The first church was built there in A. The church, baptistry, basilicas, public buildings, streets, monasteries, houses and workshops in this early Christian holy city were built over the tomb of the martyr Menas of Alexandria, who died in A. Huge underground cavities have opened in the north-western region of the town.
The risk of collapse is so high that the authorities were forced to fill with sand the bases of some of the most endangered buildings, including the crypt of Abu Mena with the tomb of the Saint, and close them to the public. Huge underground cavities have opened in the north-western region of the town. The risk of collapse is so high that the authorities were forced to fill with sand the bases of some of the most endangered buildings, including the crypt of Abu Mena with the tomb of the Saint, and close them to the public.
A large banked road, moreover, was executed to enable movement within the site. The Supreme Council of Antiquities is trying to counteract this phenomenon by digging trenches, and has enlarged the listed area in the hope of lowering the pressure of the irrigation.
These measures, however, have proved to be insufficient, taking into account the scale of the problem and the limited resources available. About us. I asked the driver from Cairo to make a small detour to see it. Nobody knows about this place, he was shocked to find that this is the place he wants me to stop and not the big church.
In all honesty if you don't go to see this there is a high chance it gets de-listed anyway. It has been on the In Danger list ever since the World Bank funded projected raised the water level and the crypt is now in the process of being destroyed. One would think they can protect it better but there seems to be no indication of that happening.
Judging from the measly sign at the entrance there is really no desire to do so anyway. I am surprised there was a microvan with students visiting.
There is a small paved road turning off right just before the first checkpoint that leads to the old church, again no sign or anything. Poland - Jan -. Visited in November Whatever they tell you at the branch of Ministry of Tourism in Alexandria at the SW corner of Saad Zaghloul Sqaure , there is no direct public transport from the city to the archaeological site and the new monastery.
If you really want to get there by public transportation, take a bus to Borg el Arab International Airport and ask the driver to leave you at the junction to New Borg el Arab city. Then you have to wave for the passing cars, although hitchhiking is not recommended.
It is really time consuming…. Although this kind of tour focuses on the new monastery. I learnt it from the cathedral. Officially to get to the site you need permission from the new monastery it is worth to spend there an hour or so and be guided by one of the monks — he will glorify Cyril VI of Alexandria, the Coptic pope who inaugurated the foundation of the new monastery in , where the relics of Saint Mina and the pope Cyril VI can be seen. We were lucky because on the day we were visiting Aby Mina more common name in Arabic is Mari Mina , there was a group of history students from Alexandria and we could join them.
When we reached the archaeological site around 2 km north from the modern monastery we were invited to the small wooden church on the photo recently built to shelter the remains of the original altar from the cathedral from 4th or 5th century. There we had a kind of lecture by abuna Thaddeus — it took more than one hour and was divided in four parts: 1. Life of Abu Mena — as a man, as a soldier, as a saint; 2.
The old monastery and the town that developed around it — with detailed information about city layout and its buildings, terracotta industry to produce flasks for holy water, roads leading to the site; 3. Archaeological research which started in ; 4. Abu Mena as a WHS and the future of this site in danger. Source: unesco. News 1. WebGL must be enable, see documentation. Media News Links. State of Conservation SOC by year Donate Now.
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