Church of Abu Serga description and photos - Egypt: Cairo (Topic)

Church of Abu Serga description and photos - Egypt: Cairo. Detailed information about the attraction. Description, photographs and a map showing the nearest significant objects. The title in English is Church of Abu Serga.

Photo and description

Abu Serga is the oldest church in Egypt, dating back to the 5th century AD. BC, it was built over the crypt, where the Holy Family stayed during their three weeks in Egypt. According to the story of the evangelist Matthew, the Virgin Mary, Joseph and the baby Jesus fled from Palestine to Egypt, fleeing the persecution of Herod the Great. The Holy Family went to Assyut (“Deir al-Muharrak”) and on the way back home spent several weeks in Old Cairo.

The Church of Abu Serg is dedicated to two saints - Sergius and Bacchus, soldiers of the Roman army. They were faithful followers of Jesus and refused to worship the Roman gods. In the name of the Christian faith, Sergius and Bacchus were martyred in Syria in 296, during the reign of the Roman emperor Maximinus. Their relics are partially kept in the temple of Abu Serg, partially buried in Syria.

From the 9th to the 12th century, the church was the site of enthronement of several famous patriarchs and bishops. Although the temple was reconstructed several times (from the 11th to the 17th centuries, the last restoration was carried out in 2000), it still retains a medieval appearance.

Abu Serga was erected on the principle of a basilica with a nave and two side side-altars. The western end of the church is occupied by shops. Twelve columns are installed between the nave and the aisles, eleven of which are made of white marble and only one of which is red granite. Traces of numbers are clearly visible on some of the marble columns. Corinthian capitals, left over from older buildings, are wedged between the tops of the columns and wooden frames. On the east side of the church, the altar is separated by an imposing 13th century wooden screen, which is decorated with ebony and ivory. Unique icons with scenes from the life of Christ, the Virgin Mary and various saints adorn the walls of the church.

The temple once housed the old altar of Egypt, which was transferred to the Coptic Museum. There is a baptistery on the northwest side of the church. Some parts of the original woodwork and paraphernalia from the temple have been deposited in the Coptic Museum and the British Museum in London.

Of course, the main attraction is the crypt of the Sagrada Familia, located directly below the choirs. This cave is the remains of the original church, but it is closed to the public due to the threat of heating the temple.

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Topic: Church of Abu Serga description and photos - Egypt: Cairo.