarik^ p. t«.v ; Rec. de VEgypie, ii. p. 221. The monastery of Ash-Shama' must have stood close to Munyat ash-Shammas. ^ Yakut says that this was ' an ancient monastery, held in reverence among the Christians, in the province of Al-Jizah in Egypt. Between this monastery and Al-Fustat there is a distance of three parasangs, as you go up the Nile ; and the throne of the patriarch is in this monastery, and here he resides as long as he is in the neighbourhood of Misr.' {fieogr. Wort, ii. p. tvr.) MONASTERY OF ASH-SHAM A' 193 § This monastery is also called the 'Monastery of the Devils ^' for the following reason. In the days of [the caliph] Al-Mustansir, during the years of dearth, the monks deserted this building, which remained uncared for, so that cattle used to feed in it. Moreover certain figures used to issue forth from the monastery, and used to ride upon horse- back from nightfall to morning, and enter a certain ruined village. Thus the monastery received that name. Paphnutius^ went and lived in this monastery alone, to take care of it. It was a small domed structure, and it was restored at the expense of the officials, until it assumed the form in which it is now. Paphnutius had visited Onuphrius, the saint and pilgrim^, and lived with him for a time; for whenever Paphnutius heard of a saint, he went to see him and received his blessing ; and he was with Saint Onuphrius at the time of his deaths There was at the dwelling of the latter a single fruit-bearing palm-tree ; so Paphnutius thought in his heart that he would live there in the place of Onuphrius. But God sent a violent wind, which lasted long and blew down that palm-tree, from which Onuphrius used to feed himself during his lifetime ; and filled up with sand the well of water from which he drank. So Paphnutius went else- where, and every one who saw his form, thought that he was a disciple [of Onuphrius], although it was not so. Afterwards he became a dis- ^ Yakut mentions a monastery of this name near Al-Mausil in INIesopotamia ; see Geogr. Wort. ii. p. ^vr. ^ This is a famous Egyptian anchorite of the fourth century ; but not the bishop commemorated by the Roman church on Sept. 11. See Palladius, Hisl. Laus. p. 125; Apophthegmata Patnun, p. 377 f; Zoega, Cat. p. 308 f.; Acta SS. His festival is kept by the Copts on Amshir i5 = Feb. 9; see Synaxarium at that day. The name is nhich has been identified with Shandawil, to the north-east of Ikhmim. He served in boyhood as a shepherd, and then came under the tuition of his uncle Apa Pjol (^nand Tamwaih which is next named? The latter place is sometimes called Tamuh. See also Quatremere, Mem. i. pp. 137-138. MONASTERY AND CHURCHES OF TAMWAIH. 197 is a garden containing a well with a water-wheel, upon the high road. The Jews have in this district a synagogue^, enclosed by a wall, Fol. 67 a within which are lodgings for them, and a garden in which are trees and palms, and a circular well with a water-wheel. Here disputes took place between the sects of Rabbanites and Karaites concerning the lighting of lamps. It is said that the prophet Moses, in the days of Pharaoh, visited this place, and prayed in it, and slept in it^. Monastery and Churches of Tamwaih. Tamwaih. This place is opposite to Hulwan^, which lies on the eastern bank. The monastery which takes its name from Tamwaih is described in the Book of the Monasteries of Ash-Shabushti*. It is surrounded by an enclosing wall. Its church is named after Saint Mercurius ^, and overlooks the river, to which it is close. Contiguous to the monastery there is a keep, entered from the church ; and in its upper story there are fine manzarahs. The monastery commands views of the gardens and trees and cultivated lands and vineyards with trellises. It is inhabited by many monks. This monastery was restored by the Shaikh Abu '1-Yaman Wazir, metwalli of the Diwan of Lower Egypt, and by the Shaikh Abu '1-Mansur, his son, in the caliphate of Al-Amir, and the vizierate of Al-Afdal Shahanshah. The latter used to alight at this monastery, ^ Al-Makrizi says that this had been a church. 'Abd al-Latif states that Moses lived at Damuh in the province of Al-Jizah ; see Al-Mukhtasar, ed. White, p. 1 16. ^ More accurately, Tamwaih lies about five miles lower down the river than Hulwan, which is to the south-east of Tamwaih, on the opposite bank. ^ The passage of Ash-Shabushti is quoted by Al-Makrizi in his article on the monastery of Tamwaih {t^^J^ ; of Yakut, Geogr. Wort. ii. p. ^ vi^ . Both of these writers quote verses by Ibn Abi 'Asim al-Misri, which speak of the pleasures of drinking wine at this monastery. ^ Tamwaih itself is often omitted in maps, but a monastery of Abu 's-Saifain, i.e. St. Mercurius, is marked on Norden's Plate XXVIII, nearly facing Hulwan and overlooking the river. (A. J. B.) 198 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. and spend some time there, lounging and sauntering ; and he laid out a garden near it, and planted in it trees of all sorts, and palms ; and dug wells over which he placed water-wheels ; and he surrounded Fol. 67 b the garden with a strong hedge. The annual rent which was received from this monastery into the public treasury amounted to ten dinars. Afterwards this rent was stopped, and with the money oil-presses were built within the enclosure of the monastery, complete in all their parts. The monastery possessed forty-seven feddans of land, which were appropriated by the Ghuzz and Kurds and the rest, in the reign of An-Nasir Yusuf ibn Ayyub, the Kurd. In the church lies the body of Paphnutius^, the superior of this monas- tery ; and his festival is kept on the 1 5th of Amshir. The monastery contains a painting of the Lady, the Pure Virgin Mary. Al-Afdal took pleasure in sitting in his place in the upper story of the building. The Shaikh Abu 1-Yaman, who has already been mentioned, pro- vided for this church, at his own expense, vessels of solid silver. He provided a paten ^, and a chalice, and a spoon ^, and a censer, and a cross, and a splendid veil of silk. In this district there is also the large and beautifully planned church of the glorious saint and champion Saint George. There is also a church named after the female martyr Mahrabil*. ^ We were told above that the relics of St. Paphnutius had been in the monastery of Ash-Shama\ but that they were stolen thence by Husain, son of Al-Hafiz. Can they subsequently have found their way to Tamwaih ? 2 The curious enlargement of the denotation of the word simyah (a-i-^) is remarked upon by De Goeje, in his note on Ibn Hankal, p. r^%, where he points out that from signifying a china (Chinese) plate or dish, it grew to denote a plate or dish of any material; so that a porcelain dish had to be distinguished as aaJu-x? or ^^-^11 JuJL^. For the use of the names of church vessels and furniture at the present day, see Coptic Churches, ii. p. 37 ff. (A. J. B.) ^ It is well known that the sacramental elements are administered in the Coptic church together in a spoon, as in the Greek church. The spoon is used also in tbe papal Mass. (A. J. B.) * So in the MS. I can only conjecture that the name may be a clerical error MEMPHIS. 199 And the church of Aba Bimah. And a church named after the angel Michael. And a church of the Lady, the Pure Virgin. Memphis. Memphis^. Baisur, son of Ham. son of Noah, settled here, when he was 780 years old, with thirty of his sons and family, and therefore the place was called Manafah^, v\'hich means 'thirty.' His sons were Mizraim and Farik and Bah and I\Iah. The following were the sons Fol. 68 a of Mizraim : Kift ; Ushmun, the meaning of whose name is ' Come not hither^ ! ' and Atrib. At this place * there is a great image of granite, called Bi'L 'l-H/il^ thrown down upon its side. Afterwards Manafah was established as the capital of the Pharaohs. When Baisur died he was buried here, in a place called Abu Harmis ; and he was the first to be buried in the land of Egypt. The Nile gradually changed its bed in that direction. Other writers say that Memphis was built by ^lizraim for his son Kift, who was called Barim : and others say that this city was built by Manfa us, the son of 'Adim, who made it thirty miles long and twenty miles broad, and erected around it thirty towers, each tower for Maharati, a girl whose martyrdom is commemorated on Tubah 14 = Jan. 9; see Amelineau, Actes des MM. p. 67. ^ Memphis did not cease to exist in name or to be the see of a bishop till long after the Arab conquest; see 'Abd al-Latif, p. 116 ff.; Al-Makiizi, Khitat, i. p. iri* ff. ^ Yakut, who gives the same derivation, states the Coptic form as INIafah (iaU), which corresponds to the Thebaic JUL^^Llie better than to the Memphitic JUL\), or 'Father of Terror,' i.e. 'Terrific' or 'Gigantic,' is more commonly given to the Sphinx; see fol. 68b. (A. J. B.) 200 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT, containing a bath, in the days of Saru\ son of Ar u ; or that it was built by Pharaoh, surnamed the 'Lover of his Mother ^' who was king of the Pharaohs. Joseph the Truthful constructed a large Nilometer at Munaif ^ ; and he was the first who measured the Nile in Egypt by the cubit. At Memphis there are wonders : buildings, images, tombs, treasures, that cannot be numbered. There is here a house of green granite, hard, variegated in colour, all in one piece, square, with a roof of the same piece. The church near to this is spread with mats. Fol. 68 b At Memphis there is a church which has been restored at a place which is said to be the place where Moses lay in ambush for the Egyptian and killed him, as it is related in his history. Every [square] cubit of the land here used to fetch a price of a hundred dinars. Near the town are the pyramids, three in number. The height of the great pyramid is four hundred cubits. The pyramids were the landmarks and the dwelling-places built by Asghusa, the greatest of all the kings of the earth, and by Arghash, the brother of Shaddad, and by Shaddad, son of 'Ad, and Malik, son of 'Ad, and Farmashat, brother of * Ad, whose ancestor was the king Arzakusha. He built here eight hundred courses, and then died. In these high towers, which are the two great landmarks, [these kings] placed their treasures and their tombs. The riches con- tained in one of them were extracted by one of the emperors of the Romans, named Severus, or the Great ; and he extracted [it], after four hundred courses, during his whole reign, until he died, in the time of the author of the treatise^. Near these pyramids is the great image of granite [called] the Terrific^, sunk in the sand up to its middle. ^ This is, of course, a confused reference to Ptolemy Philometor, whom Eutychius also calls Muhibb Ummihi. (A. J. B.) ^ Memphis. ^ This passage appears to be incomplete or corrupt. * I. e. the Sphinx, generally called Abu '1-Hul ; see last page. It was held by the Arabs to be a talisman, the purpose of which was to prevent the sands from encroaching upon the inhabited districts. Stories were told of its having been CHURCHES OF BUSIR BANA AND OTHER PEACES. 2Ci After this we will speak of the Southern Provinces of the land of Egypt. Churches of Bustr Band and other places. Busir Bana^ This town is named after a sorcerer, called Busir, Fol. 69 a who lived there, for which reason it was named after him. In this town is the large church which was entirely built of hard stone, and is named after the Lady, the Pure Virgin Mary; it stands within the fortress of this city. The church was erected in ancient times ; but as time passed by, and the kings stood in need of the stone of which it was composed, the greater part of it was carried away ; and the church is now dismantled, although its architectural features are still visible. It stands near the prison of Joseph the Truthful, son of Jacob, son of Isaac, son of Abraham, the Friend [of God] — upon them be peace ! In the district of Bana there is a church named after the great Saint George. Munyat al-Ka'id. Here there is a church of the Lady, the Pure Virgin Mary, which was restored by the Shaikh Mufaddal ibn as-Salih, a friend of the vizier Abu '1-Faraj ibn Killis, in the caliphate of Al- Hakim. He also restored a church on the banks of the blessed Nile, which stood for a time, but then the river inundated it, and washed it away, so that no trace of it remained. Wana Busir. Here there is a church named after the great martyr Saint Mercurius ; and a church of the Lady, the Pure Virgin Mary ; and a church of the holy martyr Saint George ; and a church of the great angel Michael ; and a church of the martyr Saint John^, whose pure body lies within it. wilfully mutilated, which diminished its talismanic power. See Al-Makrizi, Khitat, i. p. I rr . It is well known that the Sphinx is hewn out of the living rock, which is limestone, not granite. (A. J. B.) ^ The following passage is repeated from fol. 1 7 b f. Busir Bana and Bana are again wrongly placed in Southern or Upper Egypt. ^ J^ys^- seems to be a clerical error for ^jLs:^.] see above, fol. 18 a. d d [II. 7.] 202 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGFPT. Fol. 69 b Idrijah, one of the villages of Bush. Here there is a church named after Saint George. Tansa. Here there is a church named after Nahadah ; and a church named after the martyr Mercurius ; and a church named after Gabriel the angel ; and a church named after the Lady, the Pure Virgin. The Fayyihn. Madinat al-Fayyum^ and its province. Al-Fayyum was the name of one of the sons of Kift, son of Mizraim, who built this city for a daughter of his, who had offended, so that he banished her thither. Al-Fayyum existed before the time of Joseph, son of Jacob, son of Abraham, the Friend [of God] — upon them be peace ! — but it fell into ruin ; and Joseph the Truthful restored it, and constructed the Nilometers, and built Al-Fayyum, and Hajar al-Lahun, which was built with wisdom, and founded with strength, and help that came from God, and was executed by the inspiration of God — to whom be praise ! Joseph also dug the canal of Al-Manhi, and cultivated the land of Egypt. The number of village-districts in [the Fayyum] amounted to 360, which is the number of the days of the year, each village corresponding to a day ; and the revenue from each district amounted to a thousand dinars. The lands of this province are irrigated by [a rise of the river amounting to] twelve cubits, but they are not overwhelmed by a rise of eighteen cubits, which is a great wonder. There is here common land which is not the property of any one, but all men have a right to demand a share of it accord- ing to their circumstances ; and the common land consists of seventy different sorts. The revenue in the days of Kafur al-Ustadh, emir of Egypt, known as Kafur al-Ikhshidi, under the dynasty of the Abba- Fol. 70 a sides, when the province was administered by Ibn Tarkhan, in the year of the Arabs 355 (a. d. 966), amounted to 620,000 dinars ; and this is as much as the revenue of Ar-Ramlah, Tiberias, and Damascus. In this province there were thirty-five monasteries. The bishop, ' * This passage is repeated from fol. 18 a f. THE FAFFUM. 203 under the patriarchate of Anba Theodore, the forty-fiftli in the succes- sion, was named Abraham ; and the land-tax paid into the pubHc treasury upon the cultivated lands belonging to these monasteries amounted to 500 dinars. According to the Book of ihe Conqiiest of Egypt by ^ Aim' ihn al- 'Asi, it is said that the Fayyum was also called the Waste Land, and was an outlet for the superfluous waters of Upper Egypt ; so Joseph the Truthful carried them off by digging the canal, to receive the water of the Nile, w^hich then began to flow into it. The age of Joseph was thirty years in the reign of Ar-Rayyan, son of Al-Walid, son of Dauma', after his interpretation of the dream which the king saw. When Joseph interpreted this dream, the king gave him a royal robe, and the signet-ring of the kingdom from his hand^ and entrusted him with the administration of the kingdom, and was distinguished from him only by ascending the throne. When Joseph dug the canal and admitted the water into it, it flowed from Ras al-Manhi .until it reached Al-Lahun, through a break in which it flowed into the Fayyum, which it irrigated. The canal contained a great mass of water, but was the work of no more than ninety days. When the king and hisFol. 70 b viziers saw it, they said : ' This is the work of a thousand days ^ ; ' and so it was called Al -Fayyum. And Joseph made the streams of two sorts, streams that ran down for the raised grounds, and streams that ran up for the depressed places, at certain times and hours of the night and day ; and he framed meters, so that no man could take more water than his due. The first city built by Joseph in the Fayyum was Shanah-, where the daughter of Pharaoh lived. Afterwards he measured the land and the water, and from him the science of geometry was first learnt. Joseph was the first who measured the Nile in Egypt by the cubit, and made a Nilometer at Memphis. Afterwards the old woman ^ A/f Fum, according to the present Egyptian pronunciation. So also Yakut, Geogr. Wori. iii. p. ^rr, ^vhere he also gives a second form Shananah. d (1 2 204 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. Daluk^ founded a Nilometer at Ansina^, and a Nilometer at Ikhmim ^ ; and *Abd al-'Aziz ibn Marvvan set up a Nilometer at Hulwan*. In later times the province of the Fayyum was settled as a fief upon the Ghuzz and Kurds, in the reign of Yusuf ibn Ayyub, the Kurd ; and so it remained until the end of the year 573 (a. D. 1178), when its revenues were 133,274 dinars. Then it was settled upon Buri, the brother [of Yusuf ibn Ayyub], and his followers, in the year 576 (a.d. 1180), when its revenues were 100,046 dinars. Then it was settled upon Taki ad-Din 'Umar ibn Sh^hanshah, and the son of his sister, in the year already mentioned, when its revenues were of the amount given above. In Madinat al- Fayyum^ at present there is the church of the glorious Fol. 71a angel Michael, which is exceedingly large, and contains certain pillars, large and high, so perfect that few more perfect have ever been seen. This church stands near that gate of the city which is called the gate of Surus. There is also a church of the Lady, the Pure Virgin Mary, outside the city ; and there is a church of the martyr Mercurius, restored by the Shaikh Abu Zakari. ^ Generally called iS^b . She was said to have been queen of Egypt in her own right in remote antiquity. The ancient Antinoe or Antinoupolis, founded by the emperor Hadrian in memory of Antinous. In Coptic it is called ^LrtTUtCOOV . Under the later Roman Empire, it was the capital of the Thebaid, or Upper Egypt. Upon the site of this city now stands the village of Shaikh 'Abadah, included in the district of Mallawi, in the province of Asyut, and having in 1885 a population of 1,179. See Yakut, Geogr. Wort. i. p. pai; Al-Makrizi, Khitat, i. p. r.i*; Amelineau, Geogr. pp. 48-51. ^ The Greek Chemmis or Panopolis, and the Coptic ojJULIIt. It is now in the district of Suhaj, and had in 1885 a population of 18,792. It was formerly famous for its ancient temple, which was reckoned among the wonders of Egypt, but of which few remains now exist. See Yakut, Geogr. Wort. i. p. no; Al-Idnsi (ed. Rome) [p. 48]; Al-Makrizi, Khitat, i. pp. ri and rrl ; As-Suyuti, Husn al-MuMdarah, i. p. ta ; Amelineau, Geogr. pp. 18-22. * See above, fol. 52 a ff. ^ This passage is quoted by Quatremere, Mem. i. p. 411. MONASTERY OF AN-NAKLON. 205 There is also a church of the Melkites in the quarter of the Armenians. Monastery of An-Naklun. The monastery called the monastery of An-Naklun^ lies to the east of the district called Nawasa^. This monastery ^ contains a church named after the angel Michael, in which there is a pillar of marble, which sweats as if water were flowing from it ; and also possesses a large keep, which overlooks a mountain on which there is a boulder. It is said that the foundations of this church were laid on the 13th of Hatur, and that it was consecrated by the Lord Christ and his Apostles on the i8th of Abib. Adjacent to the monastery there is a church named after the angel Gabriel, enclosed within a wall which was erected before the church on the 13th of Amshir and was finished in this short time ; and the building of the church was begun on the 26th of the same month, and finished on the 13th of Ba'unah, on the 20th of which month it was consecrated. It is said that the moun- tain called An-Naklun is that which contained the place where Jacob, son of Isaac, son of Abraham, enjoyed the shade, and worshipped ; and sacrifices were offered to God there in the days of Joseph, the son Fol. 71 b ^ The Coptic neKXaoIte- This monastery was also called in Coptic JULOrt^-CTHpIon iUHroje, and sometimes in Arabic ^.^^ both of which names signify ' IMonastery of the Log ' or ' Beam/ It was situated to the south-west of JNIadinat al-Fayyum, near the modern Gharak, and has now been swallowed up by the sands, like the other villages of that district. Al-]Makrizi gives an account of the monastery of An-Naklun. See also Amelineau, Ge'ogr. pp.133 and 273. (A. J. B.) ^ Yakut mentions a place of this name, which was, however, in the province of Samannud, and still exists ; see his Geogr. Wort. iv. p. Arr, and Rec. de I'Egypte, ii. p. 264. ^ It is related that ' Aour ' or Aura (see a few lines below), bishop of the Fayyum, was the founder of the monastery of An-Naklun early in the fourth century ; and his history translated from the Arabic, is to be found in M. Amelineau's Contes et Ro?n. de I'Egypte Chre't. p. 109 ff. * This church is mentioned in the last-named work, p. 122. 2o6 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. of Jacob, when Joseph superintended the building of the Fayyum and the Hajar al-Lahun. The church in the mountains of An-Naldun was consecrated, in the episcopate of Anba Isaac, by Aura, son of the queen's daughter and of Abrashit^ the magician, whom she hid away from him (?) and from her parents. Monastery of Al-Kalamiui ^. § The monastery called that of Al-Kalamun. This monastery is much visited. It possesses land in several districts of Upper Egypt ; and at Shubra it owns sixteen feddans. It possesses^ salt-marshes, from which it annually receives nearly three thousand ardebs [of salt]. Of the dates of the palm-trees it receives a quantity, which are sold every year. There is here a spacious church named after the Lady, the Pure Virgin Mary, which was consecrated on the 14th of Hatur. Anba Samuel^, the superior and administrator of this monastery, was ^ See Amelineau, op. cit. - The hill of Al-Kalamun, upon which this monastery stood, rises to the south-west of the Fayyum near An-Naklun and near Al-Gharak and the Wadi Rayan ; but it does not appear that the name is still given to the place, which is now a mere desert. The monastery is described by Al-Makrizi ; but is barely mentioned by Yakut, who merely says that it was in the Fayyum and was widely celebrated. The Coptic name is K^,X^,JUl(JOIt. See Yakut, Geogr. Wort. ii. p. 1AV ; Amelineau, Geogr. p. 388 f (A. J. B.) ^ This passage and part of the following account of the monastery are quoted by Quatremere, i. pp. 474-475. * The death of this saint is commemorated on Kihak 8 = Dec. 4. See Synaxarium at that day. He was the founder of the monastery of Al-Kalamiin, and Hatri and Hor are said to have been monks there under him, which would fix his date in the first half of the fourth century. Fourteen monks from An-Naklun are said to have come over to Samuel. He employed his monks in preparing salt from the saline pool (jUL^Lrteg^JULOT), mentioned by our author -below. See Zoega, Cat. pp. 545-546, where quotations from a Coptic encomium on this saint are given. MOXASTERF OF AL-KALAMUN, 207 a learned man ; and God revealed to him what would happen in the future^ and spoke with him ; and Samuel wrote down what God said to him, and his prophecies were verified in his own time. This monastery is enclosed within a surrounding wall, in which there is a large garden containing palms and olives and vegetables. In the monastery there are four towers ; and it contains twelve churches. In the upper part there is a sentinel's cell in which a monk is stationed, to warn the other monks of the approach of visitors to the monastery, FoI. 72 a while the latter are yet at a distance^ whether they be soldiers or emirs or walls ; and the sentinel strikes the wooden gong in different manners, according to the rank of the visitors ; so that the monks may know, when they hear it, who it is that is approaching the monastery, and may prepare what is fitting for him before he arrives. The church of this monastery contains twelve chapels in its upper and lower stories. There is in it a spring of salt water, flowing day and night from it into a wide pool. In the latter there are to be found at intervals [the fish called] hiilti'^, of which men eat, and which are good for food, and black in colour. In winter the water sweetens a little in this pool ; and the monks occasionally drink from it. Outside the monastery there is a cave, in which lives a monk who is named Muhna ; and he never quits it by night or by day. He fasts during the whole week. The monks go to him to receive his blessing. Around his cave there are many fruitful palm-trees. He used to have with him a hundred dinars of money ; but when the Ghuzz and Kurds came to this country, he made a present of the money to the monks, and retained nothing of it. The wild beasts used to come together to him, and not one of them hurt him ; but they grew so tame that he was able to feed them out of his hand. The devils also appeared to him, and stood opposite to him, face to face, but could not reach him. ^ Al-Idrisi says that this was a round fish of the same kind as the 'Afar ( ^Ac), and was also found in the Sea of Tiberias ; that it had few bones and was good to eat, being sometimes of the weight of five pounds. Translated by Jaubert, i. p. 30. 208 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. Fol. 72 b The door of this monastery is plated with iron, and is of skilful workmanship. This monk, Muhna, of whom we have been speaking, made, at the beginning of his monastic life, before he shut himself up in the cave on the mountain, a church which was hewn out of the rock, and over it he made cells for the monks. It is said that the father, Anba Samuel, the celebrated administrator of this monastery, used to worship on the mountain, at a place called Rayan^, opposite to the monastery. Up to the end of Amshir, in the year 894 of the Righteous Martyrs (A.D. 1 178), the number of monks in this monastery amounted to 130 ; and they were virtuous and devout. Monasteries and Churches at AJldh az-Zaitiln. The monastery of the glorious martyr Theodore, on the [canal of] Al-Manhi, at Aflah az-Zaitun^. This Theodore was a native of the Fayyum, and was martyred in Upper Egypt. His body was carried on a wooden chariot, over which his blood flowed ; and it did not cease to carry him until it reached this district, of which he was a native. In [this district] there is a church named after him, and containing his body ; besides many other churches. There are here a church of the Lady, the Pure Virgin Mary ; a monastery named after the apostles ; a church named after the martyr Mercurius ; a church of the angel Gabriel ; a church named after Saint John ; and the church of the Saviour^. ^ 1. e. the Wadi Rayan, still so called, to the south of the Fayyum, and, according to some, on the site of the ancient Lake Moeris. ^ More commonly called simply Az-Zaitun, or ' The Olives ; ' in Coptic c{><^niXCOIT". The Acts of the martyr John of Phanijoit have been published by M. Am^lineau ; see Un Document copte du xii Steele, 1887. The place is on the west bank, close to Dalas and Bush Kura, and a little to the north of Bani Suwaif, to the province of which it belongs; and in 1885 it had 1,300 inhabitants, besides sixty-two Bedouins. See Yakut, Geogr. W'o'rt. ii. p. ^io; Ibn Dukmak, v. p. i*; Amdlineau, Geogr. pp. 327-330. This passage of our author is quoted in sub- stance by Quatremere, M/m. pp. 412-413. ^ As-Sutir is of course the Greek a-coTrjp. CHURCHES OF FANU AND NAKALIFAH, 209 CJiM'ches of Fdjiu and Nakalifah. The district of Fanu and Nakalifah^. In these two districts there are several churches. There are to be found here the church of the Pol. 73 a glorious Saint George ; a church of the Lady, the Pure Virgin Mary, restored by the Shaikh Al-Muhadhdhab Abu Ishak Ibrahim ibn Abu Sahl al-Musharif, who was known as Az-Zakruk ; the church of the glorious angel Michael ; the monastery of the Cross in the district of Fanu, in which the liturgy is celebrated once in the year, on the feast of the Cross ; and a church of the glorious Saint George. Sail ah. In the district of Sailah^ there is a monastery named after the Lady, the Pure Virgin, the Virgin Mary ; adjacent to which there is a keep, which has been restored, but not finished, on the public road. The monastery known as the monastery of the Brothers. In this there is a church named after the glorious martyr Saint Mennas. In this monastery lived the priest John of Samannud^, who was devout, learned, and humble, and consoled by his learning all those that came to him and heard his discourse ; he afterwards became patriarch of Alexandria. ^ This passage is quoted in substance by Quatremere, Mem. i. p. 413. Nakalifah is still existing, and is included in the district of Sanuras in the province of the Fayyum, with a population in 1885 of 2,664. See ^^pe), in the province of Al-Gharbiyah, was put to death in the persecution of Diocletian, by order of Arianus, governor of the Thebaid, after horrible tortures. His martyrdom is commemorated on Bashans 6 = May I . See Synaxarium at that day ; Budge, Martyrdom of Isaac of Ti'phre, with Coptic text and translation. ^ Abamun, Abamun, or more correctly Aba Amun or Apa Ammon, is the name of two martyrs, of the time of Diocletian, whose deaths are commemorated respectively on Abib 13 and 27= July 7 and 21. See Synaxarium at those days; Am^lineau, des MM. p. 103. Quatremere borrows from this passage, Alem. i. p. 255. Al-Makrizi says that there were once 360 churches at Al-Bahnasi, of which the church of Mary alone remained in his time. We shall return to Al- Bahnasa on fol. 74 b. ^ Since Abu Yuhannus is not further identified, and there are several saints named John in the Coptic calendar, it is impossible to say which of them is CHURCHES OF AL-BAHNASA AND NEIGHBOURHOOD. 211 church of the glorious martyr Saint George ; and the church of the glorious martyr Mercurius. § At Bahumalis^ there are sev^eral churches, namely, the church of the angel Gabriel, and a second church of the angel Gabriel ; a church of the angel Raphael; a church of the glorious Saint Sinuthius-; and a church named after Saint Armenius ^. § The district of Kufadah'^. [Here there is] a church named after the Lady, the Pure Virgin Mary ; a church of the glorious angel Michael ; a church of the angel Raphael ; a church of the glorious martyr Mercurius ; and the church of the glorious angel Gabriel. § At Abtujah^ is the church of Raphael the angel ; the church of the angel Michael ; the church of the Lady, the Holy and Pure Virgin Mary ; and the church of Dioscorus. intended here and else^vhere. The most popular martyr of this name, however, would seem to be the John who was martyred together with his cousin Simeon, with whom he is commemorated on Abib ii=July 5. See their Acts, edited and translated by ls\. Hyvernat, Actes des MM. de VEgypte, p. 174 ff. See also Synaxariu?n at that day ; and Amelineau, Actes des MM. p. 141 ff. ^ I cannot guarantee the form of this name, nor identify the locality. ^ This may be the famous monk Sinuthius, founder of the White Monastery ; or it may be St. Shanudah or Sinuthius the martyr, of Al-Bahnasa, commemorated on Barmahat 14 = April 9 ; see Synaxarium at that day. ^ Abu Harminah is said by Al-^Iakrizi to have been one of the earliest monks, and very famous among the Christians. Cf Paris Synaxarium at Ba'unah 8 = June 2. There was a St. Harmanus, a champion of the monophy- site doctrine, who is mentioned in the Patriarchal Biographies, Aiic. Fo?ids Arabe 139, p. 167, 1. I ff. The Synaxarium translated by Mr. IMalan commemorates a Harman, bishop of Ka'u, in Upper Egypt, on Kihak 2=1 Nov, 28. * A little to the east of Al-Bahnasa, and nearer the bank of the river. ^ The Coptic TCJOXI, a Httle to the south-west of Al-Bahnasa, but on the same side of the river. The village is now included within the district of Bani Mazar, in the province of Munyah or INIinyah, and had in 1885 a population of 1,000. See Amelineau, Ge'ogr. p. 517 f. Quatremere refers to this passage, Mem. i. p. 258. e e 2 212 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT, Fol. 74 a § Jalfah^ Here there is a church of the Lady, the Pure Virgin Mary ; a church named after Saint Dioscorus ; a church named after the saint and glorious martyr Victor, son of Romanus ; and a church named after Bu Tah^hah^. § At Bardaniihah^ there are several churches, namely, the church of Aba Kustul ; a church of the angel Michael ; a church of the angel Raphael ; a church of the angel Gabriel ; the church of Mercurius, the valiant martyr ; the church of the saint and glorious martyr Saint George ; a church named after the valiant and militant martyr Theodore ; and the church of the saint Aimin. § Saft Abu Jirja*. Here are several churches, namely, a church named after the Lady, the Pure Virgin Mary ; the church of Thomas ; the two churches of the angel Michael and of the angel Gabriel. § Al-Kufur^. Here there is a church named after the martyr Theodore. ^ The Coptic nxeXfi.A.g^. It is now included in the district of Bani Mazar, in the province of Minyah, with a population in 1885 of 647. It is probably the Jalaf, which Yakut says was near Al-Kais, in the district of Al- Bahnasa. See Yakut, Geogr, Wort. ii. p. i.t^; Amdlineau, Geogr. p. 150 f. Quatremere refers to this passage of our author, Mem. i. p. 257. ^ I must admit with Quatrembre that I cannot identify this saint, nor even read his name with certainty. ^ Now included in the district of Kalusana, in the province of Minyah, with a population in 1885 of 2,670. It lies on the west bank, a few miles to the south of Al-Bahnasa, and near Al-Kais and Al-Kafur. See Ibn Dukmak, v. p. 1 ; Rec. de VEgypte, ii. p. 64. * A little to the south-west of Al-Bahnasa, south of Abtujah and north of Abu Jirja. The village is now included in the district of Bani Mazar, in the province of Minyah, with a population in 1885 of 2,316. There were twelve places named Saft in Egypt. See Yakut, Geogr. Wort. iii. p. ^v, and Mushtarik, p. rfA ; Ibn Dukmak, v. p. a ; Rec. de V Egypte^ ii. p. 279. ° On the west bank, to the south-east of Al-Bahnasa and a little to the north of Kalusana. It is called in Coptic ttIK^4)^p, and is now comprised in the district' of Kalusana, with a population in 1885 of 798. See Am^lineau, Geogr. p. 276 f. MALL A Wl 213 TaM. § Taha al-Madinah\ belonging to the province of Al-Ushmunain. Here there are a church of the Lady, the Pure Virgin Mary^ ; a second church of the Lady ; a church of the angel Gabriel ; two churches of the two glorious and militant martyrs, Saint George and Mercurius ; a church named after Saint Mark the Evangelist; a church named after the glorious martyr Stephen, the chief of the deacons. Soft al-Muhallabt § At Saft al-Muhallabi^ there is a church named after the glorious Pol. 74 b angel Michael ; and two churches named after the two glorious angels Gabriel and Raphael. Mallawi. § At Mallawi* [there is a church] named after the valiant martyr Abatir^ ; a church of the martyr Mercurius ; a church of the glorious ^ On the west bank, a little to the north of IMunyah or Minyah Bani Khasib, in the province of which it is now included, being in the district of Kalusana. It is the Coptic TOTg^O. In 1885 it had 1,113 inhabitants. See Al-Idrisi, trans. Jaubert, i. p. 124; Yakut, Geogr. Wb'rL iii. p. on; Am^lineau, Geogr. p. 471 f. Taha is again mentioned by our author on fol. 77 a. ^ Al-Makrizi mentions two churches alone at Taha, viz. those of Mary and the Apostles. ^ Our copyist writes but ^1 is the form given by Yakut in his Mushtarik, p. v^\, where he says that the village was in the province of Al- Ushmunain. * This is thought to be the place called in Coptic JUL^.nXj^ ^ bUi ^1 ^yj^, "3 ^^.jU ^Lli. J\ :>V^ Jl ^ * Then he went to the country on the sea-coast, to those who knew not God ; and he preached among them and turned them to the knowledge of God, and to faith in the Lord Christ. But Agharbus, the king, heard of him and was wroth with him, and commanded that they should put him in a sack of hair-cloth and fill it with sand and cast him into the sea.' ^ See note above on fol. 74 b. ^ I. e. St. Christopher. The form of the name in the Synaxarium is Akhris- tafarus (^^Islk*^!) ; and it is added j( ^\\\ * Whose face was the face of a dog.* In Zoega, Cat. p. 235, and in Conflicts of Holy Apostles, translated by Mr. Malan from the Ethiopic, p. 76 ff., the name is said to be Christianos. The story is that he was a ' Cynocephalus,' in Coptic OT^on^OOp, who was con- verted by Saints Andrew and Bartholomew, and accompanied them in their missions in Nubia. He had lived near the city of Barthos, which has been supposed to mean Parthia. Barthos, however, was not far from Elwah, which Mr. Malan says is unknown, but which might be 'Alwah in Nubia. St. Christopher is commemorated by the Copts on Barmudah 2 = May 28. Cf Acta SS. at July 25, where a different history of St. Christopher is given. The epithet ' dog-faced ' is, however, preserved in a troparion sung by the Greek .'^hurch, on the festival of St. Christopher (May 9); although the Meno- logion of Basil (a. d. 984) repudiates the literal acceptance of this epithet, and PLACES IN EGYPT VISITED BY OUR LORD. 217 and was one of those who were with the fathers and pure disciples. This last church is on the canal, outside the city. [There are also churches of] Mark ; of the martyr Mercurius, who has two churches here ; of Saint George, who has two churches ; and of Saint John or Abu Hanna, the martyr. § Ashrubah^. Here there are two churches of the Cross, and one of the Lady, the Pure Virgin Mary, within the city ; and there is also one dedicated to her without the city. There is also a church of Michael, the glorious angel; a church of the glorious martyr Fol. 75 b Mercurius on the borders of the lake ; and a church of the glorious Saint George ; and two churches of the glorious Saint Theodore ; and [churches named after] Saint Paul^ and Thomas. § At Saft Rashin^ there is a church named after the glorious martyr Theodore the Eastern, which was wrecked by the Ghuzz and Kurds, who turned it into a mosque. There is here also a church of the angel Gabriel, which fell into decay and was restored by a certain official. Places in Egypt visited by our Lord. § The places which our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom be glory ! visited with the Lady, the Pure Virgin, and with the righteous old man, Joseph the carpenter, in Upper Egypt. The church of Jabal al-Kaff^, named after the Lady, the Pure explains it as being metaphorical, and significant of the character of the saint before his conversion. (A. J. B.) ^ This place is named by Ibn Dukmak, v. p. r ; and it is now included within the district of Bam Mazar, in the province of IMinyah, but is a place of no importance. In the fourteenth century it still belonged to the province of Al-Bahnasa, and is named in the revenue-list of a.d. 1375. See De Sacy, Rel. de Vtgypte par Ahd-Allatif, p. 685 ; Rec. de VEgypte, ii. p. 22. 2 This would be St. Paul the first hermit ; or St. Paul of Tamwaih, a monk famous for his austerities, and commemorated on Babah 7 = Oct. 4. ^ A considerable distance to the north of Al-Bahnasa, and to the south of Bam Suwaif, in the province of which it is now included. Yakut includes it in the province of Al-Bahnasa ; see Mushtarik, p. n^i . ^ I. e. ' Mount of the Palm of the Hand.' Our author, at the beginning of f f [IT. 7.] 2i8 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. Virgin Mary. This church is hewn out of the mountain-side, and in the rock is the mark of the palm of the hand of the Lord Christ, to whom be glory ! which was made when he touched the mountain, when it bowed in adoration before him, after he had gone down thither from Syria. He grasped the mountain, when it worshipped before him, and restored it to its place with his hand ; so that the mark of his palm remains impressed upon that mountain to the present day. In the impression of the hand there is a fine perforation, large enough to admit a collyrium-needle, into which the needle is inserted, and, when it is pulled out, brings up a black collyrium which makes an indelible mark. Above this church there is a church built of stone, and named after Fol. 76 a the Lady, the Pure Virgin Mary. Festival is kept here on the 21st of Tubah^ which is the day of her death, when a large congregation assembles. This mountain [of Jabal al-Kafif] is opposite to the district called Al-Bihu^, [but is] on the eastern side of the river. It is also said to be near the city of Al-Ushmunain^ ; and it is also called the Jabal at-Tair*. On this mountain there are two stone crosses, of a red colour ; one of them is a large stone and the other a small stone. fol. 76 a, identifies this mountain with the Jabal at-Tair, which rises opposite to Samalliit and Bihii, and to the north of Munyah Bani Khasib. ^ The Death of the Blessed Virgin is commemorated by the Copts on Tubah 2i=Jan. 16, and her Assumption on Misri 16= Aug. 9. ^ This village still exists on the west bank, opposite to the Jabal at-Tair, and is included in the distnct of Kalusana, in the province of Minyah. In 1885 it had a population of 1,252. See Ibn Dukmak, v. p. ; Rec. de I'Egypte, ii. p. 73. ^ Al-Ushmunain is in reality about thirty miles to the south of the Jabal at-Tair. * See Norden's Plate LXXI, where the ' Tshibel ell Deiir/ as he spells it, is to be seen at the northernmost point of the Nile, on the eastern bank. On Plate LXXV Norden gives a view of the monastery on the Jabal at-Tair, which is called Dair al-Adhrd, i.e. 'Monastery of the Virgin,' or, more popularly, Dair al-Bakarah, or ' Monastery of the Pulley.' The latter name is common to several monasteries, which use a pulley to hoist up both provisions and visitors; and one so named is shown on Jabal Abu Faida in Norden's Plate LXXX, a few miles to the north of Manfalut. The Dair al-Adhrd on Jabal PLACES IN EGYPT VISITED BV OUR LORD. 219 § In the city of Al-Ushmunain there is a church of the Lady, the Pure Virgin Mary, which is very large, and which Al-Hakim changed into a mosque. On this mountain [of Jabal al-Kaff] there is another church hewn in the rock, and supported by eight columns^ Opposite to this church there is a hole of a cubit's breadth in which is white sand, some of which is extracted by all those who put their hands in and take some of it, and yet it never diminishes in quantity. The hand of a sinner cannot enter into it, even as far as the tip of the finger. It is said that when the Franks invaded Upper Egypt with their king-, to drive Shirkuh the Kurd and his men away from the land of Egypt, they cut out the piece of rock upon which was the mark of the palm of the hand, and took it back with them to Syria, in the year 563 of the Arabs (a.d. i 168). § The monastery of Bisus^, which is near Ishnin*. It is said by some at-Tair seems to be the one described by Curzon in his MoJiasieries of the Levant, ch. ix (p. III). (A. J. B.) ^ Curzon gives a plan of this church, p. 114, in which he specially remarks on the eight columns. (A. J. B.) ^ Amaury or Almeric, king of Jerusalem from a. d. 1162 to 1 173, was induced by bribes to lead his troops to Egypt in the first year of his reign, to assist Shawar against Shirkuh; and again in 11 63, when the Latin sovereign entered Cairo, and Shirkuh retreated. Amaury continued to assist the Fatimide caliph and his vizier, until in 11 68 he took a powerful army to Al-Farama, which he took and sacked. This unscrupulous piece of treachery against his Egyptian allies forced Shawar to implore Nur ad-Din, his former enemy, to assist him against the Franks, and Amaury was driven to retreat. ^ Al-Makrizi calls this the monastery of Isus ^.o), explaining this word as equivalent to the Arabic Yasti {^^) or 'Jesus; ' and it is, of course, simply a transcription of the Graeco-Coptic IHCCJfC. Al-]\Ialmzi relates the same story which is given here of the well by which men foretell the rise of the Nile. Our author seems to take Rhus as the name of a place ; but this error must have arisen from his seeing the monastery mentioned as,^^^^b ^♦^^j or , i. e. ' A monastery which is named after Jesus.' (A. J. B.) On the west bank, a little to the aorth of Al-Bahnasa, but a long way from f 1- 2 220 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. that this monastery belongs to the province of Al-Ushmunain. Christ visited this place and stayed here. Pol. 76 b In the monastery there is a churchy in the middle of which there is a well of running water. Over this well prayers are said during the rise of the Nile every year ; and then the water in the well rises. In the well there are marks contrived, which show the number of cubits reached by the rise of the Nile ; and when the water of the well rises and stands still at a certain mark, it is known thereby what height the rise of the Nile will reach. Island of Al-Ushmunain^. Al-Ushmun was the name of one of the sons of Kift, the son of Mizraim. The town was built by Pharaoh^ and after it had fallen into ruin it was re-built by Nebuchadnezzar^, king of Babylon. It is said that there was on the highest point of this town a cock, and beneath it a row of dromedaries. When a stranger approached the town the cock crowed, and the dromedaries came out to destroy that stranger. But when our Lord Christ, to whom be glory! came to this town, the cock crowed and the drome- daries went out, according to their custom ; and when they saw the Lord Christ and the Lady, and Joseph the carpenter, they worshipped Al-Ushmianain. There must have been a confusion on the part of some writers between Ishmn and Al-Ushmiinain. Ishmn was formerly in the province of Al-Bahnasa, but is now, under the name of Ashnin an-Nasara, or ' Ashnin of the Christians,' included in the district of Bani Mazar, in the province of Minyah. In 1885 it had a population of 1,260. See Yakut, Geogr. Wort. i. p. rAo ; Rec. de VEgypie, ii. p. 22. ^ Also called Ashmunain, Eshmunain, or Oshmunain. Al-Ushmunain is the Coptic ajJULOTrt. It still exists in the district of Raudah, in the province of Usyut, and had 2,312 inhabitants in 1885. See Am^lineau, Geogr. p. i67ff. ; Al-Idrisi [p. 47] (ed. Rome); Yakut, Geogr. Wort. i. p. rAr. The term 'island' is given to the district in which Al-Ushmunain stands, because it is surrounded by water : by the Nile on the east, the Bahr Yusuf or Al-Manhi on the west and south, and a connecting canal on the north. 2 On fol. 23 b and 80 a we are told that it was Belshazzar who restored Al-Ushmunain, after it had been pillaged by Nebuchadnezzar, PLACES IN EGYPT VISITED BY OUR LORD. 221 them ; and on the spot they were changed into stone ; and their number was five. On this island there are three hundred villages. Our Lord Christ entered [the town] by the eastern gate. Here the dromedaries worshipped him. In the history of Anba Kha'il, the forty-sixth patriarch ^, it is said that this is the town which was built by Alexander the Macedonian, who called it Cleopatra 2, a name which means ' the Weeping Woman ;' Fol. 77 a and it was to this place that Marvvan, the last of the Omeyyad caliphs, came, and here he was killed on the rock ; as the old monk^ had prophesied, according to the narrative. * * * one of the districts [of Al-Ushmunain]. Here is the body of Saint Macarius, the martyr. There is here an ancient temple*, near the southern gate. There are several churches contained in it ; namely, a church called after the Lady, the Pure Virgin Mary, which contains several altars, and marble pillars ; one of which has been celebrated in all times, for upon it is the mark of the hand of the Lord. Outside the church there is a Syrian tree bearing [the fruit called] sebestan^, which is of a red colour. The tree stands near the ancient temple; and when the Lord with the Lady passed by it, it bowed its head in adoration to him. The governor of the town [in later times] wished to cut it down; but the patriarch Agatho^ was standing under the ^ See ]\IS. Anc. Fonds Arabe 139, p. 179. * See Amelineau, Geogr. pp. 170, 226-227. ^ This was a monk who addressed Marwan on his march through Syria, and foretold to him his defeat and death ; for which the caliph had his pillar over- thrown, for he was a Stylite, and had him burnt alive. See Afic, Fofids Arabe 139, p. 167, 1. 13 flf. * There are still ancient tombs in the neighbourhood of Al-Ushmunain, but no temple at the present day. ^ The Mukhkhait is a kind of Cordia, and is sometimes called the Assyrian plum. It is of a dark purple colour, and was formerly used in medicine in Europe, as it still is in the east. ^ The thirty-ninth patriarch of Alexandria. He occupied the see from A.D. 658 to 677 (?). See Renaudot, HisL Pair. pp. 172-174. 222 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. tree, and when the woodcutter struck it with his axe, the axe flew back into his face. Thereupon the governor was afraid, and never again gave orders that the tree should be cut down ; but he brought to the patriarch gold out of his treasury, and begged him to accept it, and to spend it on any sort of good work that he might wish. § Funkus^. There was here a church named after one of the martyrs, I know not whom. § Taha ^. In this town there were in former times 1 5,000 Christians, but not a single Hanif or Jew ; and there were 360 churches. In the Fol. 77 b caliphate of Marwan al-Ja*di, the last of the Omeyyad caliphs, he sent Miwadd to this town, but they drove him out and forbad him to live among them ; so he returned to Marwan, and told him of what they had done. Thereupon Marwan sent some of his soldiers, who killed a large number of the people, and scattered them, and destroyed all the churches ; so that only one church was left, namely, that named after Saint Mennas, the martyr, for the sparing of which alone it was decreed that 3,000 dinars should be paid. 2,000 dinars, therefore, were collected from the rich men of the city, but i.ooo were wanting, and so one-third of the church was turned into a mosque, which stood before the kaisdriyah. § Darwat as-Sarabam^. Here there is a church of the Lady, ' The consonants and vowels of this name are alike uncertain. ^ This place has already been mentioned on fol. 74 a. I do not know whether our author means to imply that all these towns and villages were visited by our Lord. ^ Yakut calls it Darwat ((^jj^) Sarabam, and Al-Makrizi Darut Saraban. The latter writer says that it is also called Darwat ash- Sharif. The place lies to the south of Al-Ushmunain and Mallawi, and a littie to the north of Ras al- INIanhi, the spot at which the Bahr Yusuf or Al-Manhi issues from the Nile. In Coptic it is TGpCOT" Col:aD. Amelineau says, ' Les moines du monastere de Moharraq m'ont raconte que la Sainte Vierge avait conduit Fenfant Jesus a I'emplacement oil s'dleve maintenant leur monastere ; et il existe dans la litterature copte un discours attribud a Theophile, le patriarche d'Alexandrie, sur la visite de la sainte famille a Moharraq. Ce discours n'existe g g [II. 7-] 226 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. twenty-third patriarch^. Hence came the form of consecration [of churches which has since been employed] : the vessels filled with water-; and the prayers recited over the water, to consecrate it; and the odoriferous plants^ and the leaves ; and the lamps upon their stands ; and the sprinkling of the walls of the church ; and [Christ] commanded Peter to cause all churches to be consecrated according to this form : the form of the first consecration, which took place at Al-Muharrakah, in the province of Al-Ushmunain. The church of the Lady, the Pure Virgin*, is the first church which was built in Egypt. Hence Christ went down to Misr, and thence he returned to Syria. This church is called Kus Kam, and is very small. [Christ and his parents] were accompanied by Moses, son of the brother of Joseph the carpenter. Our Lord Christ bid Moses place a stone beneath his head ; this he did, and immediately he died ; and he was buried in this place. Opposite the door of the church there is a well of running water. In the church there is a tank full of water, Fol. 79 a which at a later time was turned into wine. The form of consecration employed for this church became the customary rule for all future times ; and the consecration took place on the 6th of Hatur^ After [his stay here], our Lord Christ blessed the water of the aforesaid well, because he and his mother and their companions had drunk of it ; so that every one who went to it in faith, and drank of it or bathed in it, was healed of his pains ; and many were cured of their plus qu'en arabe, et se trouve dans un MS. de la Vaticane, dans un autre de la Bibliotheque Nationale, et dans la biblioth^ue de Moharraq.' {M^m. pour servir a Vhistoire de Vl^gypte Chret. p. 8o, note.) * Also called Theophilus; he sat from a. d. 385 to 412 (?). See Renaudot, Hist. Pair. pp. 103-108. ^ For an account of these ceremonies see Coptic Churches, ii. p. 338 ff. ' The plant used for sprinkling the water was a kind of beetroot, in Arabic silk ((j.La); see Vansleb, Hist, de VEglise d'Alex. p. 215. (A. J. B.) *I. e. at Al-Muharrakah, near Kusakam ; see a few lines above. ^ So in Synaxarium ; see note above. PLACES IN EGYPT VISITED BY OUR LORD. 227 diseases ; and the water became, in the mouth of those that drank of it, sweet like the water of the Jihon ; I mean the Nile of Egypt. Pilgrimages have been made by many multitudes from all districts to this church from ancient times, because it has been celebrated on account of signs and wonders and the healing of various diseases ; and the time of pilgrimage is at Easter, every year. The Lord Christ commanded that the original size of this church should not be added to ; but that it should remain as it was. The mark of the hand of the Lord is on the eastern and on the western mountain. Adjacent to this church there is a large and ancient keep, which had fallen into decay, but was renewed and restored to- its original condition by the Shaikh Abu Zakari ibn Bu Nasr, the administrator of Al-Ushmunain ; may God have mercy on him and grant rest to his soul ! this was in the caliphate of Al-Hafiz. In this district there lived in ancient times Kharbata, son of Malik, the hard-hearted giant ; but a thunderbolt was hurled at him from heaven, so that he was burnt up, and not a trace of him could be found; on this account the place was called Al-Muharrakah^ Fol. 79 b This Khartaba, son of Malik, the giant, possessed much treasure and wealth ; but he loved to do evil deeds, and did not fear God or dread his chastisements ; and so God hurled a thunderbolt at him, which burnt him up, so that not a trace of him remained. On this account the place was called Al-Muharrakah, as it has already been said. To the west of this church there is a vaulted chamber, hewn out in the mountain-side ; and here the Lady used to dwell ; and the Christian people began to come to this chamber, and obtain blessings from it. It is said that at Easter, in the year 891 of the Righteous Martyrs (a.d. 1175), the water in the well was turned into wine, according to the testimony of an assembly of priests, bishops, and laity, who wrote down an account of the event. ^ I. e. * The burnt village,' lij being understood. When the form is masculine (Al-Muharrak). is understood. g g 2 228 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. Monastery at Ansind. § The great monastery on the mountain, founded by Matthias the monk, near Ansina^. Many monks entered upon the monastic Hfe here. This monk [Matthias^] performed many wonders ; one of which was ^ Whether this should be Ansina, as our IMS. has it, or Isna (Esneh) I cannot say. See following note. 2 This IMatthias, or Matthew, is mentioned in the Life of the Patriarch Alexander (a. d. 704-737?) ; and the following story is to be found there. See Anc. Fonds Arabe 139, p. 136, 1. 10 ff., where the saint, however, is said to have hved near Isna. A Coptic hfe of this saint, who is there called ^TI^ JUL^1), bidding them live at peace together, and abstain from conflict with one another ; and that the wall of Egypt, 'Abd al-'Aziz, suspecting the object of the fetters, caused them to be intercepted (Brit. Mus. MS. Or. 26,100, p. 126, 1. 25 — p. 127, 1. 5). ■ ^ I. e. the Cataract at Wadi Khalfah. Mukurrah, or Makorrah, extended about sixty miles to the north of the Second Cataract. (A. J. B.) 262 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. The monastery of Michael and Cosmas is large and spacious, and possesses a sycamore-tree, by which the rise and fall of the Nile are ascertained every year. There is a monastery called that of Daira, near which there is an ancient temple, between two great mountains. A city called the city of Bausaka. This is a large and handsome city, full of people and of all commodities, and possessing many churches. Here dwelt the Lord of the Mountain, whose eyes were put out by George, son of Zacharias Israel. Here is the monastery of Saint Sinuthius, in which Abu Rakwah al-Walid ibn Hisham^ was taken prisoner in the month of Rabi* the First, in the year 397 of the Arabs (A. D. 1006). Near the town there is a gold-mine. Mountain of Zidan. Here is the monastery of Abu Jaras, in a town on the west, which possesses a bishop. It is a beautiful town on the mountain. At night a light as of fire is seen in this town from a distance, but if the beholder comes near to it he cannot find it ; yet it is continually seen as if there were many lamps in the town. In the same way, at Bagdad, in the district of 'Ukbara^, many lamps are seen on a certain night of the year, but they are not real. Fol. 95 a In the land of Nubia, near the cataract, there is a town called the Upper Maks. No one is allowed to pass by the inhabitants of this place, without being searched, even if he be a king ; and if any one ^ The surname of Abu Rakwah was given to this man because in earlier life he used to cany a pitcher on his shoulder in the prosecution of his trade. He managed to collect a body of armed men, with whose help he took possession of Barkah. The first troops sent against him by the caliph Al-Hakim were routed, and having made himself rich by plunder, Abu Rakwah next occupied Upper Egypt. Al-Hakim then sent against him a body of Syrian and Egyptian troops under Al-Fadl ibn 'Abd Allah ; who engaged Abu Rakwah in a hard-fought battle, which ended in the flight of the rebels. Abu Rakwah escaped, but was afterwards taken prisoner in Nubia, as our author tells us, and conveyed to Cairo, where Al-Hakim condemned him to be impaled. See Abii '1-Fida, Annaks, ii. p. 616. ^, Yakut mentions a place of this name, which, he says, was eleven parasangs from Baghdad; Geogr. Wort. iii. p. v.e. NUBIA. 263 pushes on and refuses to be searched, he is put to death. The people carry on their trade in kind ; and selling and buying among them is done by exchange ; thus they exchange woven stuffs and slaves ; and all that is bought and sold is exchanged. At this place is found emery \ with which precious stones are polished. The people dive for it ; and the touch of it is found to be different from that of other stones, and so those who search for it recognize it ; but if they are in doubt, they breathe upon it and then it is covered with drops, and they know that it is emery. Emery is found nowhere in the whole world except in Ceylon ^ and at this place. There is near this town a hill on which there is a spring of warm water like that at Tiberias. Here also is the mountain of thirst, where no one can reach the water that is there, on account of the distance and the height ; and even if a man ascends to the top of this mountain he cannot reach the water, but can only look at it, although it seems to be near to him ; and when he tries to arrive at it he cannot do so. Town of 'Alwah^. Here there are troops and a large kingdom with wide districts, in which there are four hundred churches. The town lies to the east of the large island* between the two rivers, the White * Emery is a species of corundum found in gneiss, limestone, and other crystalline rocks. Abu Salih is mistaken as to its rarity, for it occurs in many places — Sweden, Saxony, Spain, Greenland, &c. ; but the principal source of the supply lies in the island of Naxos. (A. J. B.) ^ The name of Ceylon (Sarandib) was familiar to the Arabic-speaking world *at the time of our author, through the reports of Arab travellers and the commerce of Arab traders. Precious stones and spices were exported from Ceylon to Al-'Irak, Syria, and Egypt. See Al-Idrisi (ed, Rome) [p. 42] ; Yakut, Geogr. War/. iii. p. AP ; Reinaud, J^e/. des Voy.faits par les Arabes et les Per sans dans I'Inde, Sec. The name Sarandib is said to be of Sanskrit derivation. ^ Yakut writes the name 1^, and says it is to the south of IMukurra. Al-Idrisi writes ij^. as our author does. See Yakut, Geogr. Wori. iv. p. at. ; Al-Idrisi (ed. Rome) [pp. 19, 20]. * I. e. the ' island ' enclosed on two sides by the two branches of the Nile, the White Nile and Blue Nile (Bahr al-Azrak), for so it is now called. The town of Khartum stands at the junction of these two branches. The existence of four 264 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT, Fol. 95 b Nile and the Green Nile. All its inhabitants are Jacobite Christians \ Around it there are monasteries, some at a distance from the stream and some upon its banks. In the town there is a very large and spacious church, skilfully planned and constructed, and larger than all the other churches in the country ; it is called the church of Manbali. The crops of this country depend upon the rise of the Nile, and upon the rain. When they are about to sow their seed, they hundred churches in the province of 'Ahvah seems surprising, but it is clear that at this period Nubia was almost exclusively Christian. Nearly four centuries later Francisco Alvarez, in his story of the Portuguese mission to Abyssinia, expressly records the existence of ancient Christian churches in this same part of Nubia. His words are worth quoting (Lord Stanley's Tr. p. 352): — 'I heard from a man, a Syrian, a native of Tripoli in Syria, and his name is John of Syria . . ., that he had been to this country, and that there are in it a hundred and fifty churches, which still contain crucifixes and effigies of our Lady and other effigies painted on the walls, and all old. These churches are all in old ancient castles which are throughout the country; and as many castles, there are so many churches. While we were in the country of the Prester John, there came six men from that country to the Prester himself, begging of him to send them priests and friars to teach them. He did not choose to send them : and it was said that he said to them that he had his Abima [sic : but read Abuna, i. e. Metropolitan] from the country of the IMoors, that is to say from the patriarch of Alexandria, who is under the rule of the IMoors : how then could he give priests and friars, since another gave them ? They say that in ancient times these people had everything from Rome, and that it is a very long time ago that a bishop died whom they got from Rome, and on account of the wars of the Moors [Saracens in Egypt] they could not get another, and so they lost all their Christianity. These Nubiis border upon Egypt, and they say they have much fine gold in their country. This country lies in front of Suaquem [Suakin], which is close to the Red Sea.' (A. J. B.) ^ All the Arab historians and geographers who mention Nubia state that the natives of the country were Jacobite, i. e. monophysite Christians. See e. g. Yakut, Geogr. Wort. iv. p. at.; Al-Mas'udi, Muruj adh-Dhahah, ii. p. 329; AMdrisi (ed. Rome) [p. 19]; Al-IMakrizi, Khitat, i. p. Ma ; Eutychius, Ajinaks, ii. p. 387. NUBIA. 265 trace out furrows in the field and bring the seed and lay it at the side of the field, and beside it they place a supply of the drink called mizr'^, and go away; and afterwards they find that the seed has been sown in the ground, and the mizr has been drunk. So again at the time of harvest they reap some of the corn, and leave beside the rest of it a supply of mizr ; and in the morning they find the harvest com- pleted ; and they say that this is done by beings of a different order from ours. City of Dongola-. Here is the throne of the king. It is a large city on the banks of the blessed Nile, and contains many churches and large houses and wide streets. The king's house is lofty, with several domes built of red brick, and resembles the buildings in Al-'Irak ; and this novelty was introduced by Raphael, who was king of Nubia in the year 392 of the Arabs (a.d. 1002). In that year"^ Abu Rakwah, who is also called Al-Walid ibn Hisham al-Khariji, rebelled against Al-Imam al-Hakim bi-amri 'llah, and attempted to ravage his country ; but Al-Hakim defeated the rebel ; and his troops Fol. 96 a wintered at Takhum, in Nubia. It is said that the Nubians formerly worshipped the stars, and that the first of them who was converted * to the knowledge of the truth ^ Mizr is a kind of beer made by the fermentation of grain. (A. J. B.) Yakut says : J-Jl ^ dJil Jji.* iift-ft^ ^j^^ ^..^ ' The capital of Nubia is called Dongola (Dumkulah), and this is the residence of the king. It stands upon the bank of the Nile.' {Geogr. WorL iv. p. at , .) Al-Idrisi says that Dongola was five days higher up the river than 'Alwah (ed. Rome) [p. 29]. The town is now called Old Dongola to distinguish it from New Dongola or Ordi. ^ The words jb^Jl dl* are inserted by mistake of the scribe. * It seems clear from Olympiodorus, Priscus, Procopius, and Barhebraeus that Christianity was not exclusively accepted among the Nubians before the reign of Justinian I ; but there were Christians there in the fifth century, as the statement of Cosmas Indicopleustes would prove, and probably as early as the reign of Constantine (Abu '1-Faraj, ed. Pococke, p. 135), and perhaps even from the time m m [II. 7.] 266 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. and the religion of the law of Christ was Bahriya, son of the king's sister, who was learned in the science of the sphere, and was wise and skilful. When he was converted to the religion of Christ, all the blacks of Nubia followed him ; and he built for them many churches, throughout the land of Nubia, and many monasteries, which are still flourishing, and some of them are at a distance from the river and some upon its banks. In the land of Nubia is the city of Ibr^m^ the residence of the Lord of the Mountain, all the inhabitants of which are of the province of Maris ; it is enclosed within a wall. Here there is a large and beautiful church, finely planned, and named after our Lady, the Pure Virgin Mary. Above it there is a high dome, upon which rises a large cross 2. When Shams ad-Daulah \ brother of Al-Malik an-Nasir Salah ad-Din Yusuf ibn Ayyub the Kurd, brother of Shirkuh, marched into Upper Egypt, in the caliphate of Al-Mustadi, the Abbaside, after the of the Apostles. See the discussion of this question by Letronne in his Materiaux pour Vhistoire du Chrisiianisme en ^Igypte, en Nubie et en Abyssinie, p. 42, &c. It is said that the empress Theodora sent a mission to spread the monophysite doctrine in Nubia ; see Gibbon, Decline and Fall, ch. 47. (A. J. B.) ^ The Latin and Greek Primis. It stands a few miles above Derr and Korosko, and must have been near the borders of the province of Maris. In the sixth century it seems to have formed the southern limit of the country of the Blemmyes, according to Olympiodorus and the Greek inscription of Silco at Kalabshah (see Letronne's Memoir quoted above). There are still some Roman remains there, although it was never part of a Roman province, and can only have been an advanced post. (A. J. B.) It is only in remote and desert places that the Copts venture even now to erect a cross over the cupola of a sacred building. IMacarius, bishop of Jerusalem, is said to have been the first to set a cross upon a dome, according to Al-Makrtzi. (A. J. B.) ^ Al-Malik al-Mu'azzam Shams ad-Daulah Turan Shah, surnamed Fakhr ad-Din, was an elder brother of Saladin. In a. h. 569 he was sent to subdue a rebellion in Yaman. In a. h. 571 he was appointed Saladin s lieutenant at Damascus; and in Safar a. h. 576 = June a. d. 1180 he died. See Ibn Khallikan (trans. De Slane), i. p. 284 ff. ; Ibn Shaddad (ed. Schultens), p. 39. NUBIA. 267 extinction of the Fatimide dynasty, the last caliph of which was Al-'Adid li-Dini llah, in the month of Jumdda the First, of the year 568 (a. D. 1173), under the government of the Ghuzz and Kurds, he invaded this district^ with his troops who accompanied him, and with Fol. 96b those who gathered together to him [as he proceeded], and he collected the boats from the cataract. In this town [of Ibrim] there were many provisions and ammunitions and arms, and the [troops of Shams ad- Daulah] marched thither ; and when they had defeated the Nubians, they left the town in ruins, after conquering it ; and they took the Nubians who were there prisoners. It is said that the number of Nubians was 700,000 men, women, and children ; and seven hundred pigs were found here. Shams ad-Daulah commanded that the cross on the dome of the church should be burnt, and that the call to prayer should be chanted by the muezzin from its summit. His troops plundered all that there was in this district, and pillaged the church throughout ; and they killed the pigs. And a bishop was found in the city ; so he was tortured ; but nothing could be found that he could give to Shams ad-Daulah, who made him prisoner with the rest, and he was cast with them into the fortress, which is on a high hill and is exceedingly strong. Shams ad-Daulah left in the town many horsemen, and placed with them the provisions and the weapons and ammunition and tools. In the town a quantity of cotton was found, which he carried off to Kus and sold for a large sum. Before this time, Muhammad al-Kh^zin had captured Ibrim, in the days of Kafur al-Ikhshidi, under the dynasty of the Abbasides. § In the history of the holy church and in the biographies of the fathers and patriarchs it is said concerning Anba Kha'il, the forty-sixth patriarch, that when money was extorted from him, in the caliphate of Marwan al-Ja*di, the last of the Omeyyad caliphs, by the emir of Egypt, Salah ad-Din Yusuf the Kurd-, and the patriarch went up to Upper Egypt, to beg for assistance from the people there, and when Cyriacus, king pol. 97 a ^ Cf. Al-i\Iakrizi, Khitat, ii. p. rrr . ^ This is an anachronism due to the carelessness of a copyist. The emir in question was 'Abd al-Malik ibn IMusa ibn Nasir. m m 2 268 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. of Nubia, heard of this, he was angry and filled with indignation because the patriarch was thus humiliated and pressed for money ; so he assembled his troops and marched towards Egypt ^, accompanied by 100,000 horsemen and ico,oco camels; now Nubian horses are small ^, like the largest of the Egyptian asses, but have a great power of enduring fatigue. When the Nubians entered Egypt, they plundered and slew, and took many prisoners, and laid waste many inhabited places in Upper Egypt, as they marched towards Misr. Now when the ruler of Egypt heard what was the cause of their coming, and was told as follows : 'When the patriarch of Egypt went up to ask assistance of the Christians in Upper Egypt, news of this reached the king of Nubia, and the king of Abyssinia, and [another] king subject to the jurisdiction of the patriarch of Egypt ; and [the first-named] was indignant at the news ; ' then [the governor of Egypt] released the patriarch from his obligations and ceased to extort money from him, and begged him to write to the king of Nubia and bid him return [to his own country]. So the patriarch wrote to the king as he was requested, and the king returned, and no longer acted as he had done, but departed to his own country. § According to the history of the church and the biography of ^ This account is borrowed from the biography of the patriarch Kha il in the compilation of Severus of Al-Ushmunain ; see Anc. Fonds Arabe 139, p. 162 f. Cf. Al-Makrizi, Khitat, i. p. Ma . ^ The patriarchal biographer says {loc. cit.) : ^ J-i'li-i" (jjJl jJJ ^\ ^j^^ jjilii jjjj ' It was stated to me by one who witnessed it with his own eyes that the horses on which the Nubians rode used to fight in batde both with their forefeet and with their hindfeet, just as their riders were fighting upon their backs. They were small horses, no higher than asses.' Al-Mas'udi also testifies to the smallness of the horses; see Muruj adh- Dhahab, ii. p. 382. Yakut says that the Nubian king had thoroughbred horses (jt^ J^=*-)j hut that the commons (d*U)l) had slow, heavy horses, of no particular breed see Geogr. Wort. iv. p. at. . NUBIA. 269 Anba Joseph^, the fifty-second patriarch, Ibrahim, brother of Al- Fol. 97 b Ma'mun, the Abbaside [caHph], sent a letter to Zacharias, king of Nubia, asking him to send a tribute ^ of slaves equivalent to the amount for fourteen years. But as the king could not do this, he sent his son George^ to Bagdad, to Ibrahim. So Ibrahim rejoiced when he saw him, because, although the king had been prevented from carrying out the request that had been made to him, yet he had sent his son, than whom he possessed nothing dearer ; and Ibrahim also admired the submission of the son, who exiled himself in obedience to his father ; and therefore Ibrahim conferred upon the king all the favours that he asked for, and sent his son back to Misr, where he was lodged at the house of the emir, who was governor of Egypt. Now [George, the son of the king of Nubia,] desired to visit the father and patriarch ; and therefore went to see him, with great respect, and received his blessing, and asked him to consecrate an altar for him, that he might carry it to the palace of the emir where he was lodged. So the patriarch granted the request [of the king's son] and sent him a consecrated altar and sent bishops and priests and deacons to him, who celebrated the liturgy upon the altar, and gave the communion to the king's son and to those who were ^ Or Yusab. He occupied the see from a. d. 831-850 (?); see Renaudot, Hist. Pair. pp. 277-294. ^ From the time of the caliph 'Uthman, the Nubians were allowed to live at peace with their Muslim neighbours, on condition of paying a yearly tribute (laij) of 400 or 360 able-bodied slaves to the caliph. In the time of Al-Ma'mun this custom fell into desuetude, and for that reason Ibrahim demanded the arrears of fourteen years, which would have deprived Nubia of a considerable number of men in the prime of life. See the article on the Bakt in Al-Makrizi, Khitat, i. pp. n^-p . r ; cf. Al-Mas'udi, Mtirilj adh-Dhahab (ed. Barbier), iii. p. 39 ; Yakut, Geogr. Wdri. iv. p. a r . . ^ This narrative is taken from the biography of the patriarch Yusab in the compilation of Severus of Al-Ushmunain ; see Paris MS., Anc. Fonds Arahe 139, p. 250 ff. * This would probably be a portable slab, such as is fitted on the top of Coptic altars by a sinking in the masonry. Such slabs are carried about for the communion of the sick, and are taken by pilgrims to Jerusalem. (A. j. B.) 270 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. with him. The governor of Egypt also commanded that the wooden gong should be struck on the roof of [George's] lodging, that his friends might assemble at his house for prayers and the liturgy, as in his own country. This went on until George, the king's son, returned to his father in safety and with honour. § And when the king's son returned to his father, the latter founded Pol. 98 a a large church, which he caused to be skilfully planned, in thanksgiving to God for the safe arrival of his son. This church was [afterwards] consecrated by Anb^ George, bishop of Natu^, who was sent by Anba Christodulus, the sixty-sixth patriarch. This patriarch also asked for assistance from the king, on account of the exactions from which he suffered at the hands of the government and of the Lawatis, in the year 737 ^ of the Righteous Martyrs (a. d. 1020-1). At the consecration of the church, the Holy Ghost descended upon one of the vessels of water, prepared for the ceremony, and the people saw a light shed upon that water; so the king took that water in his hand, and carried it to his house ; and he gave to the bishop money to take to the patriarch, that he might be relieved from the extortion from which he suffered. § Church of Al-Wadi. This is called after Saint Onuphrius. [The place where it stands] is called the desert of * * * ^, and is at a distance of three days' journey from the extremity of Nubia, and at a distance of ten days' journey from Uswan. Solomon, king of Nubia, spent his time in worshipping God at this church*, after he had abdicated. He said : ' Who is there among the kings that can be saved by God while he still governs among men ; and that is not swayed by his passions. ^ Close to the modern Sahrajt, which is in the district of Mit Ghamr, in the province of Ad-Dakahliyah in the Delia. It is the Coptic rtA.O(J0, and the Greek Leontopolis. M. Am^lineau has not noticed that, in the Copto-Arabic lists which he himself publishes, Leonlon corresponds to Natu, as well as to ^ , as he proposes to read the word. See his Ge'ogr. pp. 269-70, 409, and 571-5. 2 Incorrect date; see p. 121, note. ^ There is a word omitted in the MS. T> ^ This is related in the history of the patriarchs ; cf. Renaudot, Hist. Pair. p. 451 f NUBIA. 271 and does not shed blood unjustly, and does not force men to do that which is not right for them ? ' The condition of this king was reported Pol. 98 b to the governor of the southern part of Upper Egypt, Sa d ad-Daulah al-Kawasi, in the caliphate of Al-Mustansir bi'llah, and the vizierate of Amir al-Juyush Badr ; and so the last-named sent men to take the king away from that place, and to bring him to Cairo. And when he came to the gate, he was received with great honour and state, with a band of music, and a fine horse which he should mount ; and [the vizier] ordered the chief men of the state to attend upon him ; and afterwards he lodged him in a fine house, abundantly decorated with marble and wood-work and brocades of many colours interwoven with gold. In this house the king lived for one year, and [the vizier] visited him constantly, and conversed with him on many subjects, and listened to his words ; and found that he sought God, to whom be power and glory, with all his heart and mind, renouncing all that men desire. So when the king had lived here for the space of one year, he died and was buried in the monastery of Saint George at Al-Khandak\ in the patriarchate of Cyril, the sixty-seventh patriarch. This king's tomb is within the wall that encloses the church, and is near the door, on the right hand as you enter. It is said that among his letters there was found a letter written in his own hand, and in Nubian characters^, which proved his learning and his religion and his asceticism ; and he was designated the ' holy king.' § The kingdom of Nubia is composed of Nubia with its provinces, Fol. 99 a and the land of 'Alwah and Al-Mukurrah and the neighbouring tribes. It is said to be the custom among the Nubians, when a king dies and leaves a son, and also a nephew, the son of his sister, that the latter ^ The monastery of Al-Khandak, the suburb of Cairo, is mentioned by Al-Makrizi, who says that it was built by Jauhar. 2 According to the Kiidb al-Fihrist, quoted by Quatremere, Mem. ii. p. 37, the Nubians employed Syrian, Coptic, and Greek characters in writing, having borrowed them from the nearest Christian nations, as being themselves Christians. Eutychius, however, speaks of six kinds of writing among the ' Hamites,' and one of these is the 'Nubian' {^^j^)^ see his Annales, \. p. 55. At the present day, of course, the Nubians employ the Arabic character. (A. J. B.) 272 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. reigns after his uncle, instead of the son ; but if there is no sister's son, then the king's own son succeeds. The land of Nubia is under the jurisdiction of the see of Saint Mark the Evangelist, which consecrates [their bishops] for them ; and their liturgy and prayers are in Greek ^. The number of kings in Nubia is thirteen ^ ; and all these rule the land, under the supremacy of Cyriacus, the Great King ; and all of them are priests, and celebrate the liturgy within the sanctuary, as long as they reign without killing a man with their own hands ; but if a king kills a man, he may no longer celebrate the liturgy. And this privilege of celebrating the liturgy is never restored to such a king ; but when he enters within the veil of the sanctuary, he takes off the royal crown, and stands bareheaded until all the people have communicated, and not one of them is left who has not communicated ; and then the king com- municates after the people, if he wishes to communicate. Pol. 99 b § The town of Darmus^, in the land of Nubia. Here there is a church of elegant proportions, beautifully planned, and looking on the river ; and within it there is a picture of the Great King, and a picture of the governor of Darmus. [The former picture represents] George, son ^ This would be a proof that Christianity was introduced among the Nubians before the translation of the Egyptian liturgy into Coptic. That this liturgy was originally in Greek is proved by the Greek sentences which are still preserved in the midst of the Coptic versions, and by the existence of the Greek liturgy of St. Mark, which is apparently the original of the Coptic St. Cyril. (A. J. B.) This and the following passage are probably based upon a confusion of Nubia with Abyssinia; see below, fol. 105 b. In the same way our author on fol. 105 a speaks of the king of Mukurrah as an Abyssinian prince. The number of chieftains under the Negus or supreme king of Abyssinia, on the other hand, was formerly considerable. In the sixteenth century there were seven kingdoms under the supremacy of the Negus, besides ten provinces smaller than kingdoms ; and in earlier times there are said to have been twenty-eight kings who owned obedience to the Negus ; see Tellez, Historia geral de Ethiopia a alia, &c., p. 9. * ' Termus,' in the province of Maracu (i. e. Mukurrah), is named by Vansleb as the see of one of the bishops of Nubia in former times ; see his Hist, de VJ^glise Alex. p. 30. NUBIA. 273 of Zacharias, king of Nubia, as an old man, sitting upon a throne of ebony, inlaid with ivory, and overlaid with pure gold ; his age is eighty years ; upon his head is the royal crown, set with precious stones, and surmounted by a golden cross, which has four jewels in its four arms. In the same town there is an ancient temple of great size^, dedicated to the star of the Sun\ within which there is an idol resembling * * ^''^j which has on its breast the figure of the moon, and is all of one piece. In this temple there are most wonderful and astonishing pictures and immense pillars, so that the beholder is filled with wonder and stupe- faction because men have been able to construct such works of so great difficulty. In this temple there is also a gigantic hall, which seems to the spectator to be all of one piece ; it is roofed with slabs of hard, black, polished stone, each of which is fifteen cubits in length, five in breadth, and five in thickness ; and of these there are twenty-five, so closely fitted together, that they seem to be one piece. In the same temple there is a well of great width, which is descended by steps ; and if a man descends to the lowest step, he finds vaulted passages, with turnings in different directions, the end of which is unknown ; so that, when he ventures into them, he loses himself, and will perhaps perish, if he do not quickly return. § Near the fourth cataract^, on the eastern bank, there is a large Fol.lOOa monastery, upon a high mountain which overlooks the blessed Nile. Town of Tafah It is said that the prophet Moses, before he went out from the face of Pharaoh, was sent by the latter upon an expedition into the land of the Soudan, to make his way to the extremity of it. Now in this land into which Pharaoh commanded Moses to make his expedition, there were many adders and noisome beasts. But the ^ The Sun was regarded in ancient times as one of the seven planets. Here there is a lacuna in the text. ^ The fourth cataract of the Nile is a little above Meroe. * Tafah still exists, on the west bank, seven miles to the south of Jartassi, in northern Nubia. It must have been in the province of Maris. The ancient temple here was turned into a church in the reign of Justinian I, like several others ; see Letronne, op. cit. p. 37. n n [IT. 7.] 274 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. prophet Moses was wise and was assisted by God in all his actions ; so he marched into the Soudan with his army, accompanied by birds such as cocks and owls, and entered into the uninhabited deserts where the ancient and noisome beasts and reptiles dwelt ; and when they heard the voice of the cocks and of the owls sounding by night and by day, they fled away and remained no longer in their habitations, but vanished from the path of Moses ; and so he marched onwards and saw none of them. Then Moses came to the city of Tafah, and halted before this city ; and the king's daughter saw him, and the birds with him, and she loved him ; and so she sent messengers to him offering to open the city to him, and pointing out to him the road which he should take in order to conquer the city, and thus she made the capture of the city easy to him. Other writers state that she was the daughter of the king of Abyssinia. So Moses captured the city by offering general quarter ; and he granted immunity to the inhabitants, and they brought him money. ,100b In this city of Tafah, there is a monastery called the monastery of Ansun, which is ancient, but so skilfully constructed and beautifully planned, that its appearance has not changed in spite of the lapse of ages. Near it, in front of the mountain, there are fifteen hamlets. There is a church of the glorious angel Michael, which overlooks the river, and is situated between the land of Nubia and the land of the Musliras ; but it belongs to Nubia. Near it there is a mosque which has been restored ; and also a castle which was built as a fortress on the frontier between the MusHms and the Nubians, and is at the extremity of the Nubian territory. Philae and Uswdn. Island of Philae^. Between the land of Nubia and the land of the ' The Arabic preserves the Coptic TIlX^.K^. The island is mentioned by Yakut, Geogr. Wert. i. p. vi . ; by Al-Idrisi (ed. Rome) [p. 37]; by Al-jNIakrizi, i. ^. ni; of. Amelineau, Geogr. p. 347. We are now returning to Egypt with our author. PHILAE AND US WAN. 2/5 Muslims there are two stones upon a hill in the midst of the blessed river Nile ; and the iMuslims possess,, opposite to them, a strong and lofty fortress called Philae. This was built by Baruba and Saradib, and contains fortified dwellings, and the ruins of well-built edifices, the work of the ancients. Philae is five miles distant from Aswin. Next to Philae comes Uswan \ the large frontier-town and the great caravan-station, and the last post of the ^Muslims [before you enter Nubia]. In its neighbourhood are the gold mines ^. In the town there is an ancient temple., containing the figure of a scorpion, which the children are brought to touch every year on the 12th of Barmudah^; and no scorpion will approach a family which includes a child that has touched that figure of a scorpion. The meaning of the name of Uswan is 'Swallow,' for it was built by the king for a body of Abyssi- Fol.lOla nians whom he made a guard for himself, and since they were voracious in eating, he said to them 'Swallow!' From Uswan to Al-'Ula^ it is a distance of eighteen days ; and to 'Aidhab a distance of four days. The monastery called Ibkah is on a high mountain overlooking the river. Its church is named after the glorious angel Michael ; and it has a single dome of great size. It stands between Uswan and Kus. If any one steals whether little or much of the money which is brought to this church in payment of vows, his boat, if he came in one, will not put off from the shore until he has restored the stolen money ; and this is well known among the natives of that district, so that no one now makes any attempt to rob that church. There is also a church named after the Lady and Pure Virgin ^ Uswan, Aswan, or Suwan is, as it is well known, the Greek Svj^z/?/, the Latin Syene, and the Coptic COTA.It, and is mentioned by the prophet Ezekiel (xxix. 10; XXX. 6) as np^D. It is now the chief town of a district in the province of Isna (Esneh), and in 1885 had 6,421 inhabitants. See Yakut, Geogr. Wort. i. p ni ; Al-Idrisi (ed. Rome) [p. 21]; Al-^Makrizi, i. p. i^.v ; Amelineau, Geogr, p. 467. See above, fol. 20 a. ^ I. e. April 7. ■* On the confines of Arabia and Syria. See Yakut, Gcogr. War/, iii. p. v^i. a n 2 276 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. Mary, which was founded by the king. It was consecrated by Anba George, bishop of Natu, when he was sent by the patriarch Christodulus to Nubia, to ask the king for assistance on account of the extortion from which he suffered at the hands of [Marwan] al-Ja di, the last of the Omeyyad caliphs. It is said that the Mountains of the Moon ^, where the Nile rises, are of a red colour, and are in the land of Al-Karubis ; and the country .101b where these mountains are is burnt up with heat, and supports neither plant nor beast. § In the land of the Soudan there is a river called the White River, which, when it overflows for a certain length of time, runs into a river called the Black River, which flows into the Nile from the east ; and when the White River, which runs into the Nile, rises, then the health of the people of Egypt improves ; but when it falls, and the Black River flows [into the Nile], then the people of Egypt fall sick. This Black River rises in a black mountain, and flows over black stones, in an exceedingly black stream. Near the Black River there is a Yellow River, which rises in a mountain as yellow as saffron. § The district of Uswan is inhabited by Arabs of the tribe of Rabi'ah and others. In this district there are springs of white naphtha in the mountains, which were found by the son of 'Ain as-Saif, the governor, when he was at Aswan in the year 400 (a. D. 1010). In this neighbourhood is found also the clay called ' clay of art ^ ; ' and there is the gold-mine ; and there is red and yellow ochre. § [There is in this district] a church named after the saint AbCi Hadri ^, whose body is preserved within it, but it is in ruins. It stands on the island of Uswan Near this church there is also a monastery, in which there were three hundred cells for monks, which are now ruined. The church was large and beautiful. There was also the church of Saint Mennas, which was solidly built of stone. ^ See above, fol. 26 b. See above, fol. 20 a. ^ He was a native of Uswan; see Paris Synaxarium at Kihak i2=Dec. 8. * I. e. Elephantine. PHILAE AND USWAN. 277 [There is also] a church of the Lady and Pure Virgin Mary, which is exceedingly large ; but it was turned by Al-Hakim into a mosque. [There is also] a ruined church of the glorious angel Michael outside Pol.l02a Uswan, to the east, upon the mountain ; and the church of the saint and glorious martyr George. [There is also] a monastery of the saint Abu Hadri on the mountain on the west ; and it is inhabited by monks. The monastery of Saint Anthony is built of stone. It possessed several gardens, but the Arabs seized them and wrecked the monastery. There is here a church, named after Saint Ibsadah ^, which stands in the citadel of Uswan, upon the bank of the blessed river Nile ; and it is said that this saint used to walk upon the water. In this district there is a black mountain of granite, of which was constructed a bridge ^ of great length, which was to be placed over the river from one side to the other ; but it has never been completely disengaged [from the quarry], from the time of the giants ^ until now ; and it still remains in the form in which they left it. ^ The Coptic Psoti (n.CCO'^), who was bishop of Ptolemais at the time of the persecution of Diocletian, and suffered as a martyr for his faith. Ptolemais is the Coptic Psoi (ncoi), named in Arabic Absa'i (;^Liil), or, by its modern designa- tion, INIunshiyah, and still exists a Httle to the north of Jirja. The festival of St. Psoti or Ibsadah is kept on Kihak 2 7 = Dec. 23. See Synaxariiim at that day ; Zoega, Cat. p. 237 ; Am^lineau, Actes des MM. p. 30, and Geogr. pp. 381-383. ^ I. e. the well-known obelisk in the ancient granite quarry near Uswan, which although partly hewn into shape has never been detached from the rock. Yakut mentions the same object, and says it was called the Sakalah (dJliiJl), adding that there is a narrow part of the Nile near the quarries, and that it was related that the intention had been to bridge over the river by means of this obelisk, while others said that it was the fellow to the obelisk of Alexandria. See Yakut, Geogr. WorL i. p. . ^ The admiration excited in the minds of the contemporaries of our author by the works of the ancient Egyptians is well expressed by 'Abd al-Latif, who says : — 278 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. Isnd, District of Isna The meaning of this word is ' Tree and there was here a tree from India. There is here a church named after Matthew, the pious monk. It is said that when he was appointed bishop of this town of Isna, and came to the district, a certain Mushm provided a horse to carry him from the outskirts of the town, until he brought him to the cell where he was to live. And at the weddings and other rejoicings of the Muslims the Christians are present, and chant ^ Fol.l02b in the Sahidic dialect of Coptic, and walk before the bridegroom through JUsi^l J*jJl ijS^^ '^^y^"^ 'When a man of sense beholds these ruins he finds himself able to excuse in the vulgar their belief with regard to the ancients that their lives were longer than ours and their bodies stronger, or that they possessed a magic rod with which when they struck the stones they leapt towards them. For the modern mind feels itself unable to estimate how much was required in these works of knowledge of geometry, and concentration of thought, and ardour of study, and patience in labour, and power over tools, and application to work,' &c. (ed. White, p. 130). ^ Generally written in English as ' Esneh.' It is now the capital of a province, and in 1885 had 9,422 inhabitants. It was the Coptic CItH and the Greek Latopolis. Yakut says that the only places of importance in Egypt to the south of Isna were Udfu and Uswan, and that in his time Isna was a flourishing place with much trade. See Yakut, Geogr. Wort. i. p. no ; Al-Idrisi (ed. Rome) [p. 49]; Am^Hneau, Geogr. pp. 172-175. ^ Our author seems to derive the name from the Coptic ajHIt. ^' The Coptic church tones correspond to some extent to the Greek and Latin tones, and are called respectively the tones of Adam, of Watus, Sanjari, Kihak, Atribi, the tone of the Great Fast, the tone for the Dead, the tone Istasimun. The tones most commonly used are that of Adam (H^OC ^\ , and says that this city is upon the shores of the Sea of Darkness (Adantic) and near the confines of the world; see IMS. Bodl. Or. 294. p. 302. ^ The Bodleian IMS. just cited relates the mission of St. Paul to this city in similar terms, only at greater length. ^ I siippose to be written for J-jJ1, as is frequently written by our scribe for^^. The copy of the Book of Clemefit in the Bodleian puts the fol- lowing words into the mouth of St. Paul, who is describing his mission to this city : ciAjjJi ^jUj^U ^y)Ji^^ '^^j^..^ ^j^^ ^H^^ i^J^i * I arrived there on the 12th of the month of lyar, and on that day the people of that city were keeping a great festival, on which they made wreaths of roses and placed them on the heads of the images and they offered to the idols young leeks from their stores.' (MS. Bodl, Or. 294, p. 303.) * This is described in the Book of Clement, which states that it roared with a voice like thunder, saying : ' Here is a stranger who is come to you ! ' {Joe. C2t)\ 296 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. divided by thirteen paths, and he baptized in it i8,ooc men of the city, and they built several large churches ; and Paul broke the talisman of which we have spoken ; and at his prayer God planted the olive-tree from which the oil is pressed which serves for lighting the lamps of the churches in this city. India. § India. In this country there is neither heat nor cold, because it is on the equator. It is the land of Abyssinia ^, which is also called Al-Hindah. All its inhabitants worship the Buddhas^ and the sun and the fire. It is the land of India, and its shores are far from Egypt ; it is very extensive, and contains a multitude of inhabitants ; it is surrounded by the seas and the expanse of waters, over which ships pass from the coasts of Egypt ; and, on land, India lies next to the frontiers of Persia. Fol.l09a India lay in ancient times in the darkness of idolatry; and Thomas ^ ^ The confusion of Ethiopia with India is as old as the beginnings of Greek literature and remained till its latest days. See Homer, Od. i. 23, 24 ; Herod, iii. 94 and vii. 70; Aeschylus, Prometheus, 1, 808 f ; Tibullus, Eleg. Bk. ii. 3, 55 ; Virgil, Georg. ii. 1 16 and iv. 293 ; Strabo, i. and xv ; Josephus, Bell.Jud. ii. 16. 4 ; Cosmas Indicopleustes, ap. Migne, tom. 88, p. 115; Epiphanius, in Ancorat, ii. p. 60 E ; Philostorgius, iii. 10; Procopius, Bell. Pers. i. 19, p. 58 C, D, and De Aedificiis, V. I, p. 109 B; Nonnus, Dionysiaca, xvii. 394 if. Cf. Letronne, Mat&iaux pour Vhist. du Christianisme en ^gypte eft Nubie et en Abyssinie, where these passages are referred to. Mr. Thos. Wright in his Early Christianity in Arabia has a learned note in which he shows plainly the extension of the term India to cover Ethiopia and Arabia Felix as well as the great peninsula to which the word is properly applied. (A. J. B.) ^ Cf. Al-Biruni (ed. Sachau), pp. ov, vc, rAi^, for mention of Buddha (jLj). 2 The question of the mission of St. Thomas to India is discussed at length in Germann, Kirche der Thomaschristen. The Syriac Acts of St. Thomas containing an account of this mission were published by the late Dr. Wright in his Apocr. Acts of the App., London, 1871, and they are probably as early as the second or third century in their present form. The name of the king Gondopherres or Gundaphorus is confirmed through modern research as that of Undopherres, who was reigning about half a century after Christ in the valley of the Indus. Cf. INDIA. 297 the greatest of the twelve, who was sent thither, aniiOLinced to the people the message of salvation. This glorious apostle converted them from the worship of idols to the knowledge of the truth and the way of salvation; and he baptized them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost : and they received from him the orthodox faith and built many churches. He ordained over them, as bishops, priests, and deacons, those of w^hose constancy in the faith which they had received from him he was assured ; and he taught them the rules of religious worship, and the consecration of the holy mysteries, and the rite of offering incense during their prayers and liturgies. So he led them to the knowledge of God. He also performed startling signs and extraordinary wonders before them, such as they had never seen or heard of, and confirmed their faith, until they abandoned the worship of idols and the offering of sacrifices to them, and learnt from the Source of intelligence the extent of their errors and of the falsity of their beliefs. Thus when the minds and hearts of these people were enlightened, they set themselves to build a church to the great Thomas, who had been their guide ; and in this church which they erected to the great apostle Thomas, from whom they had received the orthodox faith, God manifested a great sign to them ; for, when the building of the church was completed, God sent the sea which covered the road leading to the church. And when this apostle was martyred, and had finished Fol.l09b his fight, and obtained the crown of martyrdom, his body was carried to this church ; and they placed it in a chest of skilful workmanship, and overlaid it with gold. And when they saw this other wonder after his martyrdom, namely that his right hand was not changed from its former appearance during life, they marvelled, and their faith was strengthened ; so they made an opening in the chest through which his holy hand came out, as a manifest sign to all who saw it. Now the sea which had covered the road to the church went back from it every year : for God sent a wind which drove the sea back from the road, which was Lipsius, Die Apocr. Apostelgeschichte, i. pp. 225-347. On the Coptic Acts of the Apostles see Prof. Ignazio Guidi in Rendiconti della Reale Accademia dei Lmcei, vols. iii. and iv. q u [Tl- 7-] 298 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. thus laid open for the assembh'ng of the congregation at the festival of Thomas. For men came thither from all parts and walked along the road to the church, as the children of Israel walked, when the Red Sea was divided for them, under the guidance of the prophet Moses who prayed for them before the Lord. So God showed a similar sign in our own time, through the prayers of this great apostle and his great dignity in the sight of the Lord, who confirmed his teaching by so mighty a miracle, which has never ceased. Thus the people who assemble at this great festival, celebrate it and receive blessings ; and the priests Pol. 110 a celebrate the liturgy and take the holy mysteries, and dip the holy body in the pure blood, and place it in that pure hand ^. Then all the people ^ This story of the communion of St. Thomas is to be found related by an oriental prelate ^vho visited Pope Calixtus I at Rome in a. d. 1122, and who is called in the accounts John, patriarch of India. Two independent narratives of this visit exist; one in the Chronicon Alberici Monachi published in Leibnitz, Accessiones Htsion'cae, ad ann. 1122 ; and the other in Mahillonii Vetera Analecta in a letter written by Abbot Oddo of St. R^my to a Count Thomas. Oddo says that he was present at the 'patriarch's' interview with the Pope. He states, according to the testimony of the Indian prelate, that the church of St. Thomas was surrounded by a river, but that eight days before and eight days after the festival of the apostle the water retreated so that the church could be reached on foot over dry land ; the body of the saint was seated upon the bishop's chair, and received in its open hand the offerings that were made, unless a heretic approached, when the hand at once closed. Albericus, whose account varies somewhat from Oddo's, adds that the host was handed to the apostle during the mass, and that the people received the communion from his open hand, which, however, closed on the approach of a misbeliever. See Germann, op. cit. p. 165 ff. Another account of this communion-scene is to be found in the Itinerary of John of Hesse, who appears to have travelled in the fifteenth century, but who places the relics in the city of Hulna, four days from Edessa. Ulna is also the name given by Albericus to the episcopal city of John of India. The ' Itinerary ' states that Prester John dwelt at Edessa. The body of St. Thomas was placed in the episcopal throne, and the communion is thus described : ' Missa igitur finita Presbyter Joannes, archiepiscopi et ceteri praelati religiosi curn aliis hominibus christianis devote geniculando, et humillime se inclinando INDIA, 299 receive the holy mysteries out of the palm of that pure hand, and they continue to communicate in this manner one after the other until the hand grasps one of the congregation ; then they all glorify God, and the priests communicate the rest of the people. Afterwards the priests carry that chest in their hands with chanting and with great rejoicing, and set it again in its place, after the people have kissed it and been blessed by it. When this religious service is over, and as the people are about to disperse, they are blessed by that man, whom God has chosen out of the people to remain for a year in the service of that pure body, to keep the candles lighted before it night and day. The people also leave with him all that he can need, and all depart to their own homes. And when they reach the shore, and not one of them is left behind, then the sea returns as it was before, and covers the road to the church. This custom has continued without interruption for ages. When the people return the following year, they find that that man, who was left to serve the body of Saint Thomas, has died at that very hour and is still warm ^. Praise to God, who is great and glorious in his saints, and works miracles for their sakes. To him be glory ! Town of Kulam ^. All the Christians who live here are Nestorians. Fol. accipiunt sacramentum de manu apostoli. Patriarcha vero ministrat seu porrigit apostolo sacramentum ad digitos qui dignis tribuit et retrahit indignis. Apostoli autem manus stat aliqualiter elevata et semiclausa, et ob reverentiam duo archie- piscopi apponunt manus suas ad brachium apostoli, non tamen regendo manus ejus. Corpus autem apostoli est integrum et illesum cum crinibus et barba vestimentisque suis quibus vivus utebatur. Est itaque pannis pretiosissimis coopertum. Etiam ad praedictam ministrationem corporis domini serviunt duo alii archiepiscopi tenentes patenas sub manu apostoli.' See Gustav Oppert, Der Presbyter Johannes in Sage und Geschichte (2nd ed. 1870), p. 189. ^ One of the first visitors to the church and relics of St. Thomas at Mailapur in modern times, the Portuguese, Diogo Fernandes, who was there in a. d. 151 7, found an old man who attended to the lamps of the church, and stated that this office was hereditary in his family. The church was then in ruins. See Barros, Da Asia Decada i. (ed. 1777), t. iii. pt. ii. p. 223 ff. In a. d. 1547, the Portuguese laid the foundations of a new church ; ibid. p. 226. I.e. Quilon, on the coast of Travancore. See Yakut, Geogr. IVor/. i. p. o.^j, q q 2 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. There is here a church of the Lady and Pure Virgin Mary ; and a church of the glorious saint and great martyr Saint George. FahsLir^ Here there are several churches; and all the Christians here are Nestorians ; and that is the condition of things here. It is from this place that camphor comes ; and this commodity [is a gum which] oozes from the trees. In this town there is one church named after our Lady, the Pure Virgin Mary. Arabia. San'a ^ in Al-Yaman. Here is the church called Al-Kalis, which was founded by IbrMiim ^, who ruled Al-Yaman on behalf of the Negus, king of Abyssinia, and is the same as Abraha al- Ashram ^, whose nose was mutilated in battle, so that he was named Al- Ashram. He built this church, and decorated^ it with gilding and beautiful paintings, and in his article on China (^^^1), i. pp. I'l't'^-i'OA . The Portuguese discovered a church at ' Coulam' built by ' disciples of St. Thomas; ' see Barros, op. cit. p. 235. ^ So the word is written in the MS. I can only conjecture that it may be a clerical error for IMansur or Mansurah, a country in north-west India at the mouth of the Indus. This country was particularly famous among the Arabs for camphor. See Al-Mas'udi (ed. Barbier), i. pp. 207, 377-379, and iii. p. 49. ^ The capital of Yemen (Al-Yaman). See Yakut, Geogr. Wort. iii. p. . . Yemen was conquered before the birth of Mahomet by the Cliristians of Abyssinia ; see the account given by Gibbon in chap, xlii and Johannsen's Historia Yemanae, Praef The story is clearly told in Thos. Wright's Early Christianity in Arabia., p. 89. (A.J.B.) ^ Generally called Abrahah. by the Arab historians ; see At-Tabari, Ta'rikh ar-Rusul wdl-Muluk (ed. De Goeje and others), prima series, pp. ^ri-it^r. He is famous as the general who attacked Mecca in the year (a.d. 570) in which the prophet Mahomet was born, the year called, from the elephant which accom- panied the army of Yemen, the Year of the Elephant. Our author's description of the church of Al-Kalis is much fuller than that given by At-Tabari, op. cit. p. «in«= ff. (A. J. B.) ^ ' The scarred ' or ' mutilated.' ^ At-Tabari says : ARABIA. 301 and paved it with coloured marble and [set up] marble pillars ; and all the time he was living and sleeping in the church. He adorned it with the most beautiful ornaments of gold and silver and gilded and coloured glass, and he overlaid the doors with plates of gold studded with silver nails, and silver studded with massive gold nails; and on the doors Fol.lUa leading to the altars he put broad plates of gold, and he set them with precious stones, and in the midst of each plate he set a golden cross, in the centre of which was a red. transparent carbuncle : and around these jewels were flowers of open work in various colours, so that spectators were astonished at it. And Abraha bid men make pil- grimages ^ to that church, and so they flocked thither from all parts. And he made for it a screen of skilful workmanship, composed of ebony and sasain-woodi, inlaid with pure white ivory, beautifully carved -. So the fame of this church spread over that country, and those who had not seen it heard of it, and multitudes made pilgrimages thither, and brought votive offerings ; and many men lodged in the church and spent day and night there ; and the king provided for those that lodged there, and built chambers for them to dwell in, and erected houses which he made the property of the church. This king was a wise man, learned, loving God and doing good to men, just in his judgments, good in his life, honoured by all kings, without enemies who feared him, on account of the goodness of his life; according to the testimony of Fol.lllb the history of At-Tabari. * He built this church in marvellous fashion, such as had never before been seen, with gold and wonderful paintings ; and he wrote to Caesar to tell him that he intended to build a church at San a, to be a monument of lasting fame ; and he begged Caesar to help him in the work ; and so Caesar sent him work- men and mosaics and marble ' (p. "iro). ' Caesar " was the emperor Justinian I. Cf. Wright, op. at. p. 95. (A. J. B.) ^ So At-Tabari, loc. cii. The announcement that Abraha expected the people to go on pilgrimage to San a and to neglect the Ka bah of Mecca, so enraged the Arabs that more than one of them went to San'a for the express pur- pose of defiHng the church, and this led to the invasion of the Hedjaz. (A. J. B.) IMany such screens are now to be seen in Coptic religious buildings, though perhaps of less magnificence. See Copiic Churches. (A. J. B.) 302 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. Marur ad-Dair. This is a church inclosed within a strong wall ; and it is now called Makbarat al-Hukama^. In this district lived Abu Sharwan, the emir of Al-Yaman under Chosroes. Thamdnin. The village called Thamanin ^. The mountain of Karda ^ is in this neighbourhood, and here the ark rested in the time of Noah, and went up from the mountain called Al-Juda. It is very high, so that there is no higher mountain on earth than it; and from it there is a view of the four corners of the earth. The Pentateuch bears witness that God, to whom be praise, sent a wind upon the earth ; and the waters decreased, and the fountains of the deep and the windows of heaven were stopped, and the waters were abated after 150 days ; and the ship or ark of Noah rested in the seventh month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, upon the mountain of Karda at a village called Thamanin, according to that which has already been said. Cities built by unknown Founders. Among the buildings of which the founder is unknown, and which I mention to preserve the memory of them, is Ghumdan now a heap of ruins, such as are unknown elsewhere. 'Uthman overthrew it in the days of Islam, but its ruins remain until now. Aryat ^, the Abyssinian, Fol.ll2a who conquered Al-Yaman for the Negus, king of Abyssinia, laid Ghumdan waste with other cities, before the appearance of the Muslims. ^ I. e. ' Burial-place of the Wise men.' In Mesopotamia near Mount Ararat. See Yakut, Geogr. Wd'rt. iv. p. ci . ^ A part of Mount Ararat. See Yakut, Geogr. Wort. iv. p. ot ; Eutychius, Annates, i. p. 20. * A fortress in Yemen between San'a and Taiwah. Some said it was built by demons at the command of Solomon. It was destroyed by the caliph 'Uthman. See Yakut, Geogr. Wort. iii. p. Air. ^ See Ibn Hisham, Sirah Sayyidind Miiliammad, i. p. ta ; At-Tabari, op. cii., prtma series, p. in . COPFISrS NOTE. San'a in Al-Yaman and Istakhr^ in Fars and Al-Ailah in Al-'Irak are in the desert. The history of Al-Manbaji relates that king Solomon, son of the prophet David, king of Israel, was valiant and a great conqueror and was feared and magnified, and yet was gentle and humble, merciful, chaste, quiet of spirit and free from anger or hatred ; and that he built Tadmor-, and made wonderful things there, and named it City of the Sun ; and that he built Durrah 3, which is in the midst of the sea ; and built a great altar near the city of Kirun. The city of Aukir was built by Kirun of stones overlaid with gold ; and among the stones of the mountains of that country there are some that shine like gold, like golden and copper marcasite. When the building of this city was finished, it presented a wonderful sight when the sun shone upon it, unlike any other on the earth. City of Khauliya. This was built by a king called Jiyul, and he made its structures lofty. It became a great city, and was inhabited by the women, to the time of Solomon, son of the prophet David, upon whom be peace ! Fol.ll2b Copyist's Note. Here ends the work of the author of this history. For he was unable to make his work complete on account of the extent of the surface ^ The town \vhich occupied the site of the ancient Persepolis. I\Iany legends were told of its foundation. Perhaps the most popular account among the INIuslims was that it was founded by Solomon, who spent the day there and the night at Tiberias or Tadmor ; see Al-Istakhri, /c7«f.s-/w / Al-^Mas'udi, iv. p. 76 ; Yakut, Geogr. Wort. i. p. rs \ . The first mention of the remains of Persepolis in modern European literature is to be found in the report of Giosafat Barbaro, the Venetian envoy in 147 1 ; see Ramusio, Vidggi (ed. 1606), vol. i. f. 107: and the first full accounts were given by the Augustinian friar Antonio de Gouvea, see his Relagao (161 1), fol. 30 ; and by Don Garcia de Silva y Figueroa, De rebus Per sarum Epistola (1620). pp. 6-12, translated in Purchas, Pilgrims (1625), ii. p. 1533 f ^ Tadmor was said, like Istakhr and Ghumdan, to have been built by demons for Solomon; see Yakut, Geogr. Wort. i. p. ata. The passage of Al-]\Ianbaji may be found in the Bodleian MS. Hunt 4178, fol. 102 b. ' There was a Darrah off the coast of Persia. CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. of the earth in the east and in the west ; yet he collected matter which no other has collected, and he devoted extreme care to his work. Nevertheless he was concise in his exposition, because he shunned in his narrative all amphfication that was not necessary. § That poor, wretched, feeble slave, the copyist, has copied w^hat he found in his copy, without addition or subtraction, according to the direction of the Shaikh ^ Ar-Ra'is al-Akram Abu '1-Faraj, son of the Shaikh Raphael, son of the priest Abu '1-Farabi, surnamed Sanduk al-'Ilm. This priest was the chief of the priests at the church of Al-Mu'allakah in the Fort of Ash-Shama in the city of Misr. This book describes how the priest Abu '1-Ma'abi, son of the priest As-Sabi Abu '1-Fada il, son of the priest Al-Muhdab, celebrated the liturgy on the Feast of the Cross, in the church of Al-Mu'allakah, on the 17th of Tut, and placed his finger in the chalice, and it was immediately dyed with natural blood -. When the priest saw this great miracle, he was serving Fol.ll3a as a scribe in the Divan of the frontier-district of Alexandria, but he gave up his work and lived in his cell at the said church, with a covering always over his finger, and thus he lived until he died. May the Lord rest his soul, and have mercy upon us by his prayers ! § The work of copying this book was finished on Wednesday, the 2nd of the month of Ba'unah in the year 1054 of the Blameless Martyrs, which corresponds to the 8th of Dhu '1-Kadah of the year 738 (a. D. 1338). May God give us a good end to this year ! § That poor slave the copyist has attempted to abbreviate the book, as it has been said, without diminishing from the sense, but the task has been too great for him. He prays all those who read the book to accept the excuse from him who offers it. May God, who assists the right, help us all towards the salvation of our souls, and support us in temptation and in the trials of this life, and preserve us in the orthodox faith, and bring us in safety to the harbour of salvation. Amen. Praise to God for ever and ever ! ^ I here omit the complimentary epithets as untranslatable. 2 Renaudot tells a story of a similar event in Hist. Pair. p. 70. APPENDIX. ACCOUNT OF THE MONASTERIES AND CHURCHES OF THE CHRISTIANS OF EGYPT; FORMING THE CONCLUDING SECTIONS OF THE KHITAT OF AL-MAKRIZi (died A. H. 845 = A. D. 1441). Ibn Sidah says: Ad-Dair (monastery) is an inn [khan) of the Christians, in the plural Adjdr'^ ; and the superior of it is called Dayydr or Dairdni. I remark that Ad-Dair is among Christians the special dwelling-place of the monks, and Al-Katusah (church) is among them the place of assembly of the people for prayer. 1. Al-KiUdyaJi^ , the Cell at Misrl This Killdyah stands beside the ]\lu allakah in the Kasr ash-Shama' in the city of Misr, and is the place of assembly of aged monks and learned Christians, and its rules are followed by all the monasteries. 2. The Monastery of Turd is also known as the Monastery of Abu Jurj, and stands on the bank of the Nile. This Abu Jurj is the same as Saint George, and is one of those whom the emperor Diocletian persecuted that he might renounce Christianity ; but as various tortures, such as scourging and burning with fire, did not bring about his perversion, his head was cut off on the 3rd of Tishri, which is equivalent to the 7th of Babah. 3. Monastery of Shdrdn. This monastery stands at the boundary of the district of Tura, and is built of stone and brick ; there are palm-trees here ; and many monks are to be found here. It is also called the Monastery of Shahrdn, ^ Al-IMakrizij like Abu Salih, also uses the plurals sT^jl and u^'JIj^^. ^ Wiistenfeld remarks that the commoner form is Killiyah, iJi^j which is nearer to the original KeWiov. ^ I.e. Fustat IMisr or Al-Fustat. now called by Europeans ' Old Cairo.' r r [11. 7.] 3o6 CHURCHES AND MOXASTERIES OF EGYPT. and Shahran is said to have been one of the learned Christians or else a king. Formerly this monastery was known under the name of IMerciirius, who is also called Markurah or Abu Markurah ; but afterwards, when Barsuma ibn at-Tabban lived here, it was called the IMonastery of Barsuma. A festival is kept here in the fifth week of the Great Fast, at which the patriarch and the principal Christians assemble, and large sums are expended upon it. That IMercurius [whom we have mentioned] is one of those whom Diocleuan caused to be put to death on the 19th of Tammuz, which is equivalent to the 25th of Abib; he was a soldier. 4. The Monastery of the Apostles. This monastery stands at the extremity of the district of As-Suff and Al-Wadi ^ and is an old and small monastery. 5. Monastery of Peter and Paid. This monastery stands near Itfih towards the south, and is a small monastery ; there is a festival here on the 5th of Abib. It is also known by the name of IMonastery of Al-Kasriyah. Peter is the greatest of the apostles and disciples ; he was a tanner or a fisherman, and was condemned to death by the emperor Nero on the 29th of Haziran, which is equivalent to the 5th of Abib ; and Paul was a Jew, but accepted Christianity after the ascension of Christ, and invited others to adopt his religion ; so the emperor Nero put him to death a year after the death of Peter. 6. TJu Monastery of Alfiivwiaizah is also known as the IMonastery of Al-Jud ; and sailors call the place Jaza'ir ad-Dair (Islands of the Monastery), and it is opposite to Al-IMaimun ^ and west of the IMonastery of Al-'Arabah ; it is built in the name of Saint Anthony, who is also called Antunah ; he was a native of Kaman, and when the persecution of Diocletian was over, and he had escaped martyrdom, wished to substitute for it a discipline which should lead to a similar reward. So Anthony consecrated himself to the service of God, and was the first who introduced the monastic hfe among Christians instead of mart}Tdom : he fasted forty days and nights without taking food or drink, and watched through the night ; and this he did during the Great Fast every year. 7. Monastery of At- Arahah^, This is reached by a three days' journey on camels, and is among the eastern mountains ; between it and the Sea of Al-Kulzum ^ Two places in the province of Itfih (Wustenfeld). ^ Al-IMaimim and Kaman were two places in the district of Busir in the province of Al-Jizah. \ This is the famous monastery of St. Anthony, near the Red Sea. APPENDIX. (Red Sea) there is a full day's ride ; almost all kinds of fruits are cultivated there, and it has three wells of running water. It was founded by the afore-mentioned Saint Anthony. The monks of this monastery fast all their lives, but their fast only lasts till the afternoon, when they take food, except at the Great Fast and the BanniVaO^ when their fast lasts till the stars come out. Al-Banmddl means in their language a fast of this kind. 8. The Monastery of Saint Paid- ^ also called Monastery of the Sons of Paul, or Monastery of An-Namilrah. This monastery lies in the country west of At-Tur (Sinai), near a spring of water where travellers halt. They have a legend that Miriam, the sister of Moses, when he encamped with the Israelites in the neigh- bourhood of Al-Kulzum, purified herself at this spring. Saint Paul was a native of Alexandria, and his father left to him and his brother a large fortune; but when his brother quarrelled over it he left him in his anger. Then he saw a corpse about to be buried ; and this made him ponder, and he went forward meditating upon it through the country, until he settled beside this spring ; and here he remained, and God supported him. Then Saint Anthony came, and remained with him till he died, and this monastery was built over his grave. Between this monastery and the sea there is a distance of three hours' journey ; it has a garden in which are palms and vines and a stream of running water. 9. Monastery of Al-Kusair. Abu '1-Hasan 'Ali ibn IMuhammad ash-Shabushti says in his Book of the Monasteries : ' This monastery stands upon the mountain on a level spot on the summit, and is a monastery of fine solid architecture, in a pleasant solitude ; it is inhabited by monks, and has a well hewn in the rock from which the water is fetched for it. In the sanctuary is the picture of INIary on a panel, and the people \ isit the place to see this picture. In the upper story there is a hall, built by Abu '1-Jaish Khamarawaih ibn Ahmad ibn Tulun, with four windows on four sides ; he often visited this monastery, and admired the picture, because he thought it so beautiful and thirsted to behold it. The way to this mon- astery from I\Iisr is very difficult, but the way from the south is very easy both in ascent and descent ; on the side stands a hermitage, which is never quitted by the ^ Wiistenfeld, on the authority of Prof. Fleischer and Prof. Seyffarth, compares with this word the Coptic ITiepJULOT p (JULOtX) e^OTIt. Is it not more probably the Greek Trapaiiovi], which was much used in Coptic in the sense of 'vigil'? " This is the famous Monastery of St. Paul, near that of St. Anthony. r r 2 3o8 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT, hermit who lives there. The monastery rises above the village of Shahran, and above the plain and the Nile ; the former is a large and populous village on the bank of the river, and Moses is said to have been born there, and placed by his mother in an ark in the water ; but there is another monastery which is called Monastery of Shahran. This Monastery of Al-Kusair is one of the monasteries which are much visited, and is one of the favourite pleasure-resorts on account of its fine position, and because it overlooks Misr and its environs.' Ibn 'Abd al-Hakam says in his Book of the Conquest of Egypt : ' There are different opinions about Al-Kusair; according to Ibn Lahfah it is not the fortress of Mfisa (Moses) the prophet, but of Miisa the magician ; but on the other hand Al-Mufaddal Fadalah gives a tradition from his father, who says : " We came to Ka'b al-Ahbar, who asked us, Whence are you.? We answered, From Egypt. He said, What do you say about Al-Kusair ? We answered. It is the casde of Moses. He answered, It is not the castle of Moses, but the casde of the 'Aziz ^ of Egypt, who, when the Nile rose, betook himself to this elevated spot, and therefore the place from the mountain to the river is holy." Others on the contrary say that a fire was kindled here for Pharaoh, when he travelled from Memphis to 'Ain-Shams (Heliopolis), and on the Mukattam hills there was another fire ; so when the people saw the fire they knew that he was travelling, and kept in readiness whatever he stood in need of ; and similarly when he made the return journey from 'Ain-Shams. God knows best !' The learned Christian historians say that Arcadius, emperor of the Romans, summoned Arsenius to teach his son ; but Arsenius thought that the emperor wished to kill him, and therefore fled to Egypt and entered the monastery ; the emperor then sent a man to say that he had only required him to instruct his son ; but Arsenius begged to be spared, wandered over the country as far as the Mukattam hills, east of Tura, and remained three days in a cave until he died. Arcadius, when Arsenius w-as dead, sent and caused a church to be built over his tomb, and this is the place known by the name of the Monastery of Al-Kusair, and is now called the Monastery of the Mule, because a mule supplies it with water. When the mule leaves the monastery, it goes its way to the water, and there a man stands who fills the vessel with water, and when he has done that, lets the mule loose and it returns to the monastery. In the month of Ramadan of the year 400, Al-Hakim bi-amri 'llah ordered that the Monastery of Al-Kusair should be destroyed ; and the destruction and plundering of it lasted several days. > ' Al-'Aziz is in the Koran a designation of Poliphar (Wiistenfeld). APPENDIX. 309 10. Alonasiery of Saint John'^, Ash-Shabushti says: 'The Monastery of Saint John hes on the bank of the Lake of Al-Habash, near to the Nile, and beside it are gardens, some of which were laid out by the Emir Tamim ibn al-Muizz, and a pavilion built on pillars, of fine architecture, with paintings, also con- structed by the Emir Tamim. Near the monastery is a fountain called the Fountain of Mammati ; near this stands a great sycamore, under which the people assemble and drink, and this place is a place of constant amusement, dancing, and pleasure, and is equally pleasant in the days of the rise of the Nile when the lake is filled, and during the time when the fields are full of crops and all is green and flourishing ; it is much resorted to by the people, who amuse themselves here. Poets have sung of the beauty and charm of this district ; and this monastery is now called the Monastery of At-Tin.' 11. Monastery of Ahu'n-Ndna, This monastery stands near Ansina, and is one of the old buildings of that city; its church is in a tower, not on the ground, and the monastery bears the name of Saint John the Dwarf. A festival is kept there on the 20th of Babah. This Saint John will be further mentioned in the sequel. 12. The Monastery of the Cave of ShalcaIMP is a small monastery, hanging on the mountain and hewn of stone, on a rock below which there is a steep precipice so that it can neither be reached from above nor below. There are no steps, but there are incisions cut in the mountain-side ; and if any one wishes to ascend a long pole is let down to him, which he grasps with both hands, and by placing his feet in the incisions so ascends. The monastery contains a mill driven by an ass. The monastery, which rises above the Nile in view of Manfalut and Umm al-Kusur, stands opposite to an island surrounded by water called Shakalkil, on which are two villages, one called Shakalkil, the other Bani Shakir. The monastery keeps a festival, at which Christians assemble, and bears the nam^e of Saint Mennas, one of ihe soldiers persecuted by Diocletian, in order that he might abjure Christianity and worship idols ; but as he remained constant in his faith, Diocletian caused him to be put to death on the loth of Haziran or 1 6th of Babah. 13. Monastery of Saint Victor, on the dam of Abnub, east of Bani Murr^, below the mountain, at a distance of about 1,250 ells. It is a large monastery, * This is the monastery of St. John described by Abu Salih on fol. 40 a, ff. 2 In the district of Usyut (Wiistenfeld). ^ In the district of Usyut (Wiistenfeld). 3IO CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. at which a festival is kept, whereupon the Christians of the country from east and west assemble, and the bishop is present. This Victor was son of Romanus. His father was one of the generals of Diocletian, and he himself a distinguished and brave man, respected by the emperor ; but when he adopted Christianity, the emperor tried to turn him to idolatry by promises and threats, and on his refusal had him put to death on the 22 nd of Nisan or 27 th of Barmudah. 14. The Monastery of BuMiirshii^^ north of Abnub, is a small monastery, but deserted, and has long been visited by the Christians only once in the year. Bukturshu was one of those who were tortured by order of Diocletian, that he might fall away from Christianity; he refused, however, and was put to death on the 20th of Hatur. He was a soldier. 15. Monastery of Abu 's-Sari, built in the name of Saint George, near Al-]\Ia'sarah, in the district east of Bam Murr. At times it is deserted by the monks, and at times inhabited by them ; and at a certain season a feast is celebrated. 16. Monastery of Saint George of Khamds. Khamas is the name of a town, north of which the monastery stands ; two festivals are kept there yearly, in which an innumerable multitude of people take part. 17. Monastery of At-Tair (the Birds). This monastery is ancient, stands far above the Nile, and has a flight of steps to it cut out in the rock. It stands opposite to Samallut. Ash-Shabushti says : ' In the district of Ikhmim there is a large, populous monastery, which is visited from all parts, in the neighbourhood of a mountain called Mountain of Al-Kahf (the Cave). At a place in the mountain there is a cleft, and on the festival of the monastery no Abukir bird remains in the neighbourhood without coming to this place ; and from their numbers, their assemblage, and their cries, a great tumult arises beside the cleft. Without ceasing, one after another puts his head into the cleft and cries and comes away, until one of them sticks fast in the cleft, and he beats with his wings until he dies ; and then the rest depart, so that no bird remains there.' The Cadi Abu Ja'far al-Kuda i says : 'Among the noteworthy features of Egypt is the ravine of the Abukirs near Ushmum in Upper Egypt. This is a ravine on a mountain, in which there is a cleft at which the Abukirs on a certain day of the year assemble, and betake themselves ^ I. e. St. Victor of Shu. Vansleb [Ilel. d'Egypte, p. 366) speaks of ' une eglise dediee a Mari Poctor Sciu, qui a pris ce nom de la ville de Sciu, laquclle est aupi^s d'Abnub, et aujourd'hui ruinee ' (Wustenfeld). APPENDIX. 3" to the cleft ; and as soon as one of the Abukirs has stuck his bill into the cleft he goes away ; and this does not cease until the cleft has held one of them fast, whereupon they all depart ; but the bird that is caught in the cleft remains hanging until he falls to pieces/ The author, upon whom may God have mercy, adds : ' This is one of the things that have long ceased to happen.' 18. The Monastery of Bii Harminah is north of Ka'u al-Kharab; and to the north of it Hes the ancient temple of Ka u, full of wise inscriptions. Between the INIonastery of At-Tair and this monastery there is a journey of about two days and a half. This Bu Harmmah was one of the earlier monks, famous among the Christians. 19. Monastery of the Seven Mountains, near Ikhmim. This monastery stands at the entry of seven valleys, and stands high between high mountains ; and the sun rises upon it two hours later than generally on account of the height of the mountain, at the foot of which it stands ; and when there are yet two hours before sunset the inhabitants think that the sun has already set and the night has begun, and they kindle lights. Near this monastery there is a spring of water at the exit overshadowed by a willow, and this spot where the INIonastery of the Willow stands is called Wadi '1-Muluk (Valley of the Kings), because there a plant grows called 3ftiliikah, like the radish, by which water is coloured of a deep red, and it is used by chemists. Above this monastery stands 20. The Monastery of Al-Karkas, on a mountain, and hewn in its side; and there is no approach to it, but the ascent is by incisions cut in the rock, and by them alone can it be reached. Between the Monastery of the Willow- Spring and the INIonastery of Al-Karkas there is a journey of three hours, and below the INIonastery of Al-Karkas is a well of fresh water surrounded by Ban-trees. 21. The Monastery of Sabrah, east of Ikhmim, is named after an Arab tribe named the Sabrah, and dedicated to the angel INIichael; but there is only one monk there. 22. The Monastery of Abu. Ahshddah (Psoti), the bishop, near the district of Atfah, stands on the dam and opposite to INIunshat Ikhmim, in the west. This Abu Abshadah was one of the learned Christians. 23. The Monastery of Saint Or, the monk, also called INIonastery of Sawadah. The Sawadah were a tribe of Arabs who settled here. The monastery stood opposite to INIunyah Bam Khasib, and was destroyed by Arabs. All these monasteries stand to the east of the Nile, and belong to the Jacobites, and besides them there are no others on the eastern side of the Nile ; but on the western bank there are many monasteries, because it is very populous. 313 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. 24. The Monastery of Damiih, in the province of Al-Jizah, also called Damuh as-Saba', is built in the name of Saints Cosmas and Damian, and is a small monastery. The Christians state that a wise man called Sab' lived at DamQh, and that the church of Damuh, which is now in the hands of the Jews, was one of the monasteries of the Christians, which, in a state of great need, they sold to the Jews. The church of Damuh has already been mentioned. Cosmas and Damian were among the learned Christians and pious monks, and many things are related of both of them. 25. Monastery of Nahyd. Ash-Shabushti says : ' Nahya is in the province of Al-Jizah. The monastery there is one of the finest, most charming, and best- situated monasteries of Egypt, and one of the most beautiful spots inhabited by monks; it commands a wonderful view of the Nile, which surrounds it on all sides. When the water sinks, and the seed is sown, the earth brings forth rare flowers and different sorts of blossom. Nahya is one of the favourite resorts for pleasure, and has a canal at which all kinds of birds assemble, and many fish are caught. Poets have described it, and sung of its beauty and charm.' I remark, however, that this monastery has been destroyed. 26. Monastery of Tamwaih. Yakut gives this pronunciation, and adds: ' There are two places of this name in Egypt ; one is in the province of Al-Murtahiyah, and the other in that of Al-Jizah,' Ash-Shabushti says : 'Tamwaih is on the west bank, and stands opposite to Hulwan, and the monastery com- mands a view of the river, and is surrounded by vineyards, gardens, palms and trees, forming a populous pleasure-resort. It has a fine view of the Nile; and when the earth grows green, it lies between two carpets — the water and the crops. It is one of the best-known places of pleasure and resorts for refreshment in Egypt.' Ibn Abi 'Asim al-Misri has the following verses in the metre of Al-Basit : * O that I could drink at Tamwaih of the bright juice, which brings into contempt the wines of Hit and 'Anat\ In flowery meadows where the brooks flow between gardens ! The clusters of the red anemone which bloom there seem to be cups of wine appearing in close succession; The flowers of the narcissus there, from their beauty, seem to be eyes secretly communicating by signs ; * Two towns on the Euphrates. Hit is the Is of Herodotus ; and 'Anat is the Anatlio, Anathan, or Bethauna of classical writers. APPENDIX. The water of the Nile, over which the zephyr passes, seems to clothe itself with ringed coats of mail. Hospitable chambers in which I have been sorely tempted in heart, when you were formerly my wineshops and my hostels; Behold ! I shall not cease to beg for the morning draught, when the clappers* strike, in my love for the monasteries/ I remark : this monastery bears among the Christians the name of Saint George, and the Christians of the neighbourhood assemble there. 27. The Monastery 0/ Ah/ds, more correctly Akfahs, is now destroyed. 28. The Mo7iastery at the extremity of the district of Manharah stands in bad repute, because the monks give no one food from thence. 29. The Monastery of Al-Khddim (the Servant) is near the canal of Al- Manhi, in the district of Al-Bahnasa, and is built in the name of the angel Gabriel. It possesses gardens containing palms and olive-trees. 30. The Monastery of Ishmn, named after the district of Ishnin, stands to the north of it, is a small monastery, and bears the name of the Virgin Mary; but it only contains a single monk. 31. The Monastery offesus, or Yasii, is also called the IMonastery of Arjanus. There is a festival here on the 25th of Bashans. On the night of this day a spring there, bearing the name of Jesus' Spring, is closed ; and at the sixth hour of the day people collect and take away the stone from the well, and then they find that the water within it has risen and now begins to sink again ; and from this they reckon how high the Nile will be that year, counting from the point to which the water of the well rose to the level to which it sinks. 32. The Monastery of Sadmant, at a short distance from Al-Manhi, on the high ground between the Fayyum and the Rif, bearing the name of Saint George, has lost much of its former estate, and is now partly deserted. 33. The Monastery of An-Naklun^ also called IMonastery of Al-Khashabah, and IMonastery of the Angel Gabriel, stands under a hollow in the mountain, called Tarif al-Fayyum ; and this hollow is among them known by the name of Jacob's Shade. They state that Jacob, when he came to Egypt, sought shade within it. This mountain rises high above two places : Itfih Shalla and Shalla. The water for this monastery is drawn from the canal of Al-IManhi, and it lies below the * I. e. the wooden gongs of the church to call the monks to the morning service. S s [II. 7.] CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT, Monastery of Sadmant. At the festival celebrated in this monastery, the Christians of the Fayyiim and other places assemble ; and it lies on the road leading to the Fayyiim, which, however, is only followed by few travellers. 34. Monastery of Al-Kalamun. This stands in a plain under the mountain- pass of Al-Kalamun, through which the traveller reaches the Fayyum, and which is called the Pass of Al-Gharak. This monastery was built in the name of the monk Samuel, who lived in the time between Jesus and Mahomet, and died on the 8th of Kihak. In this monastery there are many palms, from the fruit of which the 'Ujwah ^ is prepared. Here is also the Labakh-tree (Persea), which is only found here ; its fruit is of the size of a lemon (malum citfinum), its taste is sweet like the Rdnij (nux Indica), and its kernel is used for many purposes. Ah^ Hanifah says in the Book of Plants : 'The Labakh only grows at Ansna. It is a tree from which ships' planks are sawn ; it sometimes excites nose-bleeding in the man who saws it ; and if two planks of it are fastened closely together and placed for a year in water, they join themselves together and become one plank.' In this monastery there are two towers built of stone, both high, large, and brilliantly white ; and within it there is also a well of running water, and outside another well. In this valley there are a number of old praying-places, one of which is the valley of Umailih, where there is a running spring and fruitful palms, the fruit of which is gathered by the Arabs. Outside this monastery there is a salt-marsh, the salt of which is sold by the monks of the monastery, so that these districts are provided with salt therefrom. 35. The Monastery of the Virgin Mary outside Tunbudhd contains only one monk, and does not stand on a frequented road. In the district of Al-Bahnasa there were many monasteries now destroyed. 36. Monastery of BH Fdnd, north of Bani Khalid, built of stone, and of fine architecture. It belongs to the district of Al-Munyah, and formerly there were a thousand monks here, but now only two ; it lies on the dam below the mountain. 37. The Monastery of Bdliijah, at a short distance from Al-Manhi, belongs to the inhabitants of Daljah, and was one of the largest monasteries, but is now ruined, so that it only contains one or two monks. It stands opposite to Daljah, at about two hours' distance. 38. Monastery of Saint Mercurius or Abii Marhiirah. This monastery stands ^ A juice with which children are fed (Wiistenfeld). APPENDIX. below Daljah, at the exit from this place towards the east. No one now remains there. 39. The Monastery of Sanabu, at the exit from this place towards the north, bears the name of the Virgin ]\Iary ; it is now deserted. 40. The Monastery of Saint Theodore^ to the south of Sanabu, has entirely fallen into decay on account of the poverty of the Christians there. 41. The Mojiastery of Ar-Rairarnwi, in the eastern part of the district of this place, which lies to the east of Mallawi and to the west of Ansina ; and it bears the name of the angel Gabriel. 42. The Mo7iastery of Al-Muharrah. The Christians state that Christ stayed at this place six months and some days. A great festival is kept here, called the feast of Olives, besides the feast of Pentecost, at which a great multitude assembles. 43. The Monastery named Dair Bam Kalb is so called because the tribe of the Banu Kalb settled around it. It bears the name of Gabriel, but no monk remains therein ; for it is now only a church for the Christians of Manfalut, to the west of which city it stands. 44. Monastery of Alfdwaliyah. This monastery stands at the extremity of the district of Al-Jawaliyah, towards the south, and bears the name of the martyr Mercurius, also called IMarkurah. It has revenues from land, and votive offerings and gifts are brought to it ; every year two festivals are kept there. 45. Monastery of the Seven Mountains. This stands on the summit of the mountain which rises to the west of Usyut on the banks of the Nile ; it is also called the Monastery of Saint John the Dwarf. Several festivals are kept here ; but the monastery was destroyed in a. h. 821 by a mob which fell upon it by night. Saint John the Dwarf was a monk and an abbot, of whom many stories are told; among others, that he at the bidding of his teacher planted a dry stick in the ground, and watered it for a time, and then it became a fruit-tree, of which the monks ate ; and it was called the Tree of Obedience. He is buried in his monastery. 46. The Monastery of AI-Mutilt. This bears the name of the Virgin IMary, and stands beside the mountain, below the ^Monastery of the Seven Mountains, opposite to Suyut. A festival is kept there, to which the inhabitants of the district come ; but no monks remain there. The Monasteries of Udrunkah. The neighbourhood of Udrunkah is one of the Christian districts of Upper Egypt ; and the Christians living there are learned in their religion and in expounding the Coptic language , and they possess many S s 2 3i6 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT, monasteries outside the city towards the east, beside the mountains; but most of these are destroyed. Among those still existing is 47. The Monastery of Saint George, a well-preserved building, but containing few monks. At certain times a festival is celebrated there. 48. Monastery of Ard al-Hdjiz (the district of the Dam), [also called] that of Michael or that of Karfunah, which bears the name of the Virgin, and is also named Arfunah or Aghrafuna, which means Scribe (ypa^coi/) ; for the copyists of learned books of the Christians had their seat here in ancient times ; it stands on the side of the mountain, in which there are many caves, in one of which a man may wander for two days. 49. Monastery of BU Baghdm, below that of Karfunah on the Dam. Bu Bagham was a soldier in the days of Diocletian, and adopted Christianity, and was scourged that he might abjure his faith. He was put to death on the 28th of Kanun the First, which is equivalent to the 2nd of Kihak. 50. Monastery of Saint Severus on the Dam of Udrunkah, named after the Virgin. Severus was a respected monk, who was made patriarch; and at his death a miracle took place. He had foretold to the monks, when he went to Upper Egypt, that when he should die the mountain would split, and a great piece of it fall upon the church, without injuring it ; and one day a piece of the mountain fell, as he had said, and then the monks of the monastery knew that Severus was dead ; and when they reckoned up they found that that event corresponded to the time of his death ; and they called the monastery from that time after his name. 51. Monastery of Saint Theodore, below the Monastery of Saint Severus. Severus and Theodore were two soldiers of Diocletian : one was called the slayer of the dragon, the other was commander of the troops ; both were put to death as others were put to death. 52. Monastery of Minshdk or Minsdk or Bant Sdk or Isdk, which bore the name of the Virgin Mariham, i. e. Mar Maryam (Saint Mary) ; and afterwards was known by the name of Minsak, who was an old monk celebrated among them. Below this monastery there is a well on the dam of which the monks drink ; and when the Nile rises they drink the water out of it. 53. The Monastery of the Apostles below that of Minsak is also called the Monastery of Tamarisks. It belongs to the district of Biitij ; while the IMonastery of Severus belongs to the inhabitants of Rifah, that of Karffinah to the inhabitants of Suyut, and that of Saint George to the inhabitants of Udrunkah. The Tamarisk monastery stood in a desert place, but a small village was built beside it, called APPENDIX, 317 Munsha'at ash- Shaikh (new building of the Shaikh), because the Shaikh Abii Bakr ash-Shadali laid the foundation of it ; and he also laid out a large garden, on the site of which he had found a well, containing a treasure. An eye-witness told me that, among the gold, four-cornered dinars were found, having a cross represented on one of their sides, and the weight of each dinar was ij mithkal. The above-mentioned Monasteries of Udrunkah stand near to one another, and between them are numerous caves in which there are tablets painted with characters in the old style, as in the ancient temples, adorned with different bright colours, and containing manifold learning. The Monastery of the Seven Mountains, that of Al-Mutill, and that of the Scribe stood outside Suyut among the caves, and on both the dams there are said to have been 360 monasteries, and the traveller went from Al-Badrashain to Asfun, continually in the shade of the gardens. Now this part is laid waste, and deserted by its inhabitants. 54. Monastery of Mushah. Mushah stands to the south of Suyut. The monastery is dedicated to Thomas, the Apostle of India, and stands amon||^he gardens in the neighbourhood of Rifah. When the Nile rises, it can only be reached by boat. It has several festivals. The Christians of these monasteries generally understand the Sahidic dialect of Coptic, which is the chief branch of the Coptic language; after it follows the Buhairic (Memphitic) dialect. The Christian women of Upper Egypt and their children can hardly speak anything but the Sahidic dialect of Coptic ; they have, however, also a perfect knowledge of the Greek language. 55. Monastery of Saint Macrohius. Abu Maki iifah is the name of the place where this monastery stands. It is hewn out at the foot of the mountain, and there are many caves in it; it bears the name of the Virgin. Among the Christians of Makrufah there are many shepherds and herdsmen, who however are usually savages, and few among them can read or write. The monastery lacks water. 56. Monastery of Bti Baghdfn, before Tima, the inhabitants of which are Christians, and were formerly learned men. 57. The Monastery of Saint Simithius, also called the White Monastery, stands to the west of the district of Sfihaj. It is built of stone, but is now in ruins, and only the church remains. It is said to have possessed land to the extent of 4f feddans, of which only one feddan is left. It is an ancient monastery. 58. The Red Monastery, also called that of Abia Bisha'i, stands to the north of the White Monastery, at a distance of about three hours, and is a small monastery built of red brick. This Abu Bisha i was a monk and contemporary 3i8 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. of Sinuthius, who was his pupil, and under him were 3,000 monks; he had another monastery also in the desert of Shihat. 59. The Monastery of Bu Misds or Bu Musis (Mwo-^y), i.e. Moses. This monastery stands below Al-Bulyana, and is a large monastery. This Saint Moses was a monk, born at Al-Bulyana, and is revered there, and counted a saint; they relate many histories of him which deserve no credit. After this there remain only the scantily-inhabited monasteries on the Dam of Isna and Nakadah. At Asfun there was a large monastery ; and Asfiyi itself was one of the finest towns of Egypt ; and the most fruitful district of Upper Egypt ; and the monks of the monastery there were famous for their learning and intelligence. With Asfun, its monastery also was destroyed ; and this was the most remote of the monasteries of Upper Egypt ; but they are all destroyed and forgotten, though in former times they were so populous and their monks so numerous, their estates so large, and the offerings made to them so valuable. ^s for the northern provinces, there were many monasteries there which have been destroyed; but some still remain. Near Al-Maks, outside Cairo, towards the north, there were several churches which Al-Hakim bi-amri 'llah Abft 'All al-Mansur caused to be destroyed on the 19th of Dhu '1-Hijjah, a. h. 393; and he gave away all that was in them, and thus much was plundered from them, after he had, in the month of Rabi' the First of the same year, already destroyed the churches of Rashidah, east of the city of Misr, and instead of them had built a mosque which is known as Rashidah. Then he destroyed in a.h. 394, two churches in the same place, and forced the Christians to wear black garments and a girdle, took away the possessions of the churches and monasteries and gave them to the Divan of the government, burnt a number of crosses, forbad the Christians to decorate the churches on Palm-Sunday, oppressed them and had many of them scourged. In the island of Raudah there was a church near the Kilometer, which was destroyed by As-Salih Nijm ad-Din Ayyub in a. h. 638. In the district of Abu 'n-Numrus there was a church, the destruction of which was suggested by a man from Az-Ziyali'ah, because he had heard the sound of the wooden gongs with which on the Friday night announcement was made in that church. During the reign of Al-Malik al-Ashraf Sha ban ibn Husain he had been able to do nothing against this on account of the respect in which the Copts were held; then he allied himself with the great Emir Barkuk, who was administrator of the government, until he destroyed the church with the help of the Cadi Jamal ad-Din Muhammad al-'Ajami, superintendent of the market at Cairo, on the 8th of Ramadan in the year ^780. It was turned into a mosque. APPENDIX. 319 60. The Monastery of Al-KJiandak (the Moat), beyond Cairo, towards the north, was built by the commander Jauhar instead of a monastery which he had destroyed in Cairo, in the neighbourhood of the mosque of Al-Akmar, where the well is which is now called Bi'r al-'Azama and was formerly called Bi'r al-'Izam (well of bones), because he had the bones contained in that monastery carried away and brought to the Monastery of Al-Khandak. On the 24th of Shawwal, A. H. 678, in the reign of Al-MaUk al-Mansur Kalaun, this monastery was destroyed, but afterwards it was renewed ; and he also built two other churches which shall, if God will, be described below among the churches. 61. The Monastery of Cyriacus. This monastery was also known by the name of Saint Or, and a festival is kept there at which the people assemble. A wonder took place there, related as follows by Ash-Shabushti. If a man had the scrofula {khandzir) the superior of the monastery took him, made him lie on his side, and brought a pig {khijizir) to him, which licked the sore place, and devoured the tumours, but without touching the healthy part ; when the part was clear of the disease, the superior, after strewing upon it some of the ashes of a pig which had already been employed for a similar operation, anointed the man with the oil from the church-lamp, and thus he was healed. Then the pig which had eaten the tumours of the sick man was taken, slain, and burnt, and its ashes were prepared for a similar treatment. The monastery therefore was much visited by those who suffered from this complaint, and it contained a large number of Christians. 62. The Monastery of Atrib, also called by the name of the Lady Mary, keeps a festival on the 21st of Ba'unah ; and Ash-Shabushti relates that on this festival a white dove comes and flies into the sanctuary ; they do not know whence it comes, and only see it on that day of the year. I remark that this monastery has been destroyed so that only three monks are left, but the people still assemble on that festival ; the monastery lies on the bank of the Nile, near Banha al-'Asal. 6.3. Mojiastery of Al-Maghtas (the Tank) is beside the saline marshes, near the lake of Al-Burlus, and hither Christians make pilgrimages from the north and south of Egypt, as to the Church of the Resurrection. This takes place on a festival kept in the month of Bashans, which they call the Festival of the Appearance, because they state that upon this day the Virgin appeared, and they relate many things which are to be accounted lies. Beyond this monastery there are no buildings except a small building towards the south-east; and in the neighbourhood is the salt-marsh from which the Rashidic (i. e. of Rosetta) salt is obtained. This monastery was destroyed in Ramadan, a. h. 841, during a rising of some fakirs who joined together for the purpose. 320 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. 64. The Monastery of Al-Askar (the Troops) is in the salt district, at a day's distance from the Monastery of Al-Maghtas, under the name of the Apostles ; in its neighbourhood is the salt-marsh from which the Rashidic salt comes ; only one monk remains. 65. The Monastery of Jamydnah, named after Saint George, is near the Monastery of Al-'Askar, at three hours' distance; the festival there falls closely after that of the Monastery of Al-Maghtas ; no one now lives there. 66. The Monastery of Al-Maimah, near that of Al-'Askar, was formerly in excellent circumstances, and in old times there was no monastery in the north which had more monks than this ; but its prosperity died away and it was destroyed ; then the soldiers settled there and it was rebuilt. Besides these four monasteries there is no other in the salt district. As for Wadi Habib, also called Wadi 'n-Natrun, or the desert of Shihat, or the desert of Askit, or Mizan al-Kulub, there were formerly there loo monasteries ; but afterwards only seven remained, spread out towards the west of the plain lying between the province of Al-Buhairah and the Fayyum, where sandy flats alternate with salt-marshes, waterless deserts, and dangerous rocks. The monks took their drinking-water from cisterns, and the Christians brought them presents and alms. At the present day the monasteries are in ruins. Christian historians relate that 70,000 monks from these monasteries met 'Amr ibn al- Asi, each carrying a staff ; when they had declared their submission to him, he wrote to them a letter which still exists among them. One of them is 67. The Monastery of Saint Macarius, the elder, a famous monastery among them, and near it lie four ruined monasteries. This was formerly the monastery of the pious monks, and a patriarch was not recognized by them until they had made him take his seat in this monastery, after he had sat upon the throne in Alexandria. It is said that there w-ere 1,500 monks here, but now there are few. There are three saints named Macarius : the greatest, who was abbot of this monastery, Saint Macarius of Alexandria, and Saint Macarius the bishop; and their bones are kept in three hollow pieces of wood, and are visited by the Christians of the monastery. Here is also the letter, written by 'Amr ibn al-'Asi to the monks of Wadi Habib, about the treasurership of the northern districts, as it has been related to me by one who had heard it from a man who had seen it there. Saint Macarius the elder received the monastic rule from Anthony, the first among them who wore the monkish cap and the Askim, which is a band of leather with which the monks alone gird themselves, and upon which there- is a cross. He met Anthony on the eastern mountain-range, where the APPENDIX. 3il Monastery of Al-'Arabah is, and remained for some time with him ; and then Anthony clothed him with the monastic habit and bid him go to Wadi 'n-Natrun and there take up his abode. He did this, and a great number of monks assembled around him. They relate of him many noble deeds, among others that he fasted during the whole of the forty days, without tasting food or drink, and also watched through the nights ; moreover he prepared palm-leaves and fed upon them, and never ate fresh bread, but he took old shoes, softened them in a mess of palm-leaves, and ate of them, together with his monks, so long as his breath remained, without anything more ; this was their food during their whole life until they died. Saint IMacarius the Alexandrian wandered from Alexandria to the aforesaid IMacarius, and became a monk through him. Next was Saint Macarius the third, who became a bishop. 68. The Monastery of Saint John the Dwarf is said to have been built in the time of Constantine, son of Helena. This Saint John possessed notable qualities, and was one of the most famous monks. The circumstances of this monastery were very favourable, and many monks lived there ; but now only three monks are left there. 69. Monastery of John Kamd^ 70. Monastery of Elias, which belonged to the Abyssinians ; both of these are destroyed, for the worms injured their wood-work, so that they fell to pieces. Then the Abyssinians went to 71. The Monastery of the Virgin of Saint John the Divarf which is a small monastery near that of Saint John the Dwarf. 72. Near these monasteries stands that of Saint Anfib, now likewise destroyed. This Saint Anub was a native of Samannud, and was put to death at the beginning of Islam, and his body is placed in a house at Samannud. 73. The Monastery of the Armenians near these monasteries is destroyed. 74. In their neighbourhood stands also the Monastery of Bii Bishd't, greatly revered among them, because this Bisha'i was one of the monks who belong to the class of Macarius and John the Dwarf. It is a very large monastery. 75. A monastery opposite to that of Bu Bisha'i formerly belonged to the Jacobites, but for 300 years has been in the possession of the Syrian monks, and is now in their hands. The place where these monasteries are is called Birkat al-Adyirah (Lake of the Monasteries). 76. Monastery of the Virgin of Baramiis, dedicated to the name of the Virgin Mary ; there are some monks there. 77. Opposite to it stands the Monastery of Moses or AbH Miisd the Blacky t t [II. 7.] 322 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. also called BaramUs ; this monastery is dedicated to the Virgin of Baramiis, so that Baramus is the name of the monastery. A story is told of it as follows : Maximus and Domitius were the sons of the emperor of the Romans, and had a teacher, called Arsenius; the teacher betook himself from the land of the Romans to Egypt, crossed this desert of Shihat, there adopted the monastic life, and remained there till he died. He was an excellent man, and both the aforesaid sons of the emperor came to him during his life, and became monks at his hands. When they died their father sent and had the church of Baramijs built in their name. — Saint Moses the Black was a bold robber, who had murdered loo men ; then he adopted Christianity, became a monk, and wrote many books. He is one of those who kept the Forty Days' Fast entirely without food, and he was a Berber by race. 78. Monastery of Az-Zajdj (Glass). This stands outside Alexandria, and is also called Al-Hdbatun (sic), and bears the name of Saint George the Great. Formerly it was the invariable custom for the patriarchs [at their election] to betake themselves from the Mu'allakah at Misr to this monastery of Az-Zajaj, but now this is not done. — The above named are the monasteries of the Jacobites. 79. The women have also special convents, as the Convent of Nuns in the Harah Zawilah at Cairo, which is inhabited by virgins leading the religious life, and other Christian women. 80. The Dair al-Bandt in the quarter of the Romans (Harat ar-Rum), at Cairo, inhabited by nuns. 81. The Convent of Al- Mu'allakah in the city of Misr is the most famous convent of women, and is inhabited by them. 82. The Convent of Saint Barbara in Misr is near the Church of Barbara, and is inhabited by virgins who are becoming nuns. Barbara was a saint in the time of Diocletian, who had her tortured that she might give up her religion and worship idols; but she remained constant in her faith, and endured severe torments. She was a virgin, and when he despaired of her, he had her head struck off and a crowd of women beheaded with her. 83. The Melkite Christians have a cell belonging to their patriarch beside the Church of Michael near the Bridge of Afram outside Misr ; it is the assembling- place for monks coming from the land of the Romans. 84. Monastery of Saint fohn the Dwarf generally called Al-Kusair. The correct pronunciation according to them is Al-Kasir, after the form shaMd, but it has been changed and is pronounced Al-Kusayyir. The Muslims call it APPENDIX, 3^3 Dair al-Kiisair (' IMonastery of the Small Fort '), as if it were a diminutive of 'kasr^ * castle ; ' but originally, as we have said, it was Dair al-Kasir, ' Monastery of the Dwarf,' the opposite of tawtl, ' tall,' and it is also called the Monastery of Heraclius, and that of the Mule. It has already been described above. It was one of the largest monasteries of the Christians, but now there is only one man in it to guard it, and it is in the hands of the Melkites. 85. Monastery of At- Tur. Ibn Sidah says: At-Tur means Uhe INIountain/ and is especially used of Tur Stnd (Sinai), the mountain in Syria. In Syriac it is turd, and in derivation we say Turt or Turd'i, 'a Turian.' Yakut says: There are seven places named Tur: (i) THr Zaitd, in pronunciation like ^^7/'/, * oil,' with final d : the name of a mountain near Ras 'Ain ; (2) Tur Zaitd^ likewise a mountain of Jerusalem, east of Siloah ; (3) Tur, name of a mountain rising above the city of Tiberias by the Jordan; (4) At-Tur^ name of a mountain in a district containing many towns or villages, in Egypt, to the south, between Misr and mount Faran ; (5) Tur Smd, which according to various statements is a mountain near Ailah, or a mountain in Syria; and Suid is said to mean stones or trees there ; (6) Tur 'Abdin, name of a mountain in the province of Nisibis, among the mountains which rise above this city, and are connected with mount Juda; (7) Tur Hdrun (i. e. of Aaron), the brother of Moses — Al-Wahidi says in his commentary : Al-Kalbi and others say that ' the mountain,' in the word of God 'but behold the mountain,' is the largest mountain in ]\Iidian, called Zabir. Al-Kalbi mentions that Tur has its name from Yatur the son of Ishmael; on which As-Suhaili remarks that the Ya perhaps has been dropped, if his statement is correct. 'Umar ibn Shaibah says : 'Abd al-'Aziz told me, [quoting] from Abii Ma'shar, from Sa'id ibn Abi Sa'id, from his father, from Abii Hurairah, that the Apostle of God said: There are four rivers in Paradise and four mountains and four battles ; the rivers are Saihan, Jaihan, the Nile, and the Euphrates ; and the mountains are Sinai (At-Tur), Lebanon, Uhud, and Warikan; as to the battles, he was silent. According to Ka'b al-Ahbar, the Muslims have three places of defence ; their defence against the Romans is Damascus ; that against Ad-Dajjal is the Jordan ; that against Yajuj and IMajuj is Sinai. Shu'bah says, quoting from Arta'ah ibn al-Mundhir : When Yajuj and Majuj marched forth, God declared to Jesus, son of Mary : See, I have caused one of my creatures to march forth, over whom none except me has any power ; therefore go now with thy companions to the mountain of At-Tur. Then he went thither accompanied by 12,000 followers. Talk ibn Habib heard Zur'ah say : I washed to march out to Sinai, so I came to 'Abdallah ibn 'Umar and told him this ; whereupon he repeated : To three t t 2 3^4 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. mosques the journey is difficult, to the Mosque of the Apostle of God (Medina), to the holy Mosque (Mecca), and to the most distant Mosque (Jerusalem); therefore now give up Sinai, for thou canst not reach it. — The Cadi Abii 'Abdallah Muhammad ibn Salamah al-Kuda'i says, after describing the districts of Egypt : To the southern region belong the localities of the Hedjaz, namely, the district of Sinai and Faran, the district of Raya and Al-Kulzum, the district of Ailah and its neighbourhood, Midian and its neighbourhood, Al-'Uwaid and Al-Haura and their neighbourhoods, and next the district of Bada and Shaghb. I remark : It is not disputed among Christian and Jewish writers that this Mount Sinai is that upon which or near which God instructed his prophet Moses. There is still there a monastery in the possession of the Melkites, peopled by monks, and owning a large garden with palms, vines, and other fruits. — Ash-Shabushti says: Tiir Sina is the mountain upon which the light appeared to Moses so that he lost his consciousness. The monastery on the summit of the mountain is built of black stone, the thickness of its walls is seven cubits, and it has three iron doors, and on the west side there is a small door, before which a stone is erected which they can raise at pleasure; and when any visitor approaches they let it down, and the place is covered by it so that the position of the door is not detected. Within the monastery there is ^ spring, and without it another spring. The Christians state that there is a fire in the monastery like that fire which was at Jerusalem, of which every evening an equal quantity is consumed; it is white, small, of no great heat so that it burns nothing, but it grows stronger when a lamp is kindled at it. The monastery is inhabited by monks, is visited by the people, and is one of the monasteries which have been celebrated by poets. Ibn 'Amir says of it — * O monk of the monastery ! whence the brightness and the light ? it shines from that which is in thy monastery At-Tur. Does perchance the sun dwell there, forgetting his zodiacal signs, or has the moon removed and hidden herself therein ? Then he said : Neither sun nor moon dwells there, but wine-flasks have been brought thither to-day.' I remark : Christian chroniclers relate that Justinian, emperor of the Romans at Constantinople, commanded the building of this monastery ; a strong fortress was built within it, in the upper story of which were many cells ; and a garrison, taken fromr.the Arab tribe of Banft Salih, was placed there to defend the monks ; in the time of this emperor the fifth council of the Christians assembled. Between this APPENDIX, 325 place [Sinai] and Al-Kulzum, which was a town, there are two ways, one by land and the other by sea, both leading to the town of Faran, one of the towns of the Amalekites, from which to At-T(ir there are two days' journeys : and from the city of Misr to Al-Kulzum there are three days' journeys. The mountain of At-Tur is reached by 6,666 steps ; in the midst of the mountain there was a church of the prophet Elias, and on the top a church bearing the name of Moses with pillars of marble and gates of brass; this is the place where God spoke with Moses, and the latter broke the tables. There was here only one monk for the service, and they state that none could pass the night here, but a place was prepared for him outside, where he passed the night. Nothing is now left of these two churches. 86. The Nuns Convent in the Kasr ash-Shama', at Misr, bears the name of Saint George; here, before Islam, was the Nilometer, of which there are traces to this day. These are all the monasteries possessed by the Christians, Jacobites, and Melkites, men and women, in Egypt ; their number reaches the sum of eighty- six, of which eighty-two belong to the Jacobites and four to the Melkites. 326 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. ACCOUNT OF THE CHURCHES OF THE CHRISTIANS. Al-Azhan says : The word Kanuah (church), or ' synagogue ' of the Jews, in the plural Kanais, is an Arabicised form, and the original form is Kunisht ^ Even the more ancient Arabs mention churches in their poems ; thus Al-Abbas ibn Mirdas al-Sulami says : 'They surround me in the shadow of every church; as long as my people passed the night in the churches.' And Ibn Kais ar-Rukayyat says : 'As if it were a picture painted in one of the churches.' 1. The Two Churches of Al-Khandak, without Cairo; one of which is named after the angel Gabriel; the other after Mercurius and also after Ruwais, the well-known monk who Hved after a. h. 800. Near both of these churches the Christians buried their dead, and the place is called the Burial-place of Al- Khandak. Both of these churches were built in the time of Islam to take the place of the churches of Al-Maks. 2. The Church in the Hdrah Zawilah in Cairo, a church revered by the Jacobite Christians, bears the name of the Virgin ; it is stated that it was formerly known by the name of the physician Zabilun, who lived about 270 years before the appearance of the Islamitic religion, was learned in many sciences, and possessed a great treasure reached through a well which exists here. 3. A Church known by the name of A l- Mug Mt hah in the Hdrat ar-RUm in Cairo bears the name of the Virgin. These two are the only churches that the Jacobites possess in Cairo. In the Harat ar-Rum there was another church, called the Church of Barbara, but this was destroyed in a. h. 718. The cause of this event was the Christians offered a petition to Al- Malik an-Nasir Muhammad ibn Kala'ijn, in which they begged for permission to restore that part of this church which had been ruined; he gave them permission, and they built the church so that it became more beautiful than it was before. This angered ' As Wiistenfeld pointed out, Kunisht is the Persian word; but the true original of the Arabic Kanisah, a is the Aramaic = * synagogue ' or ' meeting-house,' from JJ'JD ' to assemble.' (Syr. ))^A,aio ; late Hebrew riDp.D). APPENDIX. 327 a number of Muslims, who represented to the Sultan that the Christians had erected a new building beside this church, which had not been there before. He therefore charged the Emir and Treasurer 'Ilm ad-Din Sanjar, Wall jof Cairo, to destroy the newly-erected building; and the latter rode thither and found a crowd of Muslims assembled, who hastened to destroy the church altogether, as speedily as possible ; they erected in its place a Mihrab, announced the hours of prayer, and recited the Koran, all of their own accord, and they were not hindered for fear of an insurrection. After this the Christians were heavily oppressed; and they complained to the Cadi Karim ad-Din, Keeper of the Sultan's Pri\7 Purse, who stood up as the champion of the religion of his forefathers, and brought the matter constantly to the Sultan's notice, until the latter ordered the destruction of the Mihrab, which was thrown down, so that the place became a rubbish-heap, and so it has remained. 4. Church of Saint Mennas. This stands near the dam between the mounds of earth on the road from Misr ; it consists of three churches adjacent to one another ; one of the Jacobites, one of the Syrians, and the third of the Armenians. A festival is kept there every year, at which the Christians assemble in this church. 5. The Church of Al-Muallakah, in the city of Misr, in the quarter of Kasr ash-Shama', named after the Virgin ; it is highly revered among them, and is distinct from the above-mentioned Cell. 6. The Church of Saint Sinuthius in Misr, named after the ancient monk Sinuthius, of whom many things are related ; among others, that he was one of those who entirely abstained from food during the Forty Days' Fast ; under him there were 6,000 monks, who fed, as he did himself, on a mess of palm- leaves ; he wrote many books. 7. Church of Mary, near the Church of Sinuthius. This was destroyed by 'All ibn Sulaiman ibn *Ali ibn 'Abdallah ibn 'Abbas, Emir of Egypt, when he received the government from the Prince of the Faithful, Al-Hadi Musa, in a.h. 169; he also destroyed the churches of the Ward of Constantine, for the preservation of which the Christians offered him 50,000 dinars as a bribe, but he refused it. When he was removed, however, and IMusa ibn Tsa ibn Musa ibn Muhammad ibn *Ali ibn 'Abdallah ibn 'Abbas took his place in the caliphate of Harun ar-Rashid, the new governor allowed the Christians to rebuild the churches which 'Alt ibn Sulaiman had destroyed ; then they were all rebuilt in consequence of a decree of Al-Laith ibn Sa'd and 'Abdallah ibn Lahi'ah, who both declared that it was for the advantage of the town, and bore witness that the churches 328 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. at Misr had first been built under Islam in the time of the companions of the prophet and his first successors. 8. Church of Saint George of Ath-Thikat. This church stands in an alley of the quarter of Kasr ash-Shama' at Misr, which is called Alley of Ath-Thikat; not far from it is the Church of the Virgin of Saint George. 9. The Church of Barbara in Misr is large, and is celebrated among them ; it is named after Saint Barbara, a nun. In her time two other nuns were hving, Isa and Thakla; a great festival is kept in their honour at this church, and the patriarch is present at it. 10. Church of Saint Sergius near Saint Barbara, not far from the Hospital of Ibn an-Nu'man. There is a cave within it, in which Christ and his mother Mary are said to have sat. 11. Church of Babylon, south of Kasr ash-Shama', on the road of the Afram Bridge. This church is very old and small; below it the treasure of Babylon is said to be; its surroundings are in ruins. 12. The Church of Theodore the Martyr, in the neighbourhood of Babylon, is named after the martyr Theodore, the military commander. 1 3. The Church of Saint Mennas is also in the neighbourhood of Babylon. Both these churches are closed, on account of the ruins which surround them. 14. Church of Saint Mennas in the Hamra; the Hamra is now called the quarter of Kanatir as-Saba, between Cairo and Misr. This church was restored in a. h. 177 by permission of the Emir of Egypt, Al-Walid ibn Rufa ah ; thereupon Wuhaib al-Yahsubi was angry, rebelled against the Sultan, and came to Ibn Rufa'ah to assassinate him, but was seized and put to death; Wuhaib was a traveller from Yemen, and had come to Egypt. Then the Kara, in order to avenge Wuhaib, rose against Al-Walid ibn Rufa'ah, and fought against him. Ma'unah, the wife of Wuhaib, went round at night to the settlements of the Kara to rouse them to avenge his blood ; she had shorn her head, and was an eloquent woman. Then Ibn Rufa'ah seized Abu Tsa Marwan ibn 'Abd ar-Rahman al-Yahsubi from among the Kara ; he asked for mercy, and Ibn Rufa'ah set him free ; and subsequently the rebellion was put down after a great number had been slain. The church in the Hamra remained standing until the destruction of the churches took place in the days of Al-Malik an-Nasir Muhammad ibn Kala'ian, as it will be related, if it be God's will. 15. History of the Church of Az-Zuhri, and account of the destruction of the churches in Egypt, and of the monasteries of the Christians all at one time. The Church of Az-Zuhri stood at the place where now the Pool of An-Nasir APPENDIX, 329 is, in the neighbourhood of Kanatir as-Saba, on the western bank of the canal, west of Al-Lawak ; many events have taken place in connexion with this church. For when Al-Malik an-Nasir Muhammad ibn Kalaun had in a. h. 720 built the hippodrome of the Mahari Camels near Kanatir as-Saba , he wished also to erect an embankment on the chief branch of the Nile not far from the Mosque of Taibars ; he therefore commanded that a rubbish-heap which lay there should be carried away, and that the earth beneath it should be dug out for the sake of the embankment, and he caused the water to flow into the excavated place, which is therefore called to this day the pool of An-Ndsir. The excavation of this pool was begun on the last day of the month of Rabf I, a.h. 721 ; and when they brought it near to the Church of Az-Zuhrt at which many Christians had always dwelt, and beside which several other churches stood, on the spot now called Hakar Akbugha, between the Seven Wells and the Bridge of the Dam outside the city of Misr, then the workmen began to dig round the Church of Az-Zuhri, so that the latter remained standing in the middle of the spot which the Sultan had appointed for excavation and which is now the Pool of An-Nasir, and they continued to dig, until the church, as it were, hung in the air. The intention was that the church should fall without a direct attempt to destroy it. The general body of the slaves of the Emirs, who were working at the excavation, and the other workmen demanded, with incessant cries, permission to destroy the church, but the Emirs did not listen to them until Friday the 9th Rabf 11 of the same year, while the people were performing the Friday prayers, when the work of excavation was interrupted, and a body of the common people, without leave from the Sultan, crying out *God is Great!' attacked the Church of Az-Zuhri with axes and other tools, destroyed it and made a rubbish-heap of it, plundered the Christians who were there, and carried off all that was within it. Then they destroyed the Church of Saint Mennas in the Hamra, which had from ancient times been much revered by the Christians; a number of Christians dwelt there, who had established themselves there, and to whom the Christians of Misr brought all that was needed for the church ; they also sent there costly offerings and many alms, so that there was there a large treasure of coined money, golden vessels, and other valuables. The people climbed the walls, opened the gates, and took money, vessels, and wine-jars out of the church ; it was a terrible occurrence. Thereupon they went from the church in the Hamra, after they had destroyed it, to the two churches near the Seven Wells, one of which was called the Church of the Maidens, and was inhabited by a number of Christian U u [II. 7.] CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. girls and by monks ; they broke in the doors of the two churches, took captive the girls, of whom there were more than sixty, took off their clothes, plundered all that they could find, and burnt and entirely destroyed these churches. All this took place while the people were making their Friday prayers ; and when they came out of the mosques, they beheld with horror the clouds of dust, the smoke of the fire, the tumult of the mob, and the hurrying throngs of those who were carrying off the plundered objects, so that this horror could only be compared with that of the day of resurrection. The news of it spread, and quickly came to the sandy ground under the Castle on the Mountain; the Sultan heard a great tumult and noise which horrified him, and he sent to enquire into the cause of it. When he was told what had happened, he was much excited, and was angry that the people had undertaken to do the deed without his command. He ordered the Emir Aidughmish Amir-Akhur to ride to the spot with a detachment of pages, to put a stop to this disorder, and to seize those who had done the deed. While Aidughmish was making preparations to ride down, the news was brought from Cairo that the people of Cairo had risen and had destroyed a church in the quarter of the Romans and one in the quarter of Zawilah; and at the same time it was announced from IMisr that the people of Misr had risen in great numbers and had marched to the Church of Al-Mu allakah in the Kasr ash-Shama, which had then been shut up by the Christians who were besieged within it, but it was on the point of being taken. Now the anger of the Sultan increased, and he wished to ride down in person to attack the people, but he refrained when the Emir Aidughmish dissuaded him from the attempt. The latter went from the Castle with four Emirs to Misr; the two Chamberlains, the Emir Baibars and the Emir Alamas, rode to the place which had been excavated ; and the Emir Tinal rode to Cairo, each accompanied by a numerous troop. The Sultan had commanded that all whom they should capture among the people were to be slain, and none was to be pardoned ; so Cairo and Misr fell upon their knees, and the plunderers fled, so that the Emirs only caught those who were unable to move because they were overcome by the wine which they had drunk in the churches. The Emir Aidughmish now entered into Misr. The Wall had already ridden to the Mu'allakah to drive away those engaged in plunder from the street of the INIu' allakah, but, being received by a shower of stones, he had fled from them, and the gate of the church was on the point of being set fire to. Now the Emir^ Aidughmish and his followers drew their swords that they might fall upon the people, but when he found that there was an innumerable multitude and 0 APPENDIX. a narrow way of escape, he refrained from slaughter, bid his followers disperse the crowd without shedding blood, and proclaimed that any one who stayed behind should forfeit his life. Then the assembled crowd turned to flight and dispersed, but Aidughmish, fearing lest the people should return, remained there until the evening-prayer was proclaimed \ then he marched away, having ordered the Wall of Misr with his soldiers, to whom he added fifty of the pages, to pass the night on the spot. As for the Emir Alamas, he came to the churches in the Hamra and the Church of Az-Zuhri to defend them, but only rubbish-heaps were left of them, not a wall was standing; he returned therefore, and the other Emirs also returned and informed the Sultan, whose anger continued to increase ; but they did not leave him until he was pacified. At the destruction of these churches a wonderful event occurred. For when the people were assembled on that day in the IMosque of the Casde on the Mountain for the Friday prayer, and had just finished the prayer, a madman rose up and cried out in the midst of the mosque : * Destroy the church in the citadel, destroy it ! ' and when he had repeatedly cried out in this disturbing fashion, he fell into convulsions. The Sultan and the Emirs wondered at his words, and orders were given to the officer on guard and the chamberlain to investigate the matter ; so they both left the mosque, and when they came to the Ruins of the Tartars in the citadel, where a newly-built church stood, there were people employed in destroying it, and they had not finished their work when the news of the attack upon the churches in the Hamra and at Cairo arrived. Then the Sultan wondered yet more at that fakir, and caused search to be made for him, but no trace of him was found. In the IMosque of Al-Azhar too it happened that when the people were assembled that day for the Friday prayers, one of the fakirs fell into a sort of trembling, and when the hour of prayer was announced, before the preacher appeared, he stepped forward and said : * Destroy the churches of the enemies and unbelievers ! God is great ! God grant victory and help ! ' Then he began again to tremble, and cried out : ' Down to the ground ! Down to the ground ! ' The people looked at him and did not know what he meant; they were of various opinions regarding him, some saying, ' He is mad ; ' and others, * This means something.' When the preacher came forward the fakir ceased shouting, and at the end of the prayers he was sought for but could not be found; and when the people came out of the door of the mosque they saw the plunderers with the woodwork of the churches, the garments of the Christians, and other plunder, and when they asked about these things they were answered that the Sultan had proclaimed that the churches U u 2 332 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT, should be destroyed ; and the people believed this until they heard soon afterwards that all had happened without orders from the Sultan. The churches destroyed that day at Cairo were that in the quarter of the Romans, that by the Archers, and two churches in the street of Zawilah. On Sunday, the 3rd day after the Friday on which the destruction of the churches had taken place at Cairo and IMisr, the news came from the Emir Badr ad-Din Bilbag al-]\Iulisani, Wall of Alexandria, that on Friday the 9th Rabi' II, after the Friday prayers, a tumult had arisen among the people, and when they had quitted the mosque, the cry arose: *The churches are destroyed!' and that the Mameluke had at once ridden to the spot but had found the churches, four in number, already reduced to heaps; that he had also received by the pigeon-post a letter from the Wall of Al-Buhairah, announcing that at the town of Damanhur, while the people on that day were making their Friday prayers, two churches had been destroyed. The astonishment increased over these matters until on Friday, the i6th, news was brought from the town of Kus that while the people on the 9th Rabi' II had finished their Friday prayers, one of the fakirs had risen, and had said : ' O fakirs ! come out to the destruction of the churches!' but when they went out, followed by a crowd of others, they had found the churches already destroyed; and that at Kus and in its immediate neighbourhood six churches had been wrecked. Gradually information arrived from the southern and northern provinces, announcing the destruction of many churches and monasteries in all the districts of Egypt between Kus, Alexandria, and Damietta, which had taken place on the same day during and after the Friday prayers. The anger of the Sultan against the people reached its highest point, because he feared that even worse things would be done. The Emirs tried to soothe his anger, saying that matters of this sort could not have happened through human power, and that if the Sultan himself wished to under- take anything of the sort he would not be in a position to do so; but that it was a decree and ordinance of God, who knew the great corruption of the Christians and their increasing pride, so that that which had happened might serve as a punishment for them. While therefore the people of Cairo and Misr had become much afraid of the Sultan, because they had heard that he had threatened them with death, and* many of the lowest people had taken to flight, the Cadi and Army- Inspector Fakhr ad-Din tried to dissuade the Sultan from his intended attack on the people, and to reconcile him with them again, while Karim ad-Din al-Kabir, Keeper of the Privy Purse, incited the Sultan against the people. APPENDIX. 333 until the Sultan ordered him to travel to Alexandria for the purpose of raising money and of enquiring what churches were there destroyed. Scarcely a month had passed by since the destruction of the churches when in Cairo and IMisr fire broke out in many places, at which horrors occurred equal to those which followed the destruction of the churches. In a house of the Roast-meat-Vendors' Street in Cairo fire broke out on Saturday the loth Jumada I, and spread among the surrounding dwellings and lasted until the evening of Sunday; many buildings were destroyed. When this fire was extinguished, another arose in the quarter of Ad-Dailam in the street of Al-'Arishah, near the dwelling of Karim ad-Din, Keeper of the Privy Purse, on the 25 th Jumada I ; it was a windy night, and the fire spread on all sides, until it reached the house of Karim ad-Din. When the Sultan heard of this, he was much vexed, because a part of the Sultan's treasures was kept there, and he sent several of the Emirs to put it out, and they took with them a crowd of people which continually grew in numbers. From the night of Monday to that of Tuesday the fire had continually increased, and the Emirs with their followers could not extinguish it, because there was a strong wind by which lofty palms were overthrown and boats were dashed to pieces, and so the fire spread on all sides. The people were already convinced that the whole of Cairo would be burnt, and they mounted the minarets in order to call to prayer. The fakirs and pious men appeared and began to pray with the cry : ' God is great ! * but it was in vain, and the screams and weeping of men grew louder on all sides. The Sultan went up to the roof of the castle, but could not stay there on account of the strong wind; the fire lasted, and the Sultan repeated his command to the Emirs to extinguish it until Tuesday. Then the Sultan's Deputy went down and took all the Emirs and water-carriers with him ; and the Emir and Cupbearer Baktimur also went down ; it was a terrible day ; none more terrible has ever been seen. At the gates of Cairo guards were set to bring back the water-carriers if they tried to leave Cairo, in order to extinguish the fire ; not one of the water-carriers of the Emirs and of the city was spared, all had to work ; and they brought the water from the academies and baths ; all the carpenters and attendants of the baths were taken to pull down the houses, and in this time of necessity many lofty buildings and great houses were pulled down. At this fire twenty-four of the principal Emirs were working, besides an equal number of the Emirs of the band, the Decurions and the Mamelukes; and the Emirs themselves set their hands to the work. The water stood from the Gate of Zawilah to the quarter of Ad-Dailam hke a lake in the street on 334 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. account of the crowd of men and camels which brought water. The Emir and Cupbearer Baktimur and the Emir and Deputy Arghun were employed in carrying the Sultan's treasure from the house of Karim ad-Din to the house of his son in the Lead-workers' Street ; sixteen houses which partly touched the house or stood opposite to it had to be destroyed before they could rescue the treasure. The fire was not yet fully extinguished, the treasure was scarcely carried away, when a fresh fire broke out at the dwelling of Az-Zahir before the Zawilah Gate, which destroyed 120 houses; among which was a hall known as the Hall of the Fakirs. During the fire a strong wind blew ; then the Chamberlain and the Wall rode down to extinguish the fire, and caused a number of the surrounding houses to be pulled down until the fire was extinguished. Two days later a fire broke out in the house of the Emir Salar in the street between the two castles; it began in the air-passage which had been constructed 100 cubits above the ground ; but this was all destroyed before the fire was put out. Then the Sultan commanded the Emir and Treasurer 'Ilm ad-Din Sanjar, Wall of Cairo, and the Emir and Chamberlain Baibars to keep guard and to be watchful; it was proclaimed that in every shop a barrel or jar of water should stand, and a similar one in all streets, by-ways, and alleys. Through this the price of a barrel rose from one dirham to five, and the price of a jar to eight dirham s. A fire also broke out in the quarter of the Romans and in many places, so that no day passed without a fire in some place. The people now took heed to that which was befalling them, and came to the conjecture that the Christians were the cause of it, because the fire appeared in the pulpits of the mosques and the walls of oratories and schools ; they were therefore prepared at a certain fire, and they followed up the track of it until they found that it arose from naphtha rolled up in cloths steeped in oil and pitch. One Friday night in the middle of Jumada, two monks were captured coming out of the Academy of Al-Hakkariyah, and fire had just been set to the academy, and the smell of sulphur was still on their hands; they were brought to the Emir and Treasurer 'Ilm ad-Din, Wall of Cairo, who sent word to the Sultan, who ordered that they should be tortured. He had not come down from the castle before people met him, who had seized a Christian caught in the Mosque of Az-Zahir with rags in the form of an annular biscuit full within of pitch and naphtha; he had already thrown one of them down by the pulpit, and had stood by it until smoke rose from rt ; then he went to depart from the mosque ; some one, however, had noticed 0 APPENDIX. 335 him, and watched him from a place where the Christian could not see him; then he seized him, and the people came up in crowds and dragged him to the Wall's house ; he had dressed himself like the Muslims. He was then tortured before the Emir and Chamberlain Rukn ad-Din Baibars, and he confessed that a multitude of Christians had bound themselves to prepare naphtha and to spread it about by means of several of their followers, of whom he was one, and that he had been told to place it beside the pulpit of the Mosque of Az-Zahir. Thereupon it was ordered that the two monks should be tortured, and they confessed that they were among the inhabitants of the Monastery of the Mule, and had set fire to the places already described, out of hatred to the Muslims and to take revenge upon them for the destruction of the churches ; and that many Christians had joined together, and had collected a considerable sum to prepare this naphtha. Meanwhile Karim ad-Din, Keeper of the Privy Purse, had returned from Alexandria ; and the Sultan informed him of the capture of the Christians, where- upon he answered : ' The Christians have a patriarch with whom they consult, and who knows their dispositions.' Then the Sultan commanded to bring the patriarch to the dwelling of Karim ad-Din that he might speak with him of the fire, and the share of the Christians in kindling it. The patriarch came therefore under the guard of the Wali of Cairo by night through fear of the people, and when he had entered the house of Karim ad-Din, in the quarter of Ad-Dailam, and the three Christians had been brought from the dwelling of the Walt, they repeated to Karim ad-Din in the presence of the patriarch and Wali all that they had before confessed. When the patriarch heard the confession, he began to weep, and said : ' These are fanatical Christians, who wished to avenge themselves on the fanatical Muslims on account of the destruction of the churches.* Thereupon he was released by Karim ad-Din with ceremony, and found that Karim ad-Din had caused a mule to be kept in readiness for him at the door, so that he might ride upon it ; so he mounted and rode off ; thereupon the people were angry and fell upon him together, and if the Wali had not accompanied him he would have been slain. Next morning Karim ad-Din wished to ride, according to his custom, to the Castle, and when he came out of doors as usual, the people cried to him in the streets : ' It is not allowed, O Cadi, that thou shouldest take under thy protection the Christians who have burnt down the houses of Muslims, and shouldest let them ride upon mules.' These words angered him and increased his desire to do injuries, and when he came before the Sultan he tried to 336 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. represent the crime of the Christians who had been captured as slight, saying that they were fanatics and fools; but the Sultan bade the Wall increase the tortures. So the Wall went down and caused them to be severely tortured, so that they confessed that fourteen monks had conspired together in the Monastery of the Mule to burn down all the dwellings of the Muslims, and that among them there was a monk who prepared the naphtha ; that they had partitioned Cairo and Misr among themselves, so that eight came to Cairo and six to Misr. Then the Walt had the Monastery of the Mule surrounded and all its inmates seized; four of them were burnt at the cross- ways by the Mosque of Ibn Tulun on Friday, where a great crowd had assembled to see them. From this time the common people were enraged against the Christians, and began to insult them and tore their garments off them, so that every form of outrage was allowed, and such as exceeded all measure. Thereupon the Sultan grew angry, and formed the plan of making an attack upon the people. It happened that when he was riding on a Saturday from the citadel to go to the great hippodrome, he saw a great crowd of people who were filling the streets and shouting : ' God protect Islam ! Protect the religion of Muhammad ibn 'Abdallah ! ' He rode aside to avoid them, and when he reached the hippodrome, the Treasurer brought two Christians to him who had just been caught in the attempt to set fire to the houses; he com- manded that they should be burnt, whereupon they were led away, a ditch was dug, and they were burnt in the sight of the people. While they were yet employed in burning the two Christians, the Chamberlain of the Divan of the Emir and Cupbearer Baktimur, who was a Christian, came by, to reach the house of the Emir Baktimur. When the people saw him, they threw him from his beast, dragged off all his clothes, and carried him off to throw him into the fire ; then he repeated in a loud voice the two formulas of belief, confessed Islam, and was set at liberty. Meanwhile Karim ad-Din, clothed with a robe of honour, passed by the hippodrome ; but they drove him away with stones, and cried out : ' How long wilt thou protect and defend the Christians ? ' They mocked at him, so that he saw no way of escape except to return to the Sultan, who was still in the hippodrome ; the cries of the people were so loud in their anger that the Sultan could hear them. When Karim ad-Dtn came to him and informed him of what had passed, he was full of wrath, and asked the advice of the Emirs who were with him, such as the Emir Jamal ad-Din, deputy-governor of Al-Kark, the Emir Saif ad-Din al-Bubakri, the Cham- berlain Baktimur, and several others ; Al-Bubakri thought that the people APPENDIX, 337 * * and that it was best for the Chamberlain to go and ask them what they wanted before any step was taken. This view, however, did not please the Sultan, who turned away from him. Thereupon the Deputy-governor of Al-Kark said : * All this comes from the Christian secretaries, for the people hate them, and my advice is that the Sultan should take no step against the people, but should remove the Christians from the Divan.' This advice also displeased the Sultan, who said to the Emir and Chamberlain Alamas : ' Go and take four of the Emirs with thee, and cut the people down from the place where thou leavest the hippodrome until thou comest to the Gate of Zawilah, and strike with the sword among them from the Gate of Zawilah to the Gate of Victory, without sparing any ; ' and to the Wall of Cairo he said : ' Ride to the Gate of Al-Lawak and the neighbourhood of the river, and let none pass without seizing him and bringing him to the Casde, and if thou dost not bring those who have stoned my deputy (he meant Karim ad-Din), by my head I will hang thee instead of them ; ' and he sent with him a detachment of his body-Mamelukes. After a hesitation on the part of the Emirs to carry out the command, so that the matter became known, and they met no one, especially no slaves or attendants of the Emirs, then at last they set out ; the news was spread in Cairo, all the bazaars were shut, and an unheard-of sorrow fell upon the people. The Emirs went forth, but found on their long march not a single person until they reached the Gate of Victory; but the Wall at the Gate of Al-Lawak in the neighbourhood of Bulak and at the Water-Gate seized a crowd of rabble, sailors, and low people, by which action such fear was spread that a great number removed to the province of Al-Jizah on the western bank. The Sultan returned from the hippodrome and found on his way, until he reached the Castle, not one of the people; as soon as he arrived at the Castle he sent to the Wall, and told him to hasten to come to him ; and the sun was not yet set when he appeared with about 200 people whom he had seized. Then the Sultan made a division of them, and ordered that some should be hanged, others cut in two, others deprived of their hands ; then they all cried : ' O Lord, that is not lawful, it was not we w^ho stoned him.' The Emir and Cupbearer Baktimur and the other Emirs present wept out of sympathy with them, and did not quit the Sultan until he said to the Wall : ' Divide off a part of them and erect posts from the Gate of Zawilah to the Castle in the Horse-Market and hang them up by their hands.' Next morning, being Sunday, they were all hung up from the Gate of Zawilah to the Horse-Market, some of them being distinguished and well-dressed persons ; the Emirs who passed by them expressed X X [II. 7.] 338 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. sympathy with them, and wept over them. None of the shop-owners of Cairo and Misr opened his shop that day. Karim ad-Din left his dwelling to go to the Castle as usually, but he could not go past those who were hanged up, and so he took another way, not that through the Gate of Zawilah. The Sultan was already sitting behind a lattice, and caused a number of those whom the Wall had captured to be brought and the hands and feet of three of them to be cut off. The Emirs could not speak in their favour because his anger was too hot ; then Karim ad-Din entered, bared his head, kissed the earth, and begged for mercy; the Sultan at last yielded to his prayers, and ordered that the prisoners should work at the excavation at Al-Jizah. Then they were led away; but two of the mutilated had already died; and those who were hung up were taken down from the posts. While the Sultan still stood at the lattice, the cry of fire arose in the neighbourhood of the Mosque of Ibn Tulun, and in the Castle on the IMountain, in the dwelling of the Emir Rukn ad-Din al-Ahmadi in the street of Baha ad- Din, in the inn before the Water-Gate of Al-lNIaks and in the adjacent buildings. On the morning of this day three Christians had been caught, with whom cords steeped in naphtha were found, and when brought before the Sultan they con- fessed that they had caused the fire. The fire lasted at those places until Saturday, and when the Sultan, according to his custom, wished to ride to the hippodrome, he met 20,000 people who had coloured pieces of stuff blue, and had made a white cross upon them, and when they saw the Sultan they cried with loud and united voices : ' There is no religion except that of Islam ! God protect the religion of Muhammad ibn 'Abdallah ! O Malik an-Nasir, Sultan of Islam ! help us against the unbelievers, and do not protect the Christians ! ' The earth trembled with their terrible voices, and God filled the heart of the Sultan and the hearts of the Emirs with fear ; they continued their way, while he was deeply sunk in thought, until he came to the hippodrome. As meanwhile the shouts of the people did not cease, he held it best to act cautiously, and he bid the Chamberlain go out and proclaim that he who should find a Christian should demand money and blood from him. The Chamberlain went out and made this proclamation, and the people cried : ^ God protect thee ! ' and gave him their congratulations. The Christians then used to wear white turbans, so it was proclaimed at Cairo and Misr that any one who should find a Christian in a white turban should be allowed to kill him and to seize his g(^ods ; and a similar permission was granted to any one who should meet a Christian on horseback. A decree was issued that the Christians should wear APPENDIX. 339 blue turbans, and that none of them should ride a horse or a mule, but that they might ride asses with their heads to the tail; that no Christian might enter a bath without a bell round his neck ; and that none of them might wear the dress of the Muslims. The Emirs were forbidden to take Christians into their service ; the latter were removed from the Sultan's Divan, and it was commanded in all the provinces that all Christians holding office should be dismissed. The attacks of the Muslims upon the Christians increased so that the latter no longer walked in the streets, and a large number of them accepted Islam. Nothing had been said at this time of the Jews, and so the Christians began, when they wished to leave their dwellings, to borrow a yellow turban from one of the Jews, and to wear it so as to be safe from the people. Then it happened that one of the Christians in the Divans was owed 4,000 dirhams by a Jew, so he came by night in disguise to the Jew's house to demand the money ; then the Jew seized him and cried : ' Help from God and the Muslims ! ' and shouted so that people ran together to seize the Christian ; but he fled into the inner part of the Jew's house and hid himself with the wife of the latter ; he was, however, obliged to write a receipt stating that the Jew had paid him his debt, and then he was set free. Several Christians of the Monastery of Al-Khandak were accused of having prepared naphtha to set fire to the houses; they were captured and nailed up. A decree was issued that the people might safely be present when the Sultan rode to the hippodrome according to their custom ; this took place because they stood in fear of their lives on account of their having too frequendy attacked the Christians and overstepped all bounds. Now they became bold, came as usually to the neighbourhood of the hippodrome, offered good wishes to the Sultan, and began to cry : ' God protect thee. Ruler of the land ! we are spared, we are spared ! ' The Sultan heard this favourably and smiled at their words. At night a fire arose at the dwelling of the Emir and Chamber- lain Alamas in the Castle; the wind was strong, so that the fire took hold and reached the house of the Emir Itmish, and the inhabitants of the Castle and of Cairo were so much terrified that they believed that the whole Castle was burnt. More terrible events than these have never been heard of, for the Christians burnt the houses at Cairo in the Roast-meat -Vendors' market and the alley of Al-'Arishah in the street of Ad-Dailam, sixteen houses near the dwelling of Karim ad-Din, a number of houses in the quarter of the Romans, the house of Bahadur near the Chapel of Husain, some dwellings at the stable of At-Tarimah and in X X 2 340 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. the street of Honey, the palace of the Emir Silah, and the palace of the Emir Salar in the street between the two castles, the palace of Bishari, the Khan al-Hajar, Al-Jamalun, the hall of Al-Afram, the house of Baibars in the street of As-Salihiyah, the house of Ibn Al-Maghrabi in the street of Zawilah, many dwellings in the street of the Swallows' Well and at Al-Hakar, in the Castle on the Mountain, by several mosques and oratories and other buildings, which it would take too much space to mention. Among the churches, destruction was wrought on the church at the Ruins of the Tartars in the Castle of the Mountain, the Church of Az-Zuhri on the spot where the Pool of An-Nasir now is, the Church of the Hamra, a church near the Seven Wells, which is called that of the Daughters, the Church of Saint Mennas, the Church of Al-Fahhadin (the Trainers) at Cairo, a church in the quarter of the Romans, a church near the Archers, two churches in the quarter of Zawilah, a church near the Flag-Store, a church at Al-Khandak ; four churches in the frontier-city of Alexandria, two churches in the town of Damanhur Al-Wahsh, a church in the province of Al-Gharbiyah, three churches in the province of Ash-Sharkiyah, six churches in the province of Al-Bahnasa; at Suyut, Manfalut, and IMunyat Ibn al-Khasib eight churches, at Kus and Aswan eleven churches, in the province of Itfili one church ; in the market-place of Wardan in the city of ]\Iisr, in the quarters of Al-IMusasah and Kasr ash-Shama' at Misr eight churches. A great number of monasteries also were destroyed, and the IMonastery of the Mule and the Monastery of Shahran remained long deserted. These important events, such as could with difficulty be found a second time during a long series of years, took place in a short space of time ; so many persons perished, so much property was destroyed, and so many buildings ruined that for their muldtude they cannot be described. The end of all things rests with God ! 16. Church of Michael. This church was by the canal of the Bani Wa'il before the city of Misr to the south of 'Akabah Yahsub, and is now near the Bridge of Al-Afram ; it was newly built under Islam, and is of fine architecture. 17. Church of Mary, in the Gardens of the Vizier to the south of the Lake of Al-Habash ; it is empty, and no one goes there. 1 8. The Church of Mary, in the district of Al-'Adawiyah towards the south, is old, but already ruined. 19. The Church of Anthony, in the district of Bayad, north of Itfih, has been renewed. In the district of Sharnub there were many churches now destroyed; one of them is in the district of Ihrit on the mountain, two days to the south of Bayad, and still exists. APPEXDIX. 341 20. The Church of the Virgin, in the neighbourhood of Ashkar ; at its gate stands a tower built of large bricks, which is said to be the place where IMusa ibn 'Imran (ihe prophet Moses) was born. 21. Church of Mary, in the district of Al-Khusus : it is a house of which they have made a church, which, however, is neglected. 22. Church of Mary, Church of Al-Kasir, and Church of Gabriel ; these three churches stand in the district of Abnub. 23. Church of Asutir, which means [o-corr;p = ] the Saviour; this stands in the city of Ikhmim, and is much revered among the Christians ; it bears the name of the Martyrs, and there is a well there, the water of which, if it be put into a lamp, becomes of a deep-red colour Hke blood. 24. Church of Michael, also at Ikhmim. There is a custom among the Christians at these two churches that when they are keeping the Feast of Palms, also called the Feast of Hosanna, the priests and deacons go in procession with censers, incense, crosses, the gospels, and lighted candles, and stand before the door of the Cadi, and then before the doors of the most respectable Muslims, where they burn incense, read a passage of the Gospel, and sing a hymn, that is to say, praise him. 25. The Church of Saint Pachomius, in the district of Atfah, is the last church on the eastern bank. Bakhum or Pachomius was a monk at the time of Saint Sinuthius ; he is called the Father of the Community, because he increased the number of the monks and gave a teacher to every two monks. He did not allow wine or meat to be brought into his monastery, and he com- manded that the fast should be kept until the end of the ninth hour of the day; he gave his monks roasted chickpeas to eat, and they called them chick- peas of scarcity. His monastery has long been destroyed, but this church of his still exists at Atfa, to the south of Ikhmim. 26. The Church of ihe Evangelist Mark, at Al-Jizah, was ruined after A. H. 800 and then rebuilt. This ]\Iark was one of the Disciples of Christ, and founder of the patriarchal see of Egypt and Abyssinia. 27. The Church of Saint George, in the disirict of Bii 'n-Xumrus in [the province of] Al-Jizah, was destroyed in a. h. 780, as it has been related above, but afterwards restored. 28. The Church in the district of Bit Far a, on the farthest limit of the province of Al-Jizah. 29. Church of Sinuthius, in the district of Harabshant. 30. Church of Saint George, in the district of Bana, is celebrated among 342 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT, them; they bring thither votive offerings, and swear by it, and relate many remarkable stories of it. 31. Church of Saint Mar Hid, in the district of Shumusta. This Maruta is highly honoured among them ; he was a revered monk, and his bones are kept in a chest in the monastery of Bu Bisha'i on the plain of Shihat, and are visited even now. 32. Church of Mary at Al-Bahnasa. It is said that there w^ere 360 churches at AI-Bahnasa, which have all been destroyed, so that this church alone remains. 33. The Church of the Monk Sa??iuei, in the district of Shinarah. 34. The Church of Mary, in the district of Tunbuda, is old. 35. The Church of Michael^ in the district of Tunbuda, is large and old. There were here many churches now destroyed ; the greater part of the inhabitants of Tunbuda consist of Christian artisans. 36. The Church of the Apostles, in the district of Ishnin, is very large. 37. The Church of Mary, in the district of Ishnin, is old. 38. The Church of Michael, and 39. The Church of Gabriel also, in the district of Ishmn. In this district there were 160 churches, which have all been destroyed with the exception of the four above mentioned ; the greater part of the inhabi- tants of Ishnin are Christians, and they maintain themselves by keeping watch over the palm-trees. Further on there are still remains of churches in which they keep their festivals, as the Church of Saint George, that of MdrHtd, that of Barbara, and that of Gafril, fabrtl (Gabriel). 40. In Munyat ibn Khasib there are six churches, that of Al-MU alldkah, i.e. the Church of the Virgin, that of Peter and Paul, that of Michael, that of Saint George, that of Saint Paul of Tamwaih, and that of the three youths, namely, Ananias, Azarias, and IMisael, who were warriors in the time of Bukht Nasr (Nabuchadnezzar) and worshipped God in secret ; when they w^ere dis- covered Bukht Nasr wished to bring them back to the worship of idols, and when they refused this he had them thrown into prison for a long time that they might be perverted ; but they would not, and so he had them brought out and cast into the fire, which, how^ever, did not burn them. The Christians hold them in great honour, although they lived long before the time of Christ. 41. Church in the district of Taha in the name of the Disciples of Christ, w^ho are called by them Apostles. 42. Church of Mary ^ also in the district of Taha. 4^. The Church of the Two Wise Men, in the district of IManhari, keeps a great festival in the month of Bashans at which the bishop is present, and a great APPENDIX. 343 fair is held at the festival. These two wise men are Cosmas and Damian, the two monks. 44. The Church of the Virgin, in the district of Bu Karkas, is old and large. 45. In the district of ^Mallawi there is the Church of the Apostles, and two ruined churches, one named after Sai7it George and the other after the angel Michael. 46. In the district of Daljah there were many churches of which only three are left ; the Church of the Virgin which is large, that of Sinuthius, and that of Saint Mercurius ; they (the others) are entirely destroyed. 47. In the district of Sanabia is the Church of Saint Paul and that of Saint George ; Sanabu numbers many Christians. 48. In the district of Bibla'u, to the north of Sanabu, there is an old church on the western side of the city named after George; there are many Christians who practise agriculture. 49. In the district of Darut there is a church near the town, like a monastery, and named after the IMonk Serapion who lived in the time of Sinuthius and was elected bishop ; many things are told of him. 50. In the district of Biik Bani Zaid there is a large church named after the Apostles, in which a festival is kept. 51. In the province of Kus is the Church of Mary and that of Gabriel. 52. In the district of Damshir is the Church of the Martyr Mercurius; it is old and there are many Christians there. 53. In the district of Umm al-Kusiar is the Church of Saint fohn the Dwarf, which is old. 54. In the district of Ballut, on the frontier of the district of INIanfalut, is the Church of Michael, which is small. 55. In the district of Al-Balagharah, on the borders of Manfaliit. is a small church, inhabited by the priest with his family. 56. In the district of Shakalkil are three large old churches, named respec- tively after the Apostles, Michael and Saint Mennas. 57. In the district of IMunsha'at an-Nasara is a church of Michael. 58. In the town of Suyut is the Church of BU Sadrah (i. e. St. Theodore) and that of the Apostles ; and before the town is the Church of Saijit Mennas. 59. In the district of Udrunkah there is a very old church named after the three youths Anajiias, Azarias, and Misael ; it is a school for poor Christians. The inhabitants of Durunkah are Christians, and understand the Coptic language, which is the means of communication there both for children and adults, and they are able to explain it in Arabic. CHURCHES AXD MONASTERIES OF EGYPT, 60. In the district of Rifah al-Gharbi is the Chuj'ch of Saint Coluthus, who was a physician and monk, and performed wonderful cures of inflammation of the eye ; a festival is held in his honour at this church. There is also a Church of Michael here. Worms have already gnawed away one side of [the church at] Rifah al-Gharbi. 61. In the district of Mushah there is a church built over a bath, in the name of the martyr Victor ; it was built in the time of Constantine, son of Helena, and has a terrace ten cubits wide, and three domes, each of which is about eighty cubits high; the whole is built of white stone; but the western half is already fallen. It is said that this church stands over a treasure which lies beneath it; and it is said that there was a passage under the earth from Suyut to this town of Mushah. 62. In the district of Bukur, at the border of Butij, there is an old Church dedicated to the martyr Claudius, who stands among them on a par with Mercurius, Georgius i.e. Bfi Jurj, the commander Theodorus. and Mina'us. The father of Claudius was one of the prefects of Diocletian, and he was himself celebrated for his bravery. When he became a Christian, the emperor had him seized and tortured that he might return to the worship of idols, but he remained steadfast until he was killed. Many things are related of him. 63. In the district of Al-Kati'ah there is a Church named after the Virgin, where there was a bishop named Alduwm, who had a quarrel with his own party, so that they buried him alive ; they are among the worst Christians, and are notorious for their wickedness. There was among them a Christian named George, son of the Nun, w^ho overstepped all bounds, so that the Emir and IMajordomo Jamal ad-Din cut off his head in the reign of Al-]\Ialik an-Nasir Faraj ibn Barkuk. 64. In the district of Butij there are several ruined churches ; and the Christians are accustomed to say their prayers secretly in one of their houses, and when day breaks, they go out to the ruins of a church, there erect an altar of palm-stems in the form of a cage, and perform their devotions. 65. In the district of Bu Makrufah there is an old Church dedicated to Michael, where two festivals are kept yearly. The inhabitants of that district are Christians, chiefly shepherds, and are people of a low class. 66. In the district of Duwainah there is a Church named after Saijit John the Dwarf, who is much revered among them ; there lived there a man named Jonas, who was elected bishop, and was celebrated for his knowledge, in several sciences; they were irritated against him for envy of his knowledge, and they buried him alive, but his body had already ascended to heaven. APPEXDIX. 345 67. In Al-^Iaraghah, between Tahta and Tima, there is a church, and in the district of Kilfa'u a large church. The Christians of this place are celebrated for their knowledge of magic and kindred sciences, and there was there, in the reign of Al- Malik az-Zahir Barkuk, a deacon named Absaltis, who possessed great skill in them, and stories are told of him which I prefer not to repeat on account of their strangeness. 68. In the district of Farshut there is a Church of Michael and a Church of the Virgin Mary. 69. In the city of Huw there is a Church of the Virgin and a Church of Saint Mennas. 70. In the district of Bahjurah there is a Church of the Apostles, and at Isna a Church of Mary ^ a Church of Michael, and a Church of fohn the Baptist, i.e. Yahyd ibn Zakariyd. 71. At Nakadah there is a Church of the Virgin, a Church of fohn the Baptist, a Church of Gabriel, and a Church of fohn the Compassionate. The last was a rich man of Antioch, who became a monk, divided all his goods among the poor, and travelled through the world ; and he confessed the Christian religion. His father consoled himself on his son's account, and it was believed that he was dead. Afterwards he came back to Antioch in such a condition that no one knew him ; he lived in a cell on a dunghill, and fed upon that which was thrown upon the dunghill until he died. At his funeral his father was present and recognized the cover of his book of the gospels, and on further examination found that it was his son ; so he buried him, and built in his name the Church of Antioch and that of the Virgin in the town of Kiffc. 72. At Asfun there were several churches which were destroyed with the town ; in the town of Kus also there were many monasteries and churches which were destroyed with the town, so that only one Church of the Virgin is now remaining. Besides the churches hitherto mentioned by us there is none remaining in the southern provinces. As for the northern provinces there is at IMunyah Surad in the district of Cairo a Church of the Virgin Mary, which is famous among them ; in the district of Sanduwah a new church named after Saint George; at IMarsafa a restored church also named after Saijit George; at Samannud a church named after the Apostles, built in a house ; at Sanbat a church celebrated among them and named after the Apostles ; at Sandafa a church revered among them and named after Sai7it George; at Ar-Raidaniyah a Church of the Virgin, highly revered among them. At Damietta there are four Churches, of the Virgi?i, Michael, fohn the Baptist, and St. George, which are celebrated among them. In the district y y [IT. 7.] 346 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. of Subk al-'Abid there is a church in a hidden house, named after the Virgin; at Al-Nahrariyah there is a new church in a hidden house ; at Lukanah there is a Church of Saint John the Dwarf; at Damanhur there is a new church in a hidden house, named after Michael. At Alexandria is the Church of Al-Muallakah named after the Virgin, the Church of Saint George, the Church offohn the Baptist^ and that of the Apostles. These are the churches of the Jacobites in Egypt ; and they have also at Gaza a Church of Mary and at Jerusalem the Kumdmah (i. e. Church of the Holy Sepulchre, or rather a chapel in it) and the Church of Zion. As for the Melkites, they possess at Cairo the Church of Saint Nicholas near the Archers, and at Misr the Church of the Angel Gabriel in the quarter of Kasr ash-Shama', where the cell of their patriarch is, the Church of the Virgin also in the Kasr ash-Shama', the Church of the Angel Michael near the Church of Barbara at Misr, and the Church of Saint fohn in the quarter of the Monastery of At-Tin. I. INDEX OF CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES IN EGYPT, ' ACCORDING TO ABU SALIH, enumerating not only the churches contained within the walls of monasteries, but also the satellite churches or chapels. It is assumed that each monastery must contain one church if more are not named. It must be remembered that the churches and monasteries of the greater part of Lower Egypt, Cairo, and the Wadi Habib are not described, although some of them are incidentally named, in the existing portion of the work. The folios of the original MS., marked at the side of the text and translation, are here given. Place. No. of Churches. No. of Monasteries. Folio of MS. Abtujah .... 4 73 b Abu 'n-Numrus, see Bunumrus Al-'Adawiyah . 3 I 44 a, 46 b, 48 a Aflali az-Zaitun 7 I 72 b Ahnas .... 2 I 92 a Akfahs .... 6 I 80 a, 91a Alexandria I 80 a Andariba, Mount, see Atribah Ansina .... 5 5 79 b, 86 b, 87 a, 92 a Anthony, Monastery of Saint I I 54 a ff. Al-'Arish .... 2 56 b Armant .... I 102 b Ashrubah .... 8 75a Asiout, see Usyut Assouan, see Uswan Athlidim .... 5 92 a Atribah, Mount . I 82 b Bahjurah .... I 81 a Al-Bahnasa 15 73 b, 74 b, 75 a Al-Bahnasa, Oasis of . 3 I 75 a, 93 a &b, 94 a Bahumalis 5 73 b Bakik, Island of 2 104 a y y 2 348 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. Place. Balujah Bana Busir Bardanuhah Barjanus . Al-Barnil . Al-Basatin Bilak, see Philae Bisus Brothers, IMonastery of th( Bu Haruk . Bulak [Dakrur] Bulyana . Bunumrus or Kasr Khakan Busir Band [or Wana] Busir Kuridus . Al-Bustan, see Al-Basatin Butij Cairo . . . . Cairo, Old, see Fustat Misr Dahshur . Dair at-Tinadah Dalas Daljah, District of Damamil . Damanhur Damiah . Darwat as-Sarabam . Devils, ]\Ion. of the, see Torch Dimnu .... Dogs, Mon. of the, see Vine- dresser Ekhmeem, see Ikhmim Elephantine, see Uswan, Island of Esneh, see Isna Fanu ^nd Nakalifah,Districtof Fa u . ' . No. of Churches. I I I 24 I I I 2 No. of Monasteries. Folio of MS. 56 a 18 a, 69 a 74 a 86 a 56 a I b, 2 a, 3 a, 4 b, 76 a 73a 104 b 60 b 8ia 60 b 17 b, 68 b 92 b 91 a 5 a, 23 b 53b 90 a 91 a 78 a, 91 b 102 b 45 b 66 b 77 b 86 a 72 b, 73 a 103 b Place. Fayyum, the . Fayyum, City of the, see Madi- nat al-Fayyum Funkus .... Fustat ]\Iisr and suburbs . Ghizeh, see Al-Jizah Al-Hamra, Churches of, see Fustat ]\Iisr Al-Hanadah. jMon. of, see Rifah Helouan, see Hulwan Honey, ^lon. of, see Munyah Bani Khasib Hulwan .... Ibkah .... Ibsha'i, Mon. of, see Usyut Ibsidiya .... Idfak .... Idrijah .... Ikhmim (at or near) . Iknfi .... Ishnin .... Isna .... Itfih .... Jabal Ashtar or Halaliyah . Jalfah . . . . Al-Jimudat Al-Jizah .... Al-Jizah, Province of. Al-Jummaizah . Al-Kaff, Mount of, At-Tair Al-Kais or Dafu . * ' . Kalamun .... Al-Kalandimun . Kalusana .... Kamulah .... INDEX I. A^o. of Churches. No. of Monasteries. Folio of MS. 35 18 b, 70 a (under Omeyyads) I 77a 37 5 23 b ff., 29 b flf. 2 3 52 b J I 1 01 a J I 90 a I ... 74b T X 1 0 d, U9 L) 70 3 86 a (before a.h. 552) I 82 a 12 91a I 102 a 20 56 a till endofi2th cent,) I 77b 4 73b, 74a I I 84 a 6 2 59 a ff. 50 65 a I I 55 b I 91 a & b 1 2 71b 9 92 a 2 92 b 9 104 a 350 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGFPI. Place. No. of Churches. No. of Monasteries. Folio of MS. JA-dllclIl .... 2 2 103 D A I rv o r~v 7- o 1*0 ri c^/>/y H 11 c4-o ^ IX.'T 1 c^t" /\.i-x^diiuard.ii, ,yft rubijau iviisr jA-diiunan, ivion. oi I I sin. n 09 a j^doi xviidKdii, see jjunuiiirub Al-Khaizaraniyah I 00 a , 47a, 59a, 62a, 67b, I 80a. 70b, 72a, 75b, 81 b, 82a, 1 Huhvan, 52 a tf., 67 a, 70 b. 88 a, 89 b, 90 b, 96 a. | Gisr al-'Ajuz, see 'Wall of the Old Woman.' Greek, Liturgy recited in, in Nubia, 99 a. Green Nile, 95 a. Al-Habash, Lake of, 7 b, 39 b, 41 a. Habash, District of, 41b, 43 b. Ha it al-'Ajuz, see 'Wall of the Old Woman.' Ha it al-Hujuz, see Ha'it al- 'Ajuz. Hajar Lahun, 18 a, 69 b. 70 a, 71 b. Hamdan, tribe of, 59 a. Al-Hammam, Fort of, 22 a. Al-Hamra, 23 b, 24 a, 26 a, 29 a. — Church of, see George, Saint. Hamras, the three, 29 a & b. how built, 32 a &b. Al-Hamra ad-Dunya, 29 a & b, 32 a & b. — al-Kuswa, 29a&b, 32 a &b.* — al-Wusta, 29a&b, 32a & b. Harah Zawilah, see Zawilah. Harah Zuwailah.j^'^ Zawilah. Harat al-Arman, see Arme- nians, quarter of. — ar-Rijm, see Romans, quarter of. Harran, 64 b. Hauf Ramsis, 8 a. Hawi, gardens of, 32 b. Heliopolis, 23 b. z z 2 Ibkah, I\Ionasteryof,bet ween Us wan and lyus, loi a. Ibrim, City of, 96 a & b. Ikhmim, 70 b, 82 b. — spring near, 92 b. Al-Ikran, 108 a. India, 105 a, 107 a, 108 b ff. — conversion of, to Chris- tianity, 109 a. — identical with Abyssinia, 108 b. Indian tree, at Isna, 102 a. Al-'Irak, 112 a. — redbrickemployedin,95b. Ishnin, 76 a. Iskandariyah,j'tr Alexandria. Isna, meaning of name of, 102 a. Israelites in Abyssinia, 1 06 a. — crossed Red Sea at Bahr Suf, 58 b. Istabl al-Fil, Street (Alley) of, 6 b, 32 a. I Istakhr (Persepolis). 112a. 1 Isthmus (of Suez), 19 b, 58 a. I Itfih. 2 b, 10 a, 47 a, 54 a. 1 Al-Itfihiyah, Province of, 8 b. I Jabal al-'Atash, j-^t-Al-'Atash. — al-Kabsh, see Al-Kabsh. — al-Kaff, see Al-KafT. — al-Kahf, see Al-Kaiif. — at-Tair, see At-Tair. — Yashkur (ibn Adwan ibn Lakhm), see Yashkur. Al-Jadidiyah,Provinceof.8a. Janan ar-Rihan, 21a. Jarjar. the river, 108 a. Jaubah, name of theFayyum, 18 b. 70 a. 356 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. Jazirah Bani Nasr, Province of, 8 a. — Kusaniya, Province of, 8 a. — al-Ushmfinain, '76 b. Jerusalem, 2 b, 3 a, 58 a. — capture of, 'by Augustus,' 57 b. — Armenian church of St. Sergius at, 3 a. — Armenian monastery of St. James at, 3 b. Jew, conversion of, to Chris- tianity, 44 b, 45 a. Jewish cemetery, 43 b, 44 a. Jews, 9 b, 15 a. — none at Usyfit, 87 b. Jibt (AiywTTToy), name of capital of Egypt, 23 b. Jisr al-'Ajuz, see 'Wall of the Old Woman.' Al-Jizah, 59 a & b, 60 a. Al-Jiziyah, Province of, 8 b, 44b, 46b, 53b, 59 a, 63b, 64 a, 65 a. Al-Jiida, Mount, 1 1 1 b. Al-Kabsh, Hill of, 32 b, 35 a. Al-Kaff, Mount of, 75 b, 76 a. Al-Kahf, Mount of, 86 a. Al-Kahirah, see Cairo. Al-Kais, 53 a, 54 a. — tribe of, 33 a. Al-Kalis, church so called, at Sana, nob. Kalyub, lob, 12 b, 13 a. Al-Kantarah, 23 b, 32 b, 52 a, '58 b. — also called Al-Hamra al- Wusta, 29 b. Al-Karafah at Misr, origin of name of, 42 a. — tribe. of, 22 b. Karda, Mount, nib. Al-Karubis, Land of, loi a. Karun, Pool of, 26 a, 32 b. Kasr ash-Shama', 2 1 a, 44 a, 60 b, 112 b. Al-Khaimatal-Kibliyah,46b. Al-Khalij, see Canal. Khalij Amir al-Muminin, see Canal of Prince of the Faithful. Al-Khaluk, Mosque of, 32 b. Khams Mudun, 21a. Al-Khandak, 45 b, 98 b. Al-Kharibah, at Usyut, 88 a. Kharij, 17 b. Khaukhah, see Passage. Khauliya, City of, 112 a. Khorassanians fought a- gainst Marwan II, 60 a, 92 b. Kift, 7 b. Kir{in, City of, 112 a. Kubbat al-Hawa, 52 a. Kulam, nob. Al-Kulzum, 19 b, 24 a. — canal from Cairo ends at, 58 a. — desert of, 54 a. — origin of name of, 24 a, 58 a. — Pharaoh drowned at, 58 a. Kurds, 2 a & b, 7 a, 25 a, 26 a, 31a, 47a, 59a, 62 a, 67b, 70b, 72 a, 75b, 81 b, 82a, 88a, 89b, 90b, 96 a. Al-Kurun, Mosque of, 34 a. Kus, 81 a, 96 b. — derivation of name of, 81 a. — wall of, 81 b, 82 a. Kiis Kam, Jesus Christ at, 78 b. Lahf al-Jabal, 65 a. Lahun, see Hajar Lahun. Lawatis, the, 33 a, 98 a. Libya, 57 a. Libyan Mountains, 65 a. Al-Luniyah, name of Egyp- tian Babylon, 21b. Luxor, 104 b, 105 a. LuzariMn, town of, near Carthage, 108 a & b. Lydda, relics of Saint George at, 93 b. Madinat al-Hajar, 17 a. Madinat al-Kuhhan (i.e. Manbaj or Hierapolis), 22 b. Madinat ash - Shams, see Heliopolis. Maghir ath-Thilj, church so called at Darwah, 77 b. Al-Maghrib, West Africa. Al-Maja'iz, 32 b. Al-Majnunah, aqueduct of, 24 a. Al-Maks, 95 a. Manafah, original name of Memphis, 68 a. Manbaj (Mabug, Hierapo- lis), 22 b. Al-Manbaji, History by, see Mahbub ibn Kustantin. Manf, see Memphis. Al-Manhi, Canal of, 18 a, 69 b, 70 a. Al-Manufiyah, Province of, 8 a. Al- Maris, Province of, 94 a, 96 a. Al-Mariyah, 107 b. Market-place of Barbar, 22 b. — Wardan, 32 a & b. Marur ad-Dair in Yaman, nib. Maryut, 29 b. Mecca, 24 b. — dearth at, 58 b. Medina, 24 b. — dearth at, 58 b. INDEX II. 357 Memphis, 64 b, 65 a, 66 b, 67 b, 68 a. — origin of name of, 68 a. Miriam, Pool of, 56 b. ]\Iisr,Cityof,j'£'^ Fustat Misr. — Island of, 33 b, 64 a. Moon, Mountains of, 26 b, loi a. Mountains to West of Nile, 49 a. Al-Mu'allakah, Church of, in Misr, 9 b, 11 b, 31a, 39 a, 112 b. Al-Muharrakah, origin of name of, 79 a & b. Al-Maksam, bank of, 24 a. Mukattam Hills, 22 b, 35 a, 52 a & b. origin of name of, 48 b. Al-]\Iukurrah, 94 b, 99 a. — king of, 105 a. Munyah Bani Khasib, 77 b. — Bii Kais, a name of M. Bani Khasib, 77 b. Munyatash-Shammas, 46b, 65 b, 66 b. — as-Sudan, 44 a, 53 a. — al-Umara, 34 b. Al-Murtahiyah, Province of, 7b. ^ * Al-Muzahamiyah, Province of, 8 a. Al - Bahr al - Muzallam, see Sea of Darkness. Nahur, 78 a. Nakadah, 7 b. NakyQs, 29 b. An-Nastarawiyah, Province of, 8 a. Natfi, 98 a, loi a. Nawasa, District of, 71a. Nestorian burying-places, 44 a. Nestorian monastery at Misr, 42 b ff.; at Al- 'Adawiyah, 46 a. Nicaea, Council of, 1 2 a, 5 5 b. Nile, fish of, 19 b. — inundation of churches by, 41 b, 59 b. — length of, 26 b. — rise and fall of, 1 8 b, 20 a, 26b, 41a, 64b, 76b, 95 b, 102 b. — rise of, hastened by pray- ers of Christians, 60 a. — riseof,intheFayyum,69b. — sources of, 26 b, 10 1 a. — Black, loi b. — White, loi b. — Yellow, 10 1 b. Nineveh, see Fast of Nineveh (cancelled by Ibn al- Kanbar, 1 5 b). Nitre, Lake of, 20 a. Nubia, 94 a ff. — conversion of, 96 a. — letters from, 106 b. — under jurisdiction of Alexandrian see, 99 a. — provinces of, 99 a. Nubian characters, 98 b. Nubians invade Egypt, 97 a. Oases, The, 8 1 a, 8 7 b, 93 a ff . Kift buried in, 103 a. Passage of Al-Istabl, 32 a. Pentapolis, 21a. Persepolis (Istakhr), 112a. Persia, 112a. — contiguous to India, 108 b. Persians, 57 a, 60 a. Philae, Island of, 100 b. Rabi'ah, tribe of, loi b. Ramlah, 18 b, 70 a. Ras al-Manhi, 70 a. Rashid, see Rosetta. Raudah, Island of, 58 b. Rayan, Valley of, 72 b. Red Sea, 58 a. Rhoda, Island of, see Raudah. Ar-Rif, see Delta. Rifah, 74 b. Romans, in North Africa, 107 a. — Church of the, at Al- Kantarah, 52 a, cf. 53 a. — quarter of the, 5 a, 6 a, 2 3b. — sea of the, 19 b. Rosetta, 8 a. Rum, sea of, see Romans, sea of the (19 b). As-Sadir, 58 b. Sailah, 73 a. As-Sa'ir, bank of, 34 b. Sakifat as-Sari, 32 b. Sakiyah Musa, 92 a. Salt-lakes, 20 a. Samalus, Arab tribe of, 20 a. Samannud, 57 b, 73 a. As-Samannudiyah, Province of, 8 a. Samaritan cemetery, 43 b. Samaritans, 9 a. San'a, nob, 112a. Sanbat, 13 a. Sandal, pavilion of, 27 b. Sanhfir, 44 b. Sarandib, see Ceylon. Sardus, Canal of, 23 a. Sea of Darkness, 49 a, 54 a, 65 a. — Hedjaz, 58 a. — Syrian, 58 a. Sebaste, Martyrs of, 12 a, 51 a, 87 a. Shahran, 47 a, 49 b. Shanah, first city built in the Fayyum, 70 b. Shinara, 91b, 92 a. 358 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT, Ash-Sharkiyah, Province of, 7 b, 58 b. Sheba, Queen of, 105 a. — where situated, 105 a. Shubra, 71b. — Murayyik, 45 a. Shutb, 87 b,' 88 a. — meaning of name of, 87 b. Sinai, Mount, 56 b. Sinjar, 38 a, 80 a. Soudanese, 39 a. Spain, 107 b. Stone of Lahun, see Hajar Lahun. Street of Glass-blowers, 32 a. As-Sudan, Church of, at Munyat as-Sudan, 46 b. Suk Barbar, see Market- place. As-Sukkarah, Pavilion of, 24 a. Suk Wardan, see Market- place. Sun, City of, i.e. Tadmor, 112 a. As-Suyutiyah, Province of, 9 a. Syrian Sea, 58 a. Tadmor, 112a. Tafah, 100 a. Taha al-Madinah, 74 a, 77 a, 86 a. At-Tair, Mount of, 76 a. Takhum, 96 a. At-Talimun, Mount of, 88 a. Tall-Bastah, see Bastah. Tamwaih,5a,46b,65b, 66 b, 67 a & b. Tanbadhah, see Tunbudha. Thamanm, Village of, 1 1 1 b. ' Thirst, Mount of,' 95 a. Tiberias, 18 b, 70 a, 95 a. Tinnis, 7 b, 19 b, 57 a. At-Tinnur, 52 a. Toledo, capture of, 107 b. Tuhurmus, 62 a. Tulaitalah, see Toledo. Tunbudha, 31 a, 90 a. Tura, 47 a, 48 b, 49 a. Tus, 6 a. Tuwah, 91b. Udrunkah, 74 b. Al-'Ukab, 92 b. 'Ukbara, Land of, 94 b. Al-'Ula, 10 1 a. Al-Ushmunain, 23 b, 74 a, 76 a & b, 90 b, 92 a. — restored by Belshazzar, 23 b, 80 a. — Province of, 8 b. Uswan, 1 9 b, 83 a, 98 a, 1 00 b. — meaning of name of, loi a. Al-Wadi (Nubia), 98 a. Wadi 'l-'Ain, 92 b. Wadi 'l-'Arabah, 56 b. Wadi Habib, 22 b, 49 a, 53 b, 65 b, 66 a, 80 b. Wadi '1-Mukaddas, 19 b. Wadi Rayan, see Rayan. 'Wall oftheOldWoman,' 1 9b. built by Cleopatra, 57 b. West Africa, 44 a, 61 a, 107 a. West Africans, 65 a. White Nile, 95 a, loi b. Yakhtak (moving stones between Yakhtak and Kharij), 17 b. Yaman, nob. — Queen of, i.e. ' Queen of Sheba,' 105 a. Yellow Nile, 10 1 b. Zawilah, quarter of, 2 a & b, 3 a, 5 a. Zidan, Mount of, 94 b. Az-Zuhri, 3 b, 5 a & b, 24 b. Zukak, see Alley. Zuwailah, see Zawilah. INDEX III. 359 INDEX Aaron, 19 b, 20 b. Al- A'azz Hasan ibn Salamah al-Bakilani, 4 b. Abamun, see Ammon, Saint. Abatir, Church of, near Al- Bahnasa, 75 a. — at Mallawi, 74 b. 'Abd al-'Aziz, son of Caliph Marwan I ibn al-Hakam, called Ab{i '1-Usbu', 47 a, 52 a ff., 70 b. 'Abdallah ibn 'Amr ibn al- 'Asi, 21 b, 28 b. 'Abdallah ibn Sa'id ibn INIufarraj, 21b. 'Abdallah ibnaz-Zubair, 2 2b. 'Abd al-]\Iasih, 27 a. 'Abd ar-Rahman ibn Has- san, 29 a. 'Abd ar-Rahman ibn Mu- 'awiyah ibn Khadij ibn Sajar, emir of Egypt, 22 b. Ibn 'Abdun, 13 b. Abirun, JNIonastery of, at Busir Kuridus, 92 b. Abraha al- Ashram, see Abra- ham, governor of Yaman. Abraham, the Patriarch, 28b, 57 a. — Isaac, and Jacob, Church of, in Al-Hamra, 33 b. — bishop of the Fayyum, 18 b, 70 a. — governor of Yaman, nob, III a. III. OF PERSONAL Abrashit, magician, 71b. 'Ad, 68 b. 'Adi ibn IMurrah, 22 a. Al- Adid li-dini 'llah, Caliph, 7 a, 25 a, 27 a, 30a, 31a, 33 b, 36 b, 37 a, 46 b, 82 a, 96 a. 'Adim, father of Manfa'fis, 68 a. Al-Afdal Shahanshah, vizier, 9 a, 34 b, 44 b, 50 b, 57 b, 67 a. Aftutis, King, 22 b (cf. IJtis). Agatho, thirty-ninth Patri- arch of Alexandria, 77 a. Agathodaemon, 64 b. Aghadimun, see Agathodae- mon. Agia Sophia, Church of, at Misr, 38 b. Ahmad ibn Tulun, 28 b. Aimin, Church of, at Barda- nuhah, 74 a. 'Ain as-Saif, wall of Uswan, loi b. Alexander the Great, era of, see Seleucian era. founded Ushmu- nain, 76 b. Alexander, forty-third Patri- arch of Alexandria, 79 b, 80 a. 'Alyun, the heretic, death of, 92 b. NAMES. Amin ad-Daulah ibn al- Musawwif, 39 a. Ibn Amin al-^Iulk ibn al- Muhaddath Abu Sa'id ibn Yuhanna the Alexandrian scribe, 38 b. Al-Amir bi-ahkami 'llah. Caliph, 2 b, 9 a, 32 a, 34a, 42 b, 44 b, 57 b, 61 b, 62 a, 64 a, 67 a. Ammon, Saint, 73 b. 'Amr ibn al-'Asi ibn 'Adi, 21 a & b, 22 a & b, 23 a, 24 a, 42 a, 91 b, 107 b. builds wall of Al- JJzah, 59 a. digs Canal of Amir al-IMu'minm, 24 a, 58 b. grants safe-con- duct to Patriarch Benja- min and Christians, 80b. Mosque of, 52 b. Anba Antunah, see Anthony. Andronicus, thirty-seventh Patriarch, 80 b. Anf adh-Dhahab, Taj ad- Daulah. Ansina, son of Kift, son of Mizraim, 86 b. Antaniyus, see Anthony. Anthony, Saint, 54 b ff. altar of, 66 a. Church of, attached to Church of St. Michael, 38 a. 360 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. Anthony, Saint, Church of, in Monastery of Nahy a, 63 b. Monastery of, near Red Sea eastwards from Itfih, 10 a, 54 ff. Monastery of, at Kift, 103 a. Monastery of, near Uswan, 102 a. Antunah, see Anthony. Anub, Saint, 38a, 90b, 104a. Church of, 38 a; Mon- asteries of, 90 b, 104 a. Abii '1-Arah, Church of, at Barml, 56 a. Arcadius, Emperor, 49 a. Ardashir, 19 a. Ardashir, see Artaxerxes. Arghash, son of 'Ad, 68 b. Armenius, Saint, 73 b. Arsenius, Saint, 49 a, 50 a. — Church of, in Monastery of Al-Kusair, 50 a. — Festival of, 49 a & b. Artaxerxes, king of Persia, 55 a. Artaxerxes Ochus, 60 a. Ar'u, 68 a. Aryat the Abyssinian, 1 1 1 b. Arzakusha, King, 68 b. Al-As'ad Abu '1-Khair Jirjah ibn Wahab, called Ibn al-Mikat, 25a and b. Asad ad-Din Shirkuh the Kurd, see Shirkuh. Asghusa, King, 68 b. Ashhab ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz, 28 b. Athanasius, Saint, bishop of Alexandria, 55 b. — Church of, at Al-Kulzum, 58 a. — Churchof,inPhilae,i04b. Atrib, son of Mizraim, 68 a. Augustus Caesar, 57 b. 'Aun 'Abd al-Walid ibn Dauma', son of Kift, son of Mizraim, 92 b. Aura, 71b. Al-'Aziz bi'llah, Caliph, 34 b, 35 a, 41 a, 94 a. Banu 'l-Azrak, 29 a, 32 b. Babnudah, see Paphnutius. Badr al-Jamali, vizier of Caliph Al-Mustansir, 47 b, 51 a, 98 b. Abil Bagham, Saint, body of, 60 b, 88 a, 90 a. Church of, at Dimnu, 86 a. Church of,at Al-Kalan- dimfin, 92 a. Churches of, at Al- Kharibah, 88 a. Church of, at Munyat Andunah, 60 b. Church of, in Monas- tery at Samallut, 88 a. Monastery of, near Usyfit, called Dair at- Tinadah, 90 a. Bah, 68 a (son of Baisur, son of Ham). Al-Baha 'Ali of Damascus, 2 a, 5 b, 6 a. Bahram, Armenian vizier of Al-Hafiz, 6 a; becomes monk, 84 a. Bahriya, first Christian in Nubia, 96 a. Al - B aisan 1, see Al - Kadi '1-Fadil. Baisur, son of Ham, 67 b, 92 b, 102 b. Bakhum, see Pachomius. Al-Bakilani, see Al-A'azz Hasan ibn Salamah. Baldwin, king of Jerusalem, 57 b. BalQtus, monk and heretic, 55 b, 56 a. Bamin, see Poemen. Bandalfis, Church of, at Al- Khusus, 89 a. Banu Bahr ibn Suwadah ibn Afsa, 32 a. Ban{i Hajas, 22 b, 42 a. Banu Humaim, 82 a. Banu '1-Maghafir ibn Ya'far, 22 a. Banu Musa, Monastery of, 81 a. Banu Nabih, 29 a. Banu Surus, 66 b. Banu Wa il, 22 a. Banfi Yusuf ibn Wa'il, 42 a. Abu '1-Barakat ibn Abi '1- Fakhr ibn Sibuwaih, 31b. AbG '1-Barakat ibn Kita- miyah, scribe, 42 b. Abu '1-Barakat ibn al-Laith, seeb^^ M-Barakat ibn Abi '1-Laith. Abu '1-Barakat ibn Abi '1-Laith, metwalli of Di- wan at-Tahkik, 2 b, 40 b, 41b, 50 b, 51 a. Abu '1-Barakat Mauhub ibn Mansiir ibn Mufarraj, the deacon, biographer of Patriarch Christodulus, 108 a. Abu '1-Barakat ibn AbiSa'id Hablan, 37 a. Abii 'l-Barakat ibn Shadid al-Mulk, 25 a. Baramus, Virgin of, see Mary, B. V. of Baramus. Barbar ibn Abi Habib, 22 b. Barbara, Saint, Church of, in Monastery of Al-Kusair, 51 a. Abii Barta u, see Bartholo- mew, Saint. 0 INDEX III. 361 Bartholomew, Saint, body of, 82 b. Church of, near Bah- • nasa, 75 a. Church of, in Oasis of Al-Bahnasa, 75 a. Church of, at Turfah, 74 b. Baruba, builder of fortress of Philae, 100 b. Abu Basandah, see Pisentius, Saint. Bashir ibn an-Nashr, Hegu- men, 34 a. Abu Bashunah, see Pacho- mius. Basil, Saint, 55 a & b. Basmantah, martyr, body of, 90 a. — Church of, at Tunbudha, 90 a. Basradiladus, see Theodore, Saint. Bastidar, Church of, at Shi- nara, 91b. Belshazzar, King, 23 b, 80 a. Benjamin, thirty-eighth Pa- triarch of Alexandria, 63 b. flight of, 80 a & b. Bill ibn 'Umar ibn al-Haf ibn Kuda'ah, 32 a. Aba Bimah, see Epime, Saint. Buddhas, 108 b. Bukht Nasr, see Nebuchad- nezzar. Abu Buktur, see Victor, Saint. Bula, see Paul. Bulus, see Paul. Buri(Taj al-Muluk), brother of Saladin, 42 b, 70 b. Busim, son of Caphtorim, 102 b. BMr, sorcerer, 17 b, 68 b, 92 b. Butrus, see Peter. Canaan, son of Ham, 23 b. Chosroes, 1 1 1 b. Christodulus, sixty-sixth Pa- triarch, 37 b, 81 a, 90 b, 98 a, loi a. Christopher, Saint, 75 a. Claudius, Saint, Church of, at Ishnin, 91a. at Al-Kalandimun, 92 a. at IMunyah Bani Khasib, 88 b. Clement, Saint, book of, 108 b. Cleopatra, Queen, 57 b. — name of Ushmunain, 76 b. Coluthus, Saint, martyrdom of, 86 b. ]\Ionastery of, near Ansina, 86 b. Coluthus, Saint, body of, 90 a (Kiilutus) ; Church of, at Dalas, 91b. in Al-Hamra al- Wusta, 32 a, 34 a, 39 a. attached to Church of Abu Nafar in Hamra, 33 b. in Monastery of Abu Basandah, 81 b. (Kulutus), Mo- nastery of, at Usyut, 90 a. (Kullutus), Mo- nastery of, near Kift, 103 b. Constantine, Emperor, 54 b. Cosmas, Saint, altar of, 41b. Church of, at Itfih, 56 a. and Damian, Church 3 a of, in IMonastery of Abu Basandah, 81 b. Cosmas and Damian, Saints, Church of, at Damuh, 66 b. in IMonastery of Al-Kusair, 51a. Cyriacus, king of Nubia, 97 a. — name of great king of Nubia, 99 a. Cyril, sixty-seventh Patri- arch, 44 b, 47 b, 98 b. Cyrus, Patriarch, 21a. Dalas, founder of town of his name, 91a. Dalukjthe ' Old Woman,' 70b. Dalukah, see Daluk. Daniel, the Prophet, 21a. Church of,at Ishnin, 91a. resting-place of 66 b. — bishop of Tamwaih, 44 b. Dauma', Pharaoh, i8b, 70 a. David, King, family of, in Abyssinia, 106 a. throne of, in Abyssi- nia, 106 a & b. — martyr, body of, 90 a. Demetrius, twelfth Bishop of Alexandria, 23 b. Diocletian, Emperor, 12 a, 61 a, 104 a. Dionysius, fourteenth Bishop of Alexandria, 55 a. Dioscorus, Patriarch of Alex- andria, 12 a. — Church of, at Abtujah, 73 b. — at Jalfah, 74 a. Ibn Dukhan, 31b. Duldul, mule of Mahomet, 29 a. [II. 7.] 362 CHURCHES AND MOXASTERIES OF EGYPT. Ephraim, sixty-second Pa- triarch of Alexandria, 34 b. Epime, Saint, Church of, at Munyat Andunah, 60 b. in Monastery of Tamwaih, 67 b. Eustathius, Melkite Pa- triarch of Alexandria, 49 b. Eutychius, IMelkite Patri- arch of Alexandria, 55 a, 58 b. Ezekiel, the Prophet, 21a. Abu '1-Fada'il ibn Abi '1-Laith, the scribe, 40 a & b. brother of Al-Afdal Shahanshah, 51a. calledIbnSittumi'ah(?), scribe of Amir 'All Ahmad in caliphate of Al-I\Iustadi, 38 a. the Nestorian, called Physician of the 'Azami- yah, 42 b. ibn ash-Shubramu- rayyiki, 45 a. IbnAbu'l-Fada'ilibn Farruj, 37 b. ibn Abu Sa'id, 30 a. Fadl ibn Sahh, 17 b, 69 a (Mufaddal;. " Abu '1-Fadl ibn al-Baghdadi, 40 a. Yuhanna ibn Ki'il al-Uskuf, scribe of Shah- anshah, 30 b, 34 b, 37 b, 61 b. Ja'far ibn 'Atd al- Mun'im, called Ibn Ab'i Kirat, 42 b. Banii Fahm, 32 a. Al-Fa'iz, Caliph, 41 b, 44 b. Fakhr ibn al-Kanbar, see Mark. Fakhr ad-Daulah Abu '1-Ma- karim ibn al-Fath, scribe, 82 b. — ad-Din, wall of IMisr, called Ghulam al-Bani- yasi, 59 b. Abu '1-Fakhr ibn Azhar as-Sani'j 44 b. ibn Furaij ibn Khu- wair, 33 b. called Sa'idan, scribe of salaries, 33b. Sa'id ibn Busaiwah, 25 b. Abu 'n-Najib Abu '1- Barakat, called Ibn Sa'id, scribe for religious matters under Al-Hafiz, 24b, 25 a. Aba Falukh, Church of (near Usyut ?), 90 b. Abu Fanah, Church of, at Al-Khusus, 89 a. Abu '1-Faraj [Ya'kub ibn Yusuf] ibn Killis, vizier, 17 b, 23 a, 69 a. al-Maghrabi, vizier, 41 b, 42 a, 46 b. ibn Zanbur, scribe, 33 b, 45 a. ibn Zar'ah, afterwards called Mark, forty-third Patriarch, see Mark. Farik (son of Baisur, son of Ham), 68 a. Farmashat, brother of 'Ad, 68 b. Abu '1-Fath ibn al-Akmas, called Ibn al-Haufi, painter, 5 a. as-Sa'idi, priest, 39 a. Al-Fayyum, son of Kift, son of Mizraim, 69 b. Febronia, captured and be- headed by Bashmurites, 84 b-86 a. Fibruniyah, see Febronia. Aba Filimun, see Phile- mon. Aba Fu, Church of,atIshnin, 91 a. Gabriel the Archangel, Church of, at Aflah az- Zaitun, 72 b. in Monastery of Al-Ahnas, 92 a. at Bahnasa, 75 a. at Bahumalis, 73 b. at Bardanuhah, 74 a. at Darwah, 77 b. in Al-Hamra, 27 a. at Kufadah, 73 b. at Kamulah, 104a. near Kift. 103 a. at Mallawi, 74 b. at Misr, 39 a. at Naklun, 71a. at Saft Abu Jirja, 74 a. at Saft al-:\Iuhal- labi, 74 b. at Saft Rashin, 75 b. Churches of, at Shi- naia, 91b. Church of, at Taha al-Madinah, 74 a. at Tansa, 69 b. at Ushmunain, 104 a. near Usyut .? 90 b. — bishop of Misr, 2 6 a, 3 7 b, 39 a, 45 a & b. — seventieth Patriarch of Alexandria, 37 b, 38 a, 39 b, 66 a. Gabriel, scribe, 27 a. INDEX III, Gabriel, son of Caliph Al- Hafiz, see Jabnl. George, Saint, altars of, 45a, 64 b. appearance of, 82 a, 93 a. body of, 93 a & b. Church of, in Abyssi- nia, 105 b. at Ansina, 87 a. atAshrubah, 75 b. — ■ at Bahjurah, 81 a. atAl-Bahnasa,73b. in Oasis of Al- Bahnasa, 93 a. at Bardanuhah, 74 a. at Bulak, 60 b. at Bunumrus,6ob. near Bu.sir Bana, 69 a. at FanUj 73 a. called Al-Hamra, 24 a, 25 b, 28 a. in ' Monastery of Honey,' 88 a. at Hulwan, called * Chamberlains,' 53 a. at Idrijah, 69 b. at Athlidim, 92 a. at Iknu, 82 a. Armenian Church of, at Itfih, 55 b. Church of, at Kalan- dimftn, 92 a. at Kamiilah, 1 04 a. at Kulam, nob. atAl-Khusus, 89 a. at Kiis, 81 b. in Monastery of Al-Kusair, 50 b, 51 a. at Mallawi, 74 b. — above Church of St. Mennas in Al-Hamra, 30 a. George, Saint, Church of, adjoining Church of St. Mennas, 30 b. attached to Church of St. Mercurius in Al- Hamra, 37 b. at Munyah Bani Khasib, 78 a. at Shinara, 91b. at Taha al-^Ia- dinah, 74 a. at Tura, 47 b. at Tamvvaih, 67 b. atUshmunain,i04a. at Uswan, 102 a. • — near Usyut } 90 b. attached to Church of St. Victor, 41 b. at Wana Busir, 69 a. ruined, 4 1 a. Festival of, 93 a. Monastery of, at Hul- wan, 53 a. at Al-Khandak. 98 b. at Tura, 48 a. Nestorian Monastery of, at INIisr, 42 b. Nunnery of, at Kift, 103 a. — bishop of Natu, 98 a, loi a. — son of Mennas, the Mu- kaukis, 23 a, 29 a, 80 a, 86 b. — son of Zacharias Israel, king of Nubia, 94 b, 97 b. — as-Sa'idi (of Upper Egypt), priest and scribe, 60 b. Abu Ghalib ibn Abi '1-Ma- karim al-Bilbaisi, 30 a. Gregory, bishop of Al-Kais, 53 a, 54 a; ^lonastery of, at Hulwan, 53 a. Gregory, Armenian Patri- arch, 47 b. — Saint, Church of, above that of St. George at Tura, 48 b. Habib ibn Mughaffal, 22 a. Hadhil ibn Madrakah, 32 b. Abu Hadr of Ushmunain, Church of, at Munyah Bani Khasib, 88 b. Abu Hadri, Saint, body of, loi b. — • Church of, in Island of Elephantine, loib; Monastery of, 102 a. Haffaz, a black, 90 b. Al-Hafiz, Caliph, 2 b, 6 a, 9 a, 25 a, 30 b, 39 a, 40 a & b, 46 b, 51 a, 66 a, 79 a, 84 a, 93 a. Hagar, 57 a. Hajas ibn Yusuf ibn Wa'il, 22 b. Abu '1-Hakam, relative of Abu 'i-Barakat ibn KhiX '1-Laiih, 51 a. Hakanda Abu Zakari Mina ibn Kafri, called Ibn Bulus, 89 a. Abu Hakanda, Church of, at Al-Khusus, 89 a. Al-Hakim, Caliph, 17 b, 32a, 40a, 41a, 46 a, 47a, 49 b, 50 b, 52 b, 61 a & b, 69 a, 76 a, 95 b, loi b, 104 a, 106 b. Abu Halba, martyr, body of, 92 a. Abu Halbanah, Monastery of, near Ikhmim, 86 a. Abu Halbas, martyr, body of, 78 a. Ham, son of Noah, 23 b, 48 b. 3 a 2 3^4 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT, Haman, officer of Pharaoh, 23 a. Harminah, see Armenius, Saint. Abu Harudah, martyr, body of, 90 b. Church of, at Su- musta, 90 b. Harufus, Bishop, body of, in monastery at Usyut, 88 a. Harun ar-Rashid, Caliph, 52 a. Abu'l-Hasan ibn al-Amahh, scribe, 25 a. Sa'id ibn Mansfir, scribe, 43 b. Hassan, poet, 29 a. Hatalba al-Ghuzzi, 26 a. Hatib ibn Abi Balta'ah, 29 a. Heraclius,Emperor,8oa&b. Hermes Trismegistus, 52 a, 64 b. Hisham, Caliph, 23 a, 26 b, 29 b. Hosea, the Prophet, 20 b. HuKvan, son of Abd al-'Aziz, son of Caliph IMarvvan I, 52 a. Aba Hur, see Or, Saint. Husain, the Kurd, 7 a. — ibn al-Hafiz, 54 a, 66 a. Ibrahim, brother of Caliph Al-Ma'mun, 97 b. — king of Yaman, see Abra- ham. — son of Mahomet, 29 a. Ibsadah, Saint, miracles per- formed by, 102 a. Church of,nearUs\van, 102 a. Idris identical with Hermes, 64 b. ^■ Al-Ikhshidi, see Kafur al- Ustadh. Iklfidah, see Claudius. Ikludiyas, see Claudius. '11m as-Sarf Abu '1-Ma- karim, 60 b. 'Ilm as-Su'ada Abu '1-Yaman ibn Sanfat al-Mulk Abu '1-Faraj ibnal-Wazir, 34 a. Isaac, bishop of the Fayyum, 71 b. — the Patriarch, 22 b. — forty -first Patriarch of Alexandria, 53 a. — Saint, body of, at Al-Kais, 91a; Monastery and Church of, at Hajar La- hun, 73 a. Isaiah, the Prophet, 20 a. Abu Ishak, see Isaac, Saint. Ibrahim ibn Abi Sahl, 73 a. ibn'Abdal-Masih,38b. Ishak al-Mu'allim, called 'the Blue,' 103b. Ishmael, the Patriarch, 57 a & b. Isma'il ibn 'Abbas, 28 b. Istafura, see Christopher, Saint. Istat, see Eustathius. Itfih, son of Malik, son of Tadras, son of Mizraim, 54 a. Itfih, son of Mizraim, 47 a. 'Izz al-Kifat ibn IMustafa '1-Mulk Abu Yusuf, 81 b. 'Izz al-Kufat Abu '1-Fakhr ibn Sulaiman, scribe, 59 a. Jabril, son of Caliph Al- Hafiz, 46 b. Jacob, the Patriarch, 20 b, 57 a. at Naklun, 7 1 b. — fiftieth Patriarch of Alex- andria, 80 b. James, Saint, son of Zebedee, the Apostle, Armenian Church of, at Al-Bustan, I b, 2 a. Armenian Mon- astery of, at Jerusalem, 3 b. Jauhar al-Mu'izzi, 24 a. Jausar, 94 a. Jeremiah, the Prophet, 2 1 a. Jesus Christ, 75 b. Monastery of, 76 a. sojourn of, in Egypt, 20b, 44 a, 75b, 76a, 78a & b. sojourn of, at Al-Mu- harrakah, 78 b. mark of the hand of, on pillar at Ushmunain, 77 a. and his Apostles, ap- pearance of, at Naklun, 71a. Jirj, see George. Abu Jirj, see George, Saint. Jirjah, see George. Jirj is, see George. Jirjiyus, see George. Jiyul, King, 112 a. John, Saint, Evangelist, Church of, in West Africa, 107 a. altar of, 43 b. — Abu Karkas, Church of, at Kamulah, 104 a. — Baptist, Saint, Church of, over tomb of Sarur, ad- joining Church of St. George Al-Hamra, 24 b, 25 a & b. attached to that of St. INIercurius in Hamra (once on river- bank), 37 a. Armenian, in IXDEX III. quarter of Zuwailah, 2 a. 3 a, 5 a. John Baptist, Saint, Church of, rock-hewn at the IMon- astery of Al-Kusair, 49 a. 51 a. at INIisr over tank, overlooking Pool of the Abyssinians. 39 a. above Church of St. George, at Tura, 48 b. oNIelkite Monastery of, near Lake of the Abys- sinians. 39 b, 40 a. — bishop of Atrib, 37 b. Tamwaih, 5 a, 44 b. — martyr of Uswan, 41 b. body of, removed from Damanhur to Al-Adawi- yah, 45 b. Church of, at Aflah az-Zaitun, 72 b. at Al-Bahnasa, 73 b, 75 a. at Kus, 81 b. at Ishnin, 91a. at Al-Kalandimun, 92 a. at Xajaj. 74 b. at Saul, 56 a. atUdrunkah. 74 b. Monastery of, near Usyut, also called Ibsha'i. 90 a. — monk and architect, 51a. — of Samannud, Priest, af- terwards Patriarch, 73 a. — fortieth Patriarch of Alexandria, 53 a. — forty- eighth Patriarch of Alexandria, 23 b. — seventy-second Patriarch of Alexandria, 9 a, 1 2 b, 14 b, 30 b, 31 a, 36 b, 37 b, 45 a, 48 b. 'John, seventy- fourth Patri- I arch of Alexandria, 28 a, I 38 a, 45 b, 59 b, 66 b. j Jonas, bishop of Damsis. 14 a (cf. 9 a). — bishop of Damietta, 63 b. — monk, 4; b. — seventy-second Patriarch, see John. Joseph, the Patriarch, i8a & b, 19 b, 28 b, 68 a. prison of, 17 b, 20 b. set the Fayyum in order, i8a, 69b, 70a, 71b. Joseph, Saint, in Egypt, 20b, 44 a, 75 b, 78 b, 81 b. death of, 78 b. — fifty-second Patriarch of Alexandria, 97 a & b. — Melkite bishop of Misr, 40 b. — Nestorian priest, 43 a. Joshua, son of Nun, 21a, 103 b. Judas Iscariot, 12 a. Judham, 22 a. Aba Jul, Church of, at Itfih, 56 a. Julian, Emperor, 54 b, 55 a. Julius of Akfahs, Saint, 91a. Juraij ibn Mina, see George, son of Mennas. Justinian, Emperor, 58 a. Al-Kadi "l-Fadil ibn 'Ali al- Baisani, 11 a. Kafur al-Ustadh, called al- Ikhshidi, 18 b, 23 a. 69 b, 96 b. Al-Kahhal, Kadi, 9 a. Abu Kais, Church of, at Munyah, 78 a. Al-Kais, son of Al-Harith, 91b. Ibn Kamil, 104 b. Ibn al-Kanbar, see Mark ibn I IMauhub. I Karbil, Church of, at Al- ' Bahnasa, 75 a. Karim ad-Daulah ibn'Ubaid ibn Kurrus, 31a. Abu Karkar, i\Ionastery of, see Gregory, ^Monastery of, at Hulwan. Karun (Korah), officer of Pharaoh, 23 a. Al-Kasim ibn X'baid Allah, wall of Egypt, disastrous visit of, to White Monas- tery, 83 a & b, 84 a. Abu '1-Kasim Khalil, physi- cian and philosopher of Ascalon, 3 b, 4 b. Kasra, see Chosroes. Ibn Katib al-Farghani, 33 b. Ibn al-Khafir, wali of Oases, 93 a. Kha'il, see Michael. Abu '1-Khair, called Ibn al- Amadi, 38 a. as-Sairafi, 59 a. Abu '1-Khair ibn Sharaliil, 22 b. Khamarawaih, son of Ah- mad ibn Tulun, 49 a, 50 b, 51b. Kharaba, see Kharbata. Kharbata, 52 a, 79 a & b. Ibn Khasib, founder of INIunyah, 77 b. Abu '1-Khasib, 51a. Khassat ad-Daulah Abii '1- Fada'il, 31b. Khush, king of Persians, see Artaxerxes Ochus. Kift, son of Mizraim. 18 a, 68 a, 69 b, 76 b, 78 a. 81 a, 86 b, 92 b, 103 a. Kilkili, son of Kharaba, son 366 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT, of Malik, son of Baisur, son of Ham, 52 a. Banu Kinanah ibn 'Umar ibn al-Kibr ibn Fahm, 32 b. Al-Kindi, historian, 29 a, 32 a. Kirun, built Aukir, 112a. Korah, see Karun. Kuhtan, son of Falik, 19 a. Kullutus, see Coluthus. Abu Kultah, see Coluthus. Kuraish, tribe of, 22 a, 29 a. Kurrah, see Cyrus. Kus, son of Kift, son of Mizraim, 78 a, 81 a. Ibn al-Kustal, see Abu Yasir. Aba Kustul, Church of, at Bardanuhah, 74 a. Lady, The, see Mary, B.V. Lakhm, 22 a, 29 a. Lazarus, Saint, bishop of Cyprus, 62 b. resurrection of, 62 b. Lot, the Patriarch, 20 b. Aba Lukum, Churches of, (near Usyut ?), 90 b. Macarius, sixty-ninth Patri- arch of Alexandria, 57 b. — Saint, 65 b, 66 a. Church of, attached to Agia Sophia, 38 b. Desert of, see Wadi Habib. Monastery of, in Wadi Habib, 44 a, 47 b, 80 b. monks from, took refuge at Nahya, 63 b. - — — the martyr, 77 a. Macrobius, see Abu Makru- fah. Al-Maghafir ibnYa'far, 22a. Mah, son of Baisur, son of Ham, 68 a. Abu '1-Mahajir, 32 b. Mahbub ibn Kustantin al- Manbaji, historian, 22 b, 55 a, 112 a. Al-Mahdi ibn al-Mansur, Caliph, 23 b. Mahomet, 29 a, 86 b. — words of, in reference to Copts, 28 b, 29 a. Mahrabil, martyr, Church of, in Monastery of Tam- waih, 67 b. Al-Majid Faris, son-in-law of Shawar and wall of Kus, 82 a. Makar, see Macarius. Abu Makar, see Macarius, Saint. Makarim ibn Abu '1-Minna, 31 a. Abu '1-Makarim ibn Hanna, 33 b, 34 a. — Mahbub ibn Abu '1-Faraj al-'Abudi, 40 b. Al-Makin Abu '1-Barakat, called IbnKitamah, scribe, 39 a, 41b, 63 a. Abu Makrufah (Macrobius), 90 a. Abu Maksin, see Maximus. Malik, son of 'Ad, 68 b. Al-Malik al-'Adil Abu Bakr (brother of Sala- din), 5 b. Al-Malik Abu '1-Khair ibn Sharahil, 22 b. Al-Ma'mun, Caliph, 52 a, 97 b. Manasseh, Church of, at An- sina, 87 a. Al-Manbaji, see Mahbub ibn Kustantin. Manbali, Church of, at 'Al- wah, 95 b. Manfa'iis, son of 'Adim, and king of Egypt, 68 a, 87 b, 102 b. — built Kais, 91 b. Mansur ibn Salim, 31a. Abu Mansur, metwalli (built w^alls of Cairo), 48 b. — ibn Bulus, 43 b. — ibn Abu '1-Yaman Wazir, 44 b, 67 a. Mara the Arab, 82 a. Maratmaryam, see Mary,B. V Mart JirjiSjjd'd' George, Saint. Mari Saba, see Sabas. Mark ibn Mauhub, called Ibn al-Kanbar, 9 aff., 5 1 b. — bishop of Misr, 30 b, 3 2 a. — forty-ninth Patriarch of Alexandria, 23 b. — seventy-third Patriarch of Alexandria, 5 a, 9 b, 12 b, 13 b, 37 a?, 43 a, 45 b, 48 a, 64 a. Mark, Saint, 20 b; altar of, 66 b. Church of, at Al-Bah- nasa, 73 b, 75 a. at Jizah, ruined by Ghuzz, 59 b, 60 a. — at SakiyahMahfuz, 74 b. at Taha al-Madi- nah, 74 a. at Ushmunain, 1 04a. See of, 99 a, 105 a. Martha, Saint, see Mary and Martha. Martuti (Mother of God), Church of, 44 a & b. Marwan I, Caliph, 22 b. Marwan II, Caliph, 19 a, 60 a, 77 a & b, 84 a & b, 96 b, loi a. V INDEX III. Marwan II, Caliph, death of, 92 b. — prophecy of death of, 77 a. Mary, B.V., birth of, 64 a. in Egypt; 44 a,, 75 b, 78b, 79b; (atKus), 81 b. altar of, in church at Saft jMaidum, 64 b. Church of, at Abtujah, 73 b. near 'Adawiyah (Al-Martuti), 44 a, 46 a, 48 a. near Aflah az-Zai- tun, 72 b. at Akfahs, 91a, at Anzar wa-A'jab, 107 b. at Armant, 102 b. Churches of, at Ash- rubah, 75 a; at Athlidim, 92 a. Church of, at Al-Bah- nasa, 75 a. in Island of Bakik, 104 b. at Al-Barnil, 56 a. in Monastery of Abu Basandah, near Kus, 81 b. ruined, at Busir Bana, 17 b, 69 a. ■ at Busir Kuridus, 92 b. atDamanhur, 45b. at Darwah, 77 b. at Fahsur, 1 10 b. near Fanu and Nakalifah, 73 a. near Church of St. George Al-Hamra, 25 b, 26 a &b. near Hulwan (ruin- ed), 54 a. at Ibrim, 96 a. , Mary, B.V., Church of, in Monastery of Abu Ishak, 73 a. at Ishnin, 91a. at Itfih, 56 a. at Jalfah, 74 a. in IMonastery of Kalamun, 7 1 b. at Al-Kantarah, 52 a. at Kufadah, 73 b. at Kulam, 1 10 b. at Al-Khusus, 89 a. Churches of, at Kift, 103 a. Church of, in Monas- tery of Al-Kusair, 50 b. Church of, at Luzari- kun ?, 108 a. at Madinat al- Fayyum, 71a. at Mallawi, 74 b. on ]\Iount of the Palm, 75 b. at Al-]\ruharrakah (first church in Upper Egypt, consecrated by Jesus Christ with his Apostles), 78 a & b. at Munyah Bani Khasib, 78 a, 88 b. at Munyat al- Ka id, 69 a. in Monastery of Nahya, 64 a. in Nubia, loi a. in quarter of Ro- mans, in Cairo, 6 a. at Saft Abu Jirja, 74 a. at Sanabu, 77 b. at Saul, 56 a. at Shinara, 91b. at Shubra, 30 a. Churches of, at Taha al-Madinah, 74 a. Mary, B. V., Church of, near Tamwaih, 67 b. at Tansa, 69 b. at Udrunkah, 74 b. at Ushmunain, 76 a, 77a. near Uswan, loi b. Churches of, near Usyut ?, 90 b. Church of, at Wana Busir, 18 a, 69 a. at Wasim, 60 b. in West Africa, 108 a. in quarter of Zu- wailah, in Cairo, 2 a, 3 a, 45 a. Festival of Nativity of, 64 a. of Death of, 76 a. Monastery of, 32 b. at Hulwan (i\Ion. of Abu Karkar), 53 a. at Sailah, 73 a. near Usyut (Monas- tery of Abu 'I-Harith),9oa. near Usyut (Mo- nastery of Azilun), 90 a. near Usyut (Mo- nastery of Farkunah), 89 a. in Wadi Habib (Monastery of Mary of Baramus), 53 b. mosaic of, 50 b. paintings of, 67 b, 85 a. painting of, in Church of St. Victor at Jizah, 59 a. painting of, in Church of St. Anthony in INIon. of Nahya, 63 b. sanctuary named after, in Church of St. Poemen, 39 a. 368 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT, Mary and Martha, Saints, Church of, in Monastery of Nahya, 62 b, 64 a. Festival of, 63 b, 64 a. tomb of, in Mo- nastery of Nahya, 63 a. Mary the Egyptian, ' wife of Mahomet,' 29 a. house of, 86 b. Ibn Mashkur, 48 b. Maslamah ben Mukhallad al-Ansari, 23 b. Matthew of Askit, 87 a. — Saint, bishop of Isna, 102 a. the Monk, miracle performed by, 79 b. Church of, at Isna, 102 a. Monastery of, at Ansina, 79 b, 87 a. Matthias, see Matthew. Maximus, Churches of, at Shinara, 9 1 b. — and Domitius, Saints,5 3b. Mennas, sixty-first Patriarch of Alexandria, 66 b. — Saint, 29 b. Church of, at Kus, 8 1 b. in Monastery of the Brothers, 73 a. in Island of Ele- phantine, loi b. in Al-Hamra, 29bfr., 32 b, 34 a. attached to Church of St. Onuphrius in Al- Hamra, 33 b. : at Itfih (Church of the Pillar), 56 a. at Mh, 56 b. ^"at Taha, 77 b. above Church of St. George at Tura, 48 b. Mennas, Saint, Church of, near Usyut ? 90b. — — — attached to Church of St. Victor, 41b. Abu Mina, see Mennas. Anba Mina, see Mennas, sixty-first Patriarch. Mercurius, Saint, 55 a. Church of, at Al- 'Adawiyah, 45 b. near Afiah az-Zai- tun, 72 b. at Ashrubah, 75 a. Churches of, at Al- Bahnasa, 73 b, 75 a. at Bardanuhah, 74 a. in Al-Hamra, 30 a. in Al-Hamra, once on bank of Nile (Abu 's-Saifain), 34 b, 35 a. at Idfak, 74 b. at Ishmn, 91a. at Itfih, 56 a. at Kalandimun, 92 a. atKamulah,io4a. atAl-Khusus,89a. at Kufadah, 73 b. near Kus, 81 b. atMadinat al-Fay- yum, 71a. at Mallawi, 74 b. Churches of, at Mun- yah, 78 a. Church of, at Sakiyah Mahfuz, 74 b. at Taha al-Madi- nah, 74 a. in monastery of Tamwaih, 67 a. at Tansa, 69 b. at Ushmunain, 104 a. Mercurius, Saint, Church of, atWana Bfisir, 18 a, 69 a. — — Monastery of, at Jizah, 60 a. — near Tura (Dair al-Fakhkhar), 47 b. Michael, bishop of Bastah and Al-Khandak, 5 a, 45 b. — Metropolitan of Damietta, 14 a. — nephew of Patriarch Zacharias, 47 b. — forty-sixth Patriarch of Alexandria, 19 a, 60 a, 76 b, 82 b, 83 a, 96 b. — fifty-sixth Patriarch of Alexandria, 44 a. — sixty-eighth Patriarch of Alexandria, 38 a, 80 a. — Patriarch of Antioch, 1 2 b. — the Archangel, altar of, 45 a. — — Church of, the Patri- archal ' Cell,' 37 b, 38 a. at Abtujah, 73 b. in Abyssinia, 105 b. at Akfahs, 91a. at Ashrubah, 7 5 a. at Athlidim, 92 a. atAl-Bahnasa, 75 a. atBardanuhah, 74 a. — near Fanti and Nakalifah, 73 a. in Monastery of Ibkah, 1 01 a. at Ishmn, 91a. at Jizah, 60 a & b. at Al-Kalandimun, 92 a. at Kamulah, 104 a. at Kufadah, 73 b. at Kus, 8 1 b. at Madinat al- Fayyum, 71a. INDEX III. IMichael, the Archangel, Churches of, at Mallawi, 74 b; at Al-Maraghat, 92 b. Church of, at Munyah Bani Khasib, 78 a, 88 b. in Monastery of Naklun, 71a. near frontier of Nubia, 100 b. in Island of Philae, 104 b. at Saft Abu Jirja, — - at Saft al-Muhall- abi, 74 b. at Shinara, 91b. nearTamwaih, 67 b. at Al-Ushmfinain, 104 a. at Uswan, 102 a. Churches of, near Al- Ushmunain, 90 b. Church of, at Wana Busir, 69 a. Festival of, 92 a. Monastery of, at Bu Harukah, 104 b. near Kanah, 103 b. at K"us, 80 a. sanctuary dedicated to, in Church of the Four Living Creatures, 39 a. — and Cosmas, Monastery of, in province of Al-Mu- kurrah, 94 b. Anba Michael, Saint, Church of, at Damamil, 102 b. Miriam, sister of Moses, 1 9 b, 20 b. Abu Misis, see Moses, Saint. INIisr, son of Ham, 48 b. Miwadd, 77 b. Mizraim, 1 8 a, (son of Ca- naan) 23 b, (son of Misr, son of Ham) 48 b, 54 a, 68 a, 69 b, 76 b, 78 a, 86 b, 92 b, 102 b, 103 a. Moses, the Prophet, 1 9 b, 20 b, 67 a. born at Askar, 19 b. at Shahran, 47 a. in Nubia, 100 a. Church of, near Hul- wan, 53 a. church where he slew Egyptian at Memphis, 68 b. family of, in Abys- sinia, 106 a. Monastery of, near Hulwan, 53 b. INIosque of, formerly Church, 53 b. water-wheel of, 92 a. — nephew of St. Joseph, 78 b. Moses, Saint, body of, in Church of Dair Bani Musa, 81 a. Church of, in Dair Bam Musa, 81 a. ^Mother of God,' Church named after, see Mariuti. Ibn al-Mudabbar, 57 a. Mufaddal ibn as-Salih, 69 a, cf. i7b(Fadl).* Muhammad ibn Fatik,vizier, 61 b. — al-Khazin, 96 b. Muharrah ibn Haidan ibn 'Amr ibn al-Haf ibn Ku- da'ah, 22 a. Muhibb Ummihi, i.e. Pto- lemy Philometor, 68 a. Muhna, monk of Kalamiin, 72 a. Al-Mu'izz li-dini 'llah, Caliph, 34 b, 44 a, 61 a, 66 b. 3b Mukattam, son of Mizraim, 48 b. Mukaukis, see George, son of Mennas. Mukhallad al-Ansari, 41a. Musa, 107 b. Al-Musharif, called Az-Zak- ruk, 73 a. Al-Mustadi bi-amri 'llah, Caliph, 7 a, 38 a, 96 a. Mustafa '1-Mulk Abu Saff Ya'kub ibn Jirjis, 66 b. Al-Mustansir, Caliph, 9 a, 24a&b, 33 a, 41b, 42 a, 51 a, 65 b, 90 b. Al-]\Iu'tamid, Caliph, 28 b. Al-Mu'tasim, History of, reference to, 17 b. Al-Mutawakkil, Caliph, 52 a. Nabish, son of Ishmael, 57 b. Abu Nadil, martyr. Church of, at Jabal Ashtar, 77 b. Abu Nafar, see Onuphiius. Nahadah, Saint, Church of, at Tansa, 18 a, 69 b. Abu Naitur, son of Noah, 19 a. Najah, son of Sarur al-Jullal, 24 b. An-Najib, brother of Ha- kanda ibn Kafri, 89 a. Narun, wali of Egj'pt under Marwan or his successor, 60 a. Nasir, the grave-digger, 43 b. — ad-Daulah ibn Hamdan, 33 a. Abu Nasr, brother of Abu 'l-'Ula' ibn Tarik (i.e. Gabriel, seventieth Patri- arch), 38 a. ibn 'Abdun, called Ibn al- 'Addas, metwalli and nazir, 40 a. [ir. 7.] 370 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. An-Nasr ibn Zulak, Book of, 104 b. Nebuchadnezzar, King, 2 3b, 76 b, 80 a. Nestorius, 84 a. Nimrod, 19 a. Noah, 23 b, 48 b. — ark of, in Abyssinia, 105a. rested on Mount Kar- da, III b. Aba Nub, see Anub, Saint. Omar, see 'Umar. Onuphrius, Saint, 33 a, 65b, 91b, 98 a. Or, Saint.Church of, attached to Church of Saint Onu- phrius, 33 b. Pachomius, Saint, 55b, 80a, 86 a, 103 b. Paphnutius, Saint, 65 b, 66 a, 67 b. Paul, Saint, Apostle at Lu- zarikun ? neaP Carthage, 108 a. hermit, 55 a, 56 b, 75 b, 86 a. Pestratelates, see Basradila- dus. Peter, Saint, Apostle, 50 b, 59 b, 60 a, 81 b, 104 a. — bishop of the Fayyum, 26 a> 39 a, 43 a, 45 b. — ibn Muhna, scribe, 38 a. Pharaoh, 18 b, 91b. — built Al-Farama, 57 b. — drowned at Al-Kulzum, 58 a. ^ Pharaoh's daughter lived at Shanah, 70 b. Pharaohs, The, 59 a. Philemon, martyr, 91a. Philip, Saint, Apostle, in Africa, 107 a. Philip, Saint, Apostle, body of, at Carthage, 107 a. Philotheus, Saint, 43 a. — twenty-third Patriarch of Alexandria, 78 b. — bishop of Misr, 37 b. Pisentius, Saint, bishop of Kift, 81 b (Abu Basan- dah). body of, 104 b. Poemen, Saint, 39 a, 60 b. — the monk, 47 a. Ptolemy, Church of, at Ish- nin, 91a. Ptolemy Philometor, 68 a. Abu Rakwah, see Al-Walid ibn Hisham al-Khariji. Rameses 11, statue of, 68 a. Raphael, the Archangel, 7 3b, 74 a & b, 90b, 91a, 104 a. Raphael, king of Nubia, 95b. Ar-Rashid Abu '1-Fadl, 89 a. Rashidah ibn Jazilah ibn Lakhm, 22 a. Ar-Rayan, Shaikh, wall of ]\Iisr, 84 a. Ar-Rayyan ibn al-Walid ibn Dauma' (Joseph's Pharaoh), 18 b, 70 a. Romanus, father of Saint Victor, 59 a, 74 a, 104 a. Banu Rubil, 29 a, 32 b. PvUdwan ibn Walakhshi, vi- zier, 9 a. Sabas, Saint, Church of, 50 b, 51b. Abu Sad Mansur, vizier, 33 a. Abu Sadir, Monastery of, near Usyut, 88 a. Saduk, name of Utis, 57 b. Safanfif, king of Nubia, 94 b. As-Saffah, Caliph, 19a, 92 b. As-Safi, abbot of Saint Moses, 81 a. Safi ad-Daulah, 89 a (same as following ?). Safi ad-Daulah ibn Abu '1- Ma'ali, called Ibn Sharaf 1 , scribe of Saladin, 4 b, 5 b. Safi ad-Daulah ibn Abu Ya- sir ibn 'Alwan, the scribe, 38 b. Sahib al-Jabal, see Lord of the Mountain. Sahib ar-Risalah, 68 b. 'Sahibath-ThalathatAkalil,' title of Abu Mina, 29 b. As-Sahri ibn Al-Hakam, 34 a. Sa'id ibn Batrik, see Euty- chius. — ibn Najah, the deacon, 61 a. — ibn Tarik, see Gabriel, seventieth Patriarch, — ad-Daulah Bahram, stew- ard of the Armenians, 4 b. al-Kaw^asi, wali of Upper Egypt, 98 b. ibn Munja ibn Abd Zakari ibn as-Sarid, 33 b. Abu Sa'id, scribe of Diwan al-Mukatabat, 66 b. — ibn Andunah, financial secretary of Di wan, 27 b, 28 a. — ibn Abi '1-Fadl ibn Fahd, 5 b. — ibn az-Zayyat, 5 a. — Gabriel ibn Buktur, call- ed Ibn al-A'raj, 33 b. Saif ad - Din Abu Bakr, brother of Saladin, 5 a. Saif al- Islam Tughtikm, brother of Saladin, 46 b. Abu 's-Saifain, see Mercurius, Saint. INDEX III, 3/1 Saladin, Sultan, 4 b, 5 a & b, 6 a, 7 a, II a, 25 a, 31 a, 37a, 38a, 39a, 42b, 46b, 67 b, 70 b, 96 a & b. Salah ad-Din, see Saladin. Salah ibn Ruzzik, see Tala'i'. Salib ibn INIikha il, son of the Hegumen, 30 b, 31 a & b. Abu Salimah (incorrectly for Umm Salimah), 28 b. Samuel, Superior of IMonas- tery of Kalamun, 71b, 72 b. Sandal al-lNIuzaffari, 60 b. Anba Sanhut, bishop of Misr, 80 a. Sanf at al-i\Iulk Abu '1-Faraj ibn llm as-Su'ada Abu '1-Yaman, 34 a. Sapor, king of Persia, 55 a. Saradib, built fortress of Phi- lae, loob. Saru', 68 a. Sarur al-Jullal, 24 a & b, 25 b. Abii Sawaris, .^ee Severus. Sayyid al-Ahl ibn Tumas.. 45 b. Sergius, Saint, 3 a, 90 a, 91 b, 92 a. Severus of Antioch, 12 a. Church of, at Kift, 103 a. atUdrunkah, 74 b. Monastery of, near Usyut, 89 a. Severus, Emperor, 68 b. Ash-Shabushti, 41a, 47 a, 49 b, 64 a, 67 a,^ 86 a. Shaddad, son of 'Ad, 68 b. Shadid al-IVIulk ibn al-Fakhr ibn Busaiwah, 25 a. Shahanshah, sec Al-Afdal. Abu Shaj, body of, at Kift, 103 a. Shaja'ah ibn Mandaghan ibn INIalik ibn Ka'b ibn al- Harith ibn Ka'b, 22 b. Abu Shakir, scribe, 39 b. Shams ad-Daulah, brother of Saladin, 96 a & b. Abu Shanudah, see Sinu- thius. Sharkis, see Sergius. Shawar as-Sa'di (Sa'idi), vi- zier, 25a&b, 30a, 31 a, 33 b, 34 a, 36 b. when wall of Kus made vow to Church, 81 b. Shirkuh, 37 b, 76a, 82a&b. Ash-Shubramurayyiki, 45 a. Simon, Saint, Apostle, body of, 82 b. — forty-second Patriarch of Alexandria, 53 a. — bishop of Al-Bahnasa, 45 b. — monk and bishop, 88 b. Sinuthius, Saint, altar of. 66 a. body of, 82 b. chest made by, 83 b. body of, in Church of, at Abutij, 91 a. Church of, at Bahu- malis, 73 b. atKamulah, 104 a. at Munyah Bani Khasib, 88 b. in INIonastery of Ash-Shama', 66 a. Monastery of, on Mt. Andariba, near Ansina, 87 a. nearlkhmim (White Monastery), 82 b. at Kift, 103 a. at Kus, 80 a. 3 b 2 Sinuthius, Saint, IMonastery of, in Nubia, 94 b. — — — at Udrunkah, 74 b. — sixty-fifth Patriarch of Alexandria, 41b, 106 b. Sirbaduwil, see Baldwin. Sirin, sister of Mary the Egyptian, 29 a. Abu Sirjah, see Sergius. Abu 's-Sirri ^Monastery of, near Usyut. 88 a. Abu Siyun, Church of, at Akfahs, 91a. Solomon, king of Israel, 105 a, 112 b. crown of, 107 b. table of, 107 b. — king of Nubia, 98 a. Sophia, Saint, see Agia Sophia. Stephen, Saint, 20 b. Church of, near Al- Bahnasa, 75 a. at Kus, 81 b. at Al-Kusair, 50b. at Sakiyah I\Iah- fuz, 74 b. at Taha al-Madi- nah, 74 a. Stratelates, see Basradiladus. As-Subasi, the Turk, wall of Cairo, 45 a. Su'luk ^1-Jullal, 27 a. \ Sunussah, see Sinuthius. Suwarr ibn Rufa'ah, wall of Misr, 32 a. At-Tabari, History of, iii b. Abu Tabih, Saint, Monas- tery of, near Ansina, 86 b. Tadrah. see Theodore. Tadrus, see Theodore. Taghut, 19 a. 372 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. Taj ad-Daulah Bahram, 6 a, 84 a. — ' — ibn Sabil, called Anf adh-Dhahab, 41b. Taj al-Muluk Bur 1, the Kurd, brother of Saladin, 42 a, 70 b. Tajib Umm 'Adi, 22 a. Taki ad-Dm 'Umar ibn Shahanshah, al-Malik al- MuzafFar, nephew of Sa- ladin, 5 a, 6 b, 70 b. Tala'i' ibn Ruzzik, al-Malik as-Salih, vizier, 7 a, 42 a, 45 a. prophecy uttered to him by monk of Abu Savvaris, 89 b. Bu Talihah, Church of, at Jalfah, 74 a. Talma'us, see Ptolemy. Tamim, Amir, brother of Caliph Al-'Aziz, 41a. Tarik, father of Patriarch Gabriel, 37 b. Ibn Tarkhan, 18 b, 69 b. Tarnimah, martyr, body of, 90 a. Church of, at Tun- budha, 90 a. Monastery of, at Tun- budha, 90 a. Theodore, Saint, 30 a, 39 a. body of, in Monas- tery at Usyiit, 88 a. Church of, at Akfahs, 91a. at Ansina, 87 a. at Ashrubah, 75 b. at Bahnasa, 75 a. at Island of Bakik, 104 b. 3:tBardan{ihah,74a. at Bulak, 60 b. at Damanhur, 30 a. Theodore, Saint, Church of, at Ishnin, 91a. at Itfih, 56 a. at Al-Kalandimun, 92 a. at Kamulah, 104 a. at Al-Kufur, 74 a. at Kus, 81 b. near Abu Mina (mosque), 32 a. atSaftMaidum,64b. at Saft Rashin, 75 b. at Sakiyah Mahfuz, 74 b. at Saul, 56 a. at Tamha, 60 b. near Monastery of the Torch, 66 b. atUdrunkah,74b. martyrdom of, 72 b. Monastery of, at Aflah az-Zaitun, 72 b. at Kamfilah, 104 a. at Kift, 103 a. near Ushmunain ?, 90 b. altar of, at Saft Mai- dum, 64 b. — forty-fifth Patriarch, 70 a. Thomas, Saint, Apostle, altar of, 43 b. annual miracle performed by his relics, 109 b, 110 a. body of, 107 a, 109 b ff. Church of, at Ash- rubah, 75 b. in India, 107 a, 109 a ff. in Monastery of Al-Kusair, 51 a. " — at Saft Abu Jirja, 74 a. atUdrunkah,74b. Thomas, Saint, Apostle, Fes- tival of, 109 b. hand of, preserved alive, 109 b. — the archdeacon, 45 b. Timothy, the monk, Church of, in the Monastery of the Vinedresser, 65 a. Turfah, 33 a. Tuwah, horse of Pharaoh, 91b. 'Umar ibn al-Khattab, Ca- liph, 21 b, 22 a, 24 a, 58 b. Ushmun, son of Kift, son of Mizraim, 68 a, 76 b. Utis, son of Khartaba and king of Egypt, 57 a & b (cf. Aftutis). Valentinian, Emperor, 53 b. Victor, Saint (son of Roma- nus), body of, 90 a. Church of, oppo- site church of same name, 42 a. in Ard Habash, 41 b. at Jalfah, 74 a. at Jizah, 59 a. at Al-Kalan- dimun, 92 a. at Kamulah, 104 a. at Al-KhusCis, 90 a. — — — — at Sakiyah Musa, 92 a. at Udrunkah, 74 b. Monastery of, at Kift, 103 a. Virgin, The Blessed, see Mary. INDEX III. 373 Abu 'l-Wafa ibn Abi '1-Ba- shar, priest, 5 a. Wa'il, 42 a. Al-Walid ibn Hisham al- Khariji, 94 b, 95 b. — ibn INIus'ab, Pharaoh in time of Moses, 23 a, 53 a, 70 a. — ibn Rufa'ah,wali of Misr, 29 b. — ibn Zuwa'ah, 26 b. Wardan ar-Rumi, 22 b. Ya'fur, ass of Mahomet, 29 a. Yahya ibn al-'Ubaidi, scribe, 39 b. Ya'kubibnYusuf(ibn Killis), 23 a. Abu '1-Yaman Wazir, met- walli of Diwan Asfal al- Ard, 44 b, 45 b, 67 a &b. ibn hb\X '1-Faraj ibn Abi '1-Yaman ibn ZanbOr, 5b. ^ Abu '1-Yaman Kuzman ibn Mina, scribe, 35 b. Surus ibn Makrawah ibn Zanbur, 33 a. al-Bazzaz, 60 b. Al-Yasal, brother of Taj ad-Daulah Bahram, 4 a, 50 a. Banu Yashkur, 32 b. Yashkur ibn Jazilah ibn Lakhm (street of), 32 b. Yashkur ibn 'Udwan ibn Lakhm, 32 b. Yasib, Saint, Church of, near Ansina, 87 a. tomb of, 87 a. Abu Yasir ibn Abu Sa'd ibn al-Kustal, priest and here- I tic, 44 b, 45 a, 46 a, 48 a i & b. I Yuhanna, see John. I Yuhannus, see John. Yfinus, seventy-second Pa- triarch, see John. Yustiyanus, see Justinian. Yusuf, see Joseph. — ibn Ayyub al-Malik an- Nasir, see Saladin. Zacharias, king of Nubia, 94 b, 97 b. — sixty-fourth Patriarch of Alexandria, 43 b, 47 b, 106 b. Az-Zafir, son of Caliph Al- Hafiz. 46 b. Abu Zakari, Shaikh, 71a. ibn Bu Nasr, adminis- trator of Ushmunain, 79 a. as-Sairafi, 30 b. Ibn Zanbur, 34 a. Zawin the Mu'allim, 39 a. Az-Zubair ibn al-'A\v\vam, 21 b. Ibn Zulak, see An-Nasr ibn Zulak. ■ 374 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. IV. INDEX OF GENERAL NAMES. Abramis (fish), 20 a. Abukir (birds), 19 b, 86 b. A/ikhalis, (wedge) of iron used as money in Abys- sinia, 106 a. Alchemy, invented by Her- mes, 52 a, 64 b. Alms, 34 b, 36 a, 59 a, 89 b. Aloes, 105 b. Altar, 30 b, 36 a, 37 a & b, 38 b, 39 a, 41b, 43 b, 45 a & b, 49 a, 50 a & b, 51 a, 61 b. — private, 97 b. — built by Solomon, 112a. — consecrated by Jesus Christ at Al-Muharra- kah, 78 b. — wooden, 45 b. Altar-board, see Tablet. Altar-chamber, 88 a. Altar- vessels, see Vessels. Ambon, 30 a. Anbal, see Ambon. Antiquities atMemphis,68a. — in Nubia, 99 b. — at Luxor, 104 b, 105 a. — at Philae, 100 b, 104 b. Apostles, Church of, near Aflah az-Zaitiin, 72 b. Melkite, in Monastery of Al-^usair, 49 b, 50 b. — paintings of, 27 a, 63 b. Apparitions of Saints, 78 b, 82 a, 93 a. Apple-trees, 54 b. Apse, 5 a, 24 b, 31 a, 41 b, 46 a, 59 a. Aqueduct, 52 b. Archdeacon, 45 b. Arches, 2 a, 31 a, 33 b, 37 a. Archimandrite, 82 b. Architects, 33 b, 37 b, 51a, 59 b. Architecture, 38 b, 42 b, 43 a. Arithmetic, invention of, 22 b. Ark of Covenant, preserved in Abyssinia, 105 b. arkhan, loa, 36a, 37a, 45b, 61 a, 75 b. Asceticism, 65 b, 72 a & b, 89 b. Askim, 56 a. Askind, 2 a, 27 b, 30 b, 31 a, 33 a, 37 a, 61 b. 'Ass of War,' surname of Caliph Marwan II, 19 a, 60 a, 92 b. Asses, Egyptian, 20 a, 97 a. Astronomy, invention of, 19 a, 22 b. Bait 'ajin, see Bakehouse. Bait al-Mdl, see Treasury. Bakehouse of church, 30 b, 39 b, 43 a. Baki, see Tribute of slaves. Baldakyn, 30 b, 37 a, 51a. Balsam, 20 a. Baptism, Festival of the, see Epiphany. Baring of the head during liturgy, 46 a. Bell, see Gong. Biographies of Patriarchs, 19 a, 21 a, 22 a, 23 b, 36 b, 60 a, 79 b, 81 a, 82 b, 96 b, 97 a, 107 b, 108 a. Birbd, see Temples, ancient Egyptian. Birds, multitude of, near Usyut, 87 b. Bishop of Atrib, 37 b. — Bahnasa, 45 b. — Bastah and Al-Khandak, 5 a, 45 b. — Bujaras (Nubia), 94 b. — Damietta, 9 a, 14 a, 63 b. — Damsis, 14 a. — the Fayyum, 18 b, 26 a, 39 a, 43 a, 45 b, 70 a. — Ibrim (Nubia), 96 b. — Isna, 102 a. — Jizah, 63 b, 64 a. — al-Kais, 53 a, 54 a. — al-Khandak, see Bishop of Bastah. — Kift, 81 b. — Memphis, 66 b. — Misr, 26 a, 37 b, 39 a, 45 a & b. — Misr (Melkite), 40 b. INDEX IV, 375 Bishop of Natfi, 98 a, 10 1 a. — Oases, 93 a & b. — Tamwaih, 5 a, 44 b, 66 b. — Tunbudha, 31 a. Bishops, burying-place of. 43 b, 63 b. — first appointed in Egypt, 23 b. — ordained by St. Thomas in India, 109 a. Bits, manufactured at Dalas, 91b. Black garments worn by Christians, 47 b, 52 a. 'Book of Monasteries/ by Ash-Shabushti, 4 1 a, 4 7 a, 49 b, 64 a, 67 a, 86 a. Books, ecclesiastical; of Ar- menians, 2 b. — written by Mark ibn ,al-Kanbar, 17 a. Boundaries of Egypt, 21a. Bran, instrument for peeling, 63 a. Breaking of dam of canal, 24 a. Bricks, church built of, 77 b. — of Al-'Irak, 95 b. Bridegroom allowed by Ibn Kustal to see bride before marriage, 46 a. Bridge (iskalah) made in ancient times for Nile, 102 a. Bridges, 24 a, 41 a, 53 a. Brocades, 19 b, 24 b, 91 b. Bulii, fish, 72 a. Burning of Fustat IMisr (by order of Shawar), 25 a, 27 a, 33 b, 34 a, 36 b, 38 a. — monastery by Melkites, 63 b. Burtulah, see Cap. Burying-places, 2 b, 25 b, 43 b, 44 a, 49 b, 63 b. Bustuldt, see Apostles, paint- ings of. Camphor, nob. Candles burnt at Christmas, 102 b. 'Canon of the Festivals,' 64 a. Canopy, 24 b, 106 a. Cap of Melkite priest, 13 b. Carbuncles, in a. Cassia, 105 b. Cathedra, see Chair. Cave of Saint Arsenius at ]\Ionastery of Al-Kusair, 51b, Cavern forming church sup- ported by pillars, opposite Shahran in IMonastery of Al-Kusair, 47 a, 51a. Caves, 51b, 52 a. Celebrated men who have visited Egypt, 19 b, 20 b, 21 a. Cell of Armenian Patriarch, 3b. Coptic Patriarch at Church of Al-Mu'allakah, 9b, lib, 13b; at Church of Michael, 37 b. Censers, 3 b, 4 4 b, 6 7 b, 1 05 b. Chair, episcopal, 30 a. Chest inlaid with ivory in Church of White Monas- tery, 83 b. Chests containing relics of martyrs, 82 b, 91a, 93 a, 109 b. Chrism, consecration of,6 6 b. Christians, 12,000 in district of Daljah, 92 a. — sole inhabitants of Taha, 77 a. Christmas, Festival of, 102 b, 106 a. Church held in common by three sects at Saft Mai- dum, 64 b. — built in thanksgiving for return of son of king of Nubia, 98 a. — washed away at IMunyat al-Ka'id, 69 a. — jMelkite, near Pottery at IMisr, 2 b. — sold to Jews, 44 a. — in street of I?tabl al-Fil (turned into mosque),. 6 b. — 'of the Water' at Ansina, 87 a. Churches of Abyssinia, 105 b. — one in every town of Abyssinia, 106 a. — 6 at Akfahs, 91a. — 400 in 'Alwah, 95 a. — ruined at Al-Arish, 56 b. — 24 at Daljah, 91b. — at Darmus in Nubia, 99 a. — at Fahsur, nob. — 70 in Ikhmim, 86 a. — 12 at Ishnin, 91a. — 1 2 in Monastery of Ka- lamun, 71b. — 9 atAl-Kalandimun,92a. — 25 at Ai-Khusus, 88 b. — 10 (Melkite) in Dair al-Kusair, 50 a. — 8 ' (iilelkite) in Dair al-Kusair, 49 b. — hewn in rock at Dair al-Kusair, 49 a. — at Luzariku, 108 a. — 3 in district of Mir, 80 a. — 14 at Munyah Bani Kha- sib, 78 a. — 24 at Shinara, 92 b. — 7 at Shinara, 91b. 376 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES t OF EGYPT. Churches, 360 atTaha, 77 a. — 60 at Usyut, 89 a. — 366 at Wasim, 60 b. — turned into mosques, 2 b, 6 b, 32 a, 41 a, 46 a, 53 b, .75b, 76a, 77b. Circumcision condemned by Ibn al-Kanbar, 9 b, 15 a. Ibn Kustal, 46 a. Cistern, 51b, 61 a, 89 a; called ' the Pure,' 92 b. Clay called Tin al-Hikmah, 20 a, loi b. — of Uswan, 20 a. — yellow, 41b; quarries of, 46 b. Coinage of Saladin, 25 a. Collyrium, miraculous, 75 b. Commentaries on ecclesias- tical books, composed by Ibn al-Kanbar, 9 a, 14 b. Common land in the Fay- yum, i8 b, 69 b. Communion,annual,miracu- lously given by St.Thomas, 1 10 a. — of chalice, 12 a. — early, in Lent, allowed by Ibn al-Kanbar, 12 a. Confession over incense, 9 a. in Abyssinia, 105 b. — to priest enjoined by Ibn al-Kanbar, 9 a & b, 15 a. Confessionary, 50 a, 61 b. Conquest of Egypt by Ma- hometans, 80 b. Book of, 18 b, 29 a, 70 a, 91 b. Consecration of churches, 5a, 25b, 28b, 30b, 31a &b, 36a, 37b, 38a, 39a, 43 a, 45 b, 48 a, 71 a. in Abysijinia, 106 b. Consecration of churches, form of, given by Jesus Christ and the Apostles, 78 b, 79 a. water used at, 78 b, 98 a, 102 b. Consecration-crosses on pil- lars, 59 b. Conversion of India to Chris- tianity, 109 a. — of a Jew to Christianity, 44 b. — of Christians to Islam, 39 b, 40 b, 47 a & b. Cooks, royal, at Shutb, 87 b. Corn sent from Egypt to Mecca by 'Amr ibn al- 'Asi, 58 b. Coronation of king of Abys- sinia, 105 b. Cotton, 96 b. Courtyard of church, 28 a, 30 a, 38 a. Cross, Church of the, at Ashrubah, 75 a. — Festival of the, 53 b, 73 a, 106 a. — IMonastery of the, in Fanii, 73 a. — in cemetery, 43 b. — on dome, 96 a. Crosses on pillars, 59 b. — on Jabal at-Tair, 76 a. — processional, 3 b, 67 b. Crown, Abyssinian, 105 b. — of king of Nubia, 99 b. — worn by Nimrod, 19 a. 'Crowns, Possessor of the Three,' 29 b. Crypt, 2 b, 24 b, 63 a & b. Cultivated land in Egypt, extent of, 23 a. Dabiki^ 19 b, 24 b. Dalldl al-Aydd, see Guide to the Festivals. Bdmin of Kalyub, 12 b. — Misr, 39 a. Death of the Blessed Virgin, Festival of the, 76 a. Decorations of the church at San' a, nob, ma. — of house, 98 b. Dedication Festival, 38 b. Destruction of churches, 23b, 27a&b, 31a, 36 b, 57 a, 59 a, 61 a, 69 a, 104 a. Devils, appearance of, 65 b, 72 a. — possession by, 83 b, 87 a. Disciples, Churches of, 56 a, 74 b, 75 a, 90 b. Diwdn Asfal al-Ard, 44 b, 67 a. — al-Khdss^ 42 b. — al-Majlis, 33 b. — al-Mukdlabdt, 66 b. — as- Said, 40 a. — ash-Shdmi, 40 a. — as-Sultdni^ 34 a. — al-Tahktky 51a. 'Dome of the Air,' 52 a. Domes, 2 a, 27 b, 30 b, 37 a& b, 42 a, 44 a, 45 a, 48 a, 50 a & b, 5 1 a, 60 b, 65 b, 96 a & b, loi a. Domes in houses, 95 b. Dromedaries turned into stone, 76 b. Duwairah, 27 b, 48 a. Easter, 53 b, 106 a. Ebony inlaid with ivory, 99 b, III a. Elephantiasis, 52 b. Embroideries, 91b. Emerald-mines, 20 a, 81 a. — road to, from Kift, 103 a. Emery, where found, 95 a. \ INDEX /V, 377 Endowments of church, 2 a, 7 a, 18 b, 29 b, 31 b, 50a, 54 b, 62 a, 66 a, 67 b, 70 a, 71 b, 91 b. Epiphany, 41 a, 53 b, 106 a. Episcopal Church of Misr, 37 b. ^ Exchange in kind among Nubians, 95 a. Excommunication of Ibn Kanbar, 9 a, 1 1 a. — Ibn Kustal, 46 a. Expenses of churches, 35 b, 43 b, 44 b, 53 a. Extreme Unction, 12 a. Fadcfz'iJIisr, Book of, 26b, 28 b. Famine in Eg}'pt, 81 a. Al-Farrdshaiii^ see Cham- berlains. Fast curtailed by Ibn al- Kanbar, 15 b. Fast of Nineveh, 15 b. Feminine quahty of the Holy Spirit, 16 a. Fire-worship in India, io8b. Fish caught in the Nile, 17 a. 'Fisherman of Ansina/ the, 87 a. Fishing, 62 a. Fishing-pool, 64 b. Flight (of Christ) into Egypt, 20b, 44 a, 75 b. Forty Days, Fast of the, see Lent. Forty IMartyrs of Sebaste, 12 a, 51 a, 87 a. Four Living Creatures. Church of, near Uswan, 104 a. at Misr, 38 b. Frankincense, 9 b, 1 5 a, 1 05 b. — alone to be burnt in church, according to Ibn al-Kanbar, 9 b, 15 a. Fukya, 20 a. Fuiiih Mi'sr, see Conquest of Egypt, Book of. Gardens. 2 a, 26 a, 30 a, 34 a, 39 b, 40 a & b, 41a, 42 b, 43a, 44b, 46b, 47b, 48b, 54b, 56a, 59b, 60b, 61 a, 66a, 67a, 71b, 88 a, 89b, 90 a, 102 a, 103 b, 104 b. Garlands placed on idols, 108 b. Giants, 19a, 79a & b, 102 a, 103 a & b. Gifts from the Mukaukis to IMahomet, 29 a. Glass, nob. — invented by Hermes, 5 2 a. — pavilion at Hulwan, see Pavilion. j Glass mosaic, 50 b, 104 b, j nob. Gold-mines, 20a, 81 a, 94 b, ICQ b, loi b. Gold-plated doors, nob. Gong (nakus), 72 a, 97 b. Gospel of John, oath taken upon, 10 a. Gospels quoted, 20 a & b. Granite, 43 b. — columns, 63 b.^ — statue [of Rameses II] at Memphis, 68 a. 'Guide totheFestivals.'com- posed by John, bishop of Damietta, 33b, 63b, 64a. Baikal, 37 b, 38 b, 48 b. — IMelkite in Coptic Church of St. Mennas at Itfili, 56b, Al-Hail, see Sphinx. Hair, growth of, allowed by Ibn al-Kanbar, 9 b, 15 a. 3 c Hair, growth of, allowed by Ibn Kustal, 46 a. Hand of our Lord, mark of, 76 a, 79 a. Hafiif, see Hunafa. Hegumen, 30 b, 34 a. Heresy, 9 a ff.. 46 a, 55 b, 56 a. Hermitage, 49 b. Hermitages at Al-Karafah, 42 a. Hieroglyphics, 33 a. 'History of the Church,' 23 b. •History of the Councils/ 65 a. History by Mahbub ibnKus- tantin al-]\Ianbaji, 22 b, 55 a, 112 a. Homily of Patriarch Philo- theus, 78 b. Honey-wine, 20 a. Horses, 20 a, 52 a. — Nubian, 97 a. House of Solomon, kinq- of Nubia, at Cairo, 98 b. Abu Hfd, see Granite statue a7id Sphinx. HuJiafd, 9 b, 1 5 a, 7 7 a, 80 b. Idol, ancient Egyptian, 99 b. Idolatry, 19 a. — in India, 108 b, 109 a. Idols, ancient Egyptian, at Luxor, 104 b, 105 a. in island of Philae, 104 b. — in North Africa, 108 b. Illuminated MS. of Gospels, 2 b. Incense, ingredients of, in Abyssinia, 105 b. — use of, enjoined by Saint Thomas the Apostle, 1 09 a. — confession over, 9 a, 105 b. [II. 7-] 378 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. Inspiration of Old Testament said to be denied by Ibn al-Kanbar, 1 6 a. Iron-plated door, 6i b, 72 b, 81 a. Iron used as money in Abyssinia, 106 a. IsMlah, see Bridge. — see Staircase. Ivory inlay, 8 3 b, 99 b, ma. Jacobites, 47 b, 48 a, 54 b, 95 b. Jausak, see Tower. Jurisdiction of Coptic Patri- arch over Nubia, 99 a ; Abyssinia, 105 a. Juyushiyah, 26 a, 54 a. Kaisdrtyah^ 77 b- Kaisdriyat al-Jamdl, 34 b. Kanbarites, 52 a. Kdntin al-A'ydd, see Canon of the Festivals. Karaites, 67 a. Katdtrd, see Chair. Kdtib ar-Rawdtib, 33 b. Keep, see Tower. Khazaf, pots so called, 41b, 46 b. Al-Khitat bi-Misr, Book of, by Al-Kindi, 32 a & b, 34 b, 107 b. Kiblah, 39 b, 46 a. Kings of Nubia, 94 b, 95 b, 97 a & b, 98 a & b. thirteen inferior, 99 a. are priests, 99 a. Abu Kir, birds, 86 b. Kisas al-Majdmi' , see His- tory of the Councils. Kitdb ad-Diydrdt, see Book of Monasteries. Kitdb Faddil Misr, 57 a. — FutiVyMisr, i8b, 70 a, 91 b; see Conquest of Egypt. Koran quoted, 64 b. Kuk, birds, 100 a. Kummiis^ see Hegumen. Kyrie eleison, 35 a. Ladanum, 105 b. Ladders, rope, 89 a. Lamp, oil of, 85 b, 87 a, 108 a & b. Lamps, phantom, 94 b. Land given to church by Caliphs, 7 a, 62 a, 88 a. — common, in the Fayyum, 18 b, 69 b. — price of, at Memphis, 68 b. Lands, church, 7 a, 50 a, 54 b, 62 a, 67 b, 71 b, 88 a, 91 b, 103 b. Landscape, beauties of, 2 a, 26a, 31a, 39b, 41a, 46b, 47 a, 49b, 64 b, 67 a, 87b. Lectionary, Coptic, 1 4 b. Lent, 12 a, 29 b, 40 b, 51 b, 66 a. Lenten charge, 40 b. Letters from Abyssinia or Nubia to Cairo, 106 b. Liturgies introduced into India by St. Thomas, 109 a. Liturgy performed by kings of Nubia and Abyssinia, 99 a, 105 b. on Ark of Covenant, 106 a. — privately performed, 97 b. Lives of Coptic Patriarchs, see Biographies. Loggia, see Manzarah. 'Lord of the Mountain,' 94 b, 96 a. Lotus-tree, 27 a, 60 b. Madhba'h—%2,XiQXmxy, 37 b, 61 b. * Magic, 17 b, 19 a, 22 b, 69 a, 71b, 92 b. Mahometans in Abyssinia, 106 a & b. — allowed to attend Chris- tian services, 39 b. — conquest of Egypt, 80 b. — favour of, towards Copts, 35 a, 35 b. — friendliness of, towards Christians at Esneh, 132a. Majlis, 41a. 'Al-Majmu fi ma ilaihi 'l-marjtf' composed by Ibn al-Kanbar, 17 a. Manzarah, 24 a, 31 b, 37 b, 40a, 42b, 46b, 48a, 49b, 51b, 61 b, 64 a, 66 a. — calledAs-Salukiyah,44b. — called As-Sukkarah, 24 a. Marble, 56 b, 57 a. — pillars, 30 a, 37 a, 61 b, 77a, nob. — quarries, 57 a. Marcasite, 20 a, 112 a. Martyrdom of 63 monks, 90 b. Martyrs slain near Uswan, 104 a. — Forty, of Sebaste, 51a. — [of Sebaste], 87 a. Mastic, 105 b. Melkite altar in church at Saft Maidum, 64 b. — bishop of Misr, 40 b. — burying-places, 44 a, 49 b. — churches, 28 a. in Monastery of Al- Kusair, 49 b. — church in Madinat al- Fayyum, 71a. — Monastery of Al-Kusair, 49 b. INDEX IV. 379 Melkite nuns, 40 a. — Patriarch, 1 3 a & b, 2 1 a, 49 b. — sanctuary in a Coptic church, 56 b. Melkites, 2 b, 9 b, 1 2 a & b, 13 a, 15 bj 28 a, 4oa&b, 49 b. — weakness of, 28 a, 40 b. Metropolitan of Abyssinia, 105 a & b, 106 b. — of Damietta, 14 a. — (Melkite) of Sanbat, 13 a & b. Metropolitans of Melkites, 13 a. Metwalli, 67 a. — ofDiwan ash-Shami, 40 a. — of Diwan at-Tahkik, 51 a. Mill,48b,5ib,63a,88a&b, 89 b. — Persian, 63 a. INIinarets, 32 a, 41 a, 42 a. IMiracles, 35 a, 59 a, 65 a, 71b, 72 b, 75 b, 76 a, 77 a, 78 b, 79 a & b, 86b, 87a, 98a, 102 a&b, 109 a ff., 11 2 b. — by intercession of Saint at Church of Al-I\Iartuti, 45 b. Miraculous proof of Chris- tian religion in time of Caliph Al-'Aziz, 35 a. — punishment of Al-Kasim, 83 a&b, 84a. Mirage in province of Al- Maris, 94 a. Mizr, drink called, 95 b. INIonasteries at 'Alwah, 95 b. — Book of, by Ash-Sha- bushti, see Book. — 35 in the Fayyum, 70 a. — 50 in Lahf al-Jabal, destroyed by Berbers, 65 a. ^Monastery on fourth cata- ract, 1 00 a. — of Al-Kusair, 13 b. — of Nestorians, 42 b. Monastic girdle, 56 a. — habit, 55 a, 56 a. ]\ronks martyred, 90 b. — burying-place of, 63 b. — famous for ascetic life, 65 b, 72 a & b, 89 b. Monument in cemetery, 43 b. Mosaics, 50b, 104a, nob. Mosque, formerly church, 6 b. — of Al-Kurun, 32 b, 34 a. — of 'Amr, rebuilt by 'Abd al-'Aziz, son of Caliph INIarwan I, 52 b. — of Ad-Dubb at Itfih, 54 a. — of Al-Khaluk, 32 b. — of Moses, 53 b. ^losques, 3 2 a, 4 1 a, 42 a & b, 46a, 52b, 75b, 76a, 77b, 86 b, 100 b. ' Mother of God,' 44 b. Mu'alli?n, i.e. Confessor, 9b. Mubdh, see Common land. IMules, 20 a. Music, 98 b. Myrtles, 40 b. Ndkus, see Gong. Naphtha springs, loi b. Nasdfi (stuff), 24 b. Nativity, Church of the, in Al-Hamra, 27 a, 30 a. — Feast of the, 102 b. Negus of Abyssinia, 106 a, nob, nib. Nestorian burying - places, 44 a. Nestorian monastery, 42 b, 46 a. Nestorians, 42 b, 43 a, 44 a, 46 a, 1 10 b. Nilometer at Ansina, 70 b. — at Hulwan, 52 b, 70 b. — at Ikhmim, 70 b. — at Kift, 103 a. — at Alemphis, 18 a, 68 a, 69 b, 70 b. Nilometers, 18 a, 33 b. — first made by Joseph, 70 b. Nunnery, 30 b, 84 a ff. — at Kift, 103 a. Nuns, IMelkite, 40 a. Oath at communion, 1 1 b. Ochre, 20 a. Odalisque ofAl-Kasim,mira- culous death of, 83 a & b. Offerings to church, 56 b. Oil of church lamps, 85 b, 87 a, 108 a&b. — for the consecration of churches (chrism), 63 b. —presses, 67b, 88 a&b, 89b. Olive-tree, miraculous, 107b. Opium, 20 a. Orange-trees, 48 a. Painters, Coptic, 5 a. Painting of George, king of Nubia, 99 a & b. — of governor of Darmus, 99 a. Paintings, Coptic, 5 a, 38 b, 41 a & b, 44 a, 45 b, 49 a, 51a, 59a, 63b, 67b, 82b, 85 a, 105 b. Palace of Emerald, 2 b. Palm-tree, miraculous, at Bashawah, 104 b. Palm Sunday, see Sunday of Olives. Paper, 20 a. 3 C 2 380 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. Paten, 67 b. Patriarch of Alexandria,Cop- tic, jurisdiction of, over Abyssinia, 97 a, 105 a. Coptic, jurisdiction of, over Nubia, 97 a, 99 a. Coptic, letters of, to kings of Abyssinia and Nubia, 106 b. Coptic, sends metro- politans to Abyssinia, 105a. Melkite, 13 a (time of Ibn al-Kanbar), 21b. Patriarch, Armenian, 2 a&b, 3 a &b, 5 a, 47 b. Patriarchal cell, 37 b. — church, 33 b, 37 b. — residence at IMonastery of the Torch, 66 b. Patriarchs, Coptic, biogra- phies of, see Biographies. Pavilion, 41a. Pavilion, see Manzarah. Pavilion of glass at Hulwan, 52 b. Pear-trees, 54 b. Penance, 4 a, 9 b, 15 a, i6b. Pentateuch, accountofFlood in, III b. Pentecost, 61 a. Persecution, 43 b. — by Al-Hakim, 47 b. Pigs kept in Nubia, 96 b. Pilgrimages, 53 b, 79 a, 94 a, 1 1 1 a. Pillage of churches, 27 a, 28a, 36b, 49b, 50a, 59b, 102 a. — monasteries, 84 b, 102 a. Pillar, moving, 17 a. Pillars, 30 a, 37 a, 41a, 42 a, 56 b, 59 b, 61 b, 63 b, 71a, nob. — * transpiring,' 71a, 77 a, 81 a. Plans of Cairo and its gates made by John the monk, 51 a. Polygamy in Abyssinia, 106 b. forbidden by Patriarch Sinuthius, 106 b. Pomegranates, 40 b, 54 b, 89 b. Population of Egypt, 22 a, 26 b. Pound-weight, value of, at Shutb, 87 b. Prayers for dead, 34 b, 62 b. Presses for sugar-canes, 20 a. Procession with tapers and incense, 3 b. — of Palm Sunday, 28 a. — in honour of St. George, 93 a. — with Ark of Covenant, 106 a. Property of churches and monasteries, see Endow- ments and Gardens. Prophets quoted, 20 a & b. Purple first worn by Nimrod, 19 b. Rabbanites, 67 a. Radish-oil, 20 a. Raihdfiij'ah, 54 a. Rain caused by moving stones at Al-Barmak, 1 7 b. Ravens fed by Simon the monk, 88 b. Reception held by Melkite Patriarch, 13 a. Relics, 60 b, 63 a & b, 65 b, 66 a, 69 a, 72 b, 75 b, 82 b, 86 b, 87 a, 90 a&b, 91a, 92a, 93a&b, loib, 104b, 107 a, 109 b, iioa. Relics, oath taken upon, 10 a & b. Relics, stand for, 30 a, 88 a. Remains, ancient, at Mem- phis, 68 a. Rent paid by monasteries into the public treasury, 67 b, 70 a. Repudiation of wife by Ibn al-Kanbar, 14 a. Reservation of Eucharist by Ibn al-Kanbar, 15 a. Reservoir, 86 a. Restoration of churches, lb, 2 a, 4 b, 25 a & b, 27 b, 29 b, 31 a&b, , 33 b, 34 b, 35 a, 36 b, 37 a&b, 38 a, 39 a, 40 a, 59a, 60b, 62a, 66a, 73a, 75 b, 82 b, 87 a, 89 a. Revenue of Egypt, 7 b, 8 a & b, 9 a, 19 a. under Joseph the Patriarch, 23 a. in time of Moses, 23 a. under Romans, 23 a. under Emperor Hera- clius, 23 a. — — under 'Amr ibn al- 'Asi, 21 b, 22 a, 23 a. under Abbasides, 23 a. under Caliph Al- Mahdi ibn al-Mansur, 23 b. under Ahmad ibn Tulun, 23 a. under Ya'kub ibn Yusuf ibn Kiliis, 23 a. — under Kafiar al-Us- tadh, 23 a. Revenue of Al-Fayyum, 69 b, 70 b. — of monasteries in the Fayyum, 18 b, 70 a. — of church in Egypt, 7 a, 53 b, 64 a. INDEX IV. 381 Revenue of Ramlah, Tibe- rias, and Damascus, 70 a. Rock-hewn churches at Kalamun, 72 b. near Usyut, 89 a. Roof of wood, 27 b, 37 a, 39 a, 59 b, 63 b. Rose-leaves, dried, used in incense, 105 b. Roses offered to idols, 108 b. Rutl, see Pound-weight. Sacrifice of animals at con- secration of churches in Abyssinia, 106 b, 107 a. on Festival of Saint IMichael, 92 a. Safe-conduct granted by 'Amr to Christians, 80 b. Sanctuary, 2 a, 27 a & b, 30b. 31 a, 33 a, 37 a&b (haikal), 39 a (haikal), 61 b, 99 a (haikal), 105 b (haikal). Sand, miraculous, at Jabal al-Kaff, 76 a. Sandarach burnt as incense, 9 b, 105 b. Sdsd7n-\yoQ>6i^ 83 b, in a. Sassanian dynasty, 55 a. Saviour, the, Churches of, 72 b, 74 b, 90 a. Scorpion, figure of, 1 00 b. Screen of ebony and ivory, III a. Scribes, Coptic, 38 a & b, 39b, 41b, 42b, 43b, 45a, 59 a, 60 b, 62 a, 82 b. Sebestan, 77 a. Seleucian era, 80 b, 107 a. Sequestration of church pro- perty, 34a, 42 b, 44 b. Sharh (stuff), 19 b. Shartwiiyah = x^^P^T^^^^f^, 31a, 37 a. S/idw, see Apse. Sheep sacrificed on Festival of St. IMichael, 92 a. — — at consecration of church, 107 a. Shrine of St. Thomas the Apostle, 109 b. Siege of Egyptian Babylon by Muslims, 2 1 a & b, 2 2 a. Sign of cross made with two fingers by followers of Ibn al-Kanbar, 15 a. Sihlli (stuff), 19 b, 24 b. Silver-plated doors, nob, III a. Simony, 31 a, 37 a & b. — condemned by Patriarch Mark, 37 a. Sinfyah, see Paten. Sinlessness of B. V. I\Iary, 16 b. Siyar al-Biah, see Biogra- phies. Slaves sent from Nubia to Caliph, 97 b. Small-pox in Egypt, 8 1 a. Snow in North Africa, 107a. Soil, excellence of, in pro- vince of Usyut, 87 b. Sphinx, The, 68 b. Sphinxes, avenue of, at Luxor, 105 a. Spoon for communion, 67 b. Spring, miraculous, in Wadi 'l-'Ain, 92 b. Staircase, 63 a. Stars, worship of the, 19 a. in India, 108 b. in Nubia, 96 a. Stone masonry, 42 b, 43 a, 50 a, 57 a, 69 a, loi b, 102 a. Stones which cause rain w^hen struck, 17 b. Sty rax, 105 b. I Succession from uncle to nephew in Nubia, 99 a. Sugar-boiling, 20 a. Summer residence of Patri- archs, 38 a. Sun, miracle connected with, in time of Joshua, 103 b. — worship of the, in India, 108 b. Sunday of Olives, 5 b, 28 a. Sycamore, 41 a & b, 43 b, 61 a, 66 b, 94 a & b. Synagogue, 67 a. Tables of stone, the, pre- served in Abyssinia, 105 b. Tablet over altar, 30 b, 37 a. — carved, 60 b. ' Tafsirat- Tafsir! composed by Ibn al-Kanbar, 14 b. Td/iis, see Crypt. Tailasdjt, 87 b. Talisman at Al-Luzarikun 108 b. Tank, Festival of the, see Epiphany. Tanks, church, 25 b, 33 a, 39 a. Taxes, 46 b, 89 b. Temples, ancient Egyptian, 56 b, 99 b, 100 b. at Denderah, 103 a. at Philae, 104 b. atUshmunain, 77 a. ' The Tanner,' 35 a. Three Hundred and Eigh- teen, Council oi,see Nicaea. Threshold inscribed with hieroglyphics, 33 a, 34 a. Throne of king of Nubia, 99 b. Tomb of king of Nubia. 98 b. — of John the Monk, 51a. Tombs of Pharaohs, 59 a. Torpedo-fish, 19 b. 0^0 382 CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES OF EGYPT. Tower [jausak\ 39 b, 48 b, 54 b, 55 b, 63 a &b, 66 a, 67 a, 71 a & b, 73 a, 79 a, 82 b, 88 a & b, 89 a, 90 b, 92 a, 104 b. Towns, names of, taken from sons of IMizraim, 54 a. Treasures, buried, 65 a. Treasury, public, 19 a, 53 a. Tree bearing fruit when approached by man with an axe, 17 a. Tribes, Arab, which took part in conquest of Egypt, 22 a. Tribute of slaves paid by Nubians to Caliph, 97 b. Trinity, doctrine of, held by Ibn al-Kanbar, 15 b. Turnip-oil, 20 a. Two Natures of Christ, doctrine of, 12 a. Two Wills of Christ, doc- trine of, 12 a. Vaulted chamber in moun- tain-side near Al-Muhar- rakah where Jesus Christ and the B. V. Mary dwelt, 79 b. Vaulted roof, 45 a, 50a & b, 63 b. Vaults, 2 b. Veil, 67 b, 99 a. Vessels of church, 3 a, 29 b, 31 a, 36 b, 44 b, 67 b. Villagers, burying-place of, 63 b. Vinegar used in liturgy by Abyssinians, 106 a. Vineyards, 54 b, 67 a. Votive offerings, 56 b, 81 b, 83 b, 84 a, 88 b, 89 b, 100 a, III a. Vow made by Shawar, 81 b. Wall, 81 a & b, 82 a, 91 b. — of Cairo, 45 a. — of Kus, 81 b, 82 a. — of Misr, 26 a, 29 b, 32 a, 1 53 a, 59 b, 83 a, 89 b 97 b. — of Oases, 93 a. — of Uswan, loi b. Wall, triple, 73 b. Water used in liturgy, in- stead of wine, by Abys- sinians, 106 a. — of consecration (holy water), 78 b, 98 a, 102 b. — turned into wine, 78 b. Water-pipe, 63 a. Water - wheel of IMoses, Church of, 92 a. Water-wheels, 67 a, 103 b. Weddings of Muslims at Esneh, 102 a & b. Wells, 31 b, 33 a, 34 a, 41 a & b, 43 b, 49 a, 51 b, 54 b, 56 a, 61 a, 62 a, 67 a, 79 a, 81 b, 102 b. White Week, The, 51 b. Whitewashing, 37 b, 45 b. Wine, use of, in liturgy of Abyssinians, 106 a. Wine-press, 55 b. Works composed by Ibn al- Kanbar, 1 6 b. Worms (termes arda), 61 b, 63 b. Woven stuffs, 19 b. NOTE The Arabic text of Abu Salih's Churches and Monasteries of Egypt is published, together with the translation, in the Series of Anecdota Oxoniensia, stift' wrappers. Price Thirty-one Shillings and Sixpence. Published at the Clarendon Press, 2 vols., 8vo, linen, with many Illustrations, Price Thirty Shillings. THE ANCIENT COPTIC CHURCHES OF EGYPT BY A. j. BUTLER, M.A.. F.S.A. AT THE CLARENDON PRESS LONDON: HENRY FROWDE OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS WAREHOUSE, AMEN CORNER. E.C DT69.A16 The churches & monasteries of Egypt and Princeton Theological Seminary-Speer Library 1 1012 00050 7436 DATE DUE 1 HIGHSMITH m 5230 Printed in USA