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36-453: (Redirected from Arsinoite ) Arsinoe (Greek: Ἀρσινόη ) was the name bestowed upon three different cities in ancient Egypt: Arsinoe, modern Faiyum , Middle Egypt Arsinoe (Gulf of Suez) , also called Cleopatris, at the head of the Gulf of Suez Arsinoe, also called Olbia , at the mouth of the Gulf of Suez [REDACTED] Topics referred to by

72-596: A local monograph called the Book of the Faiyum centered on Sobek with a considerable portion devoted to the journey made by Sobek-Ra each day with the movement of the sun through the sky. The text also focuses heavily on Sobek's central role in creation as a manifestation of Ra , as he is said to have risen from the primal waters of Lake Moeris , not unlike the Ogdoad in the traditional creation myth of Hermopolis . Many varied copies of

108-460: A role as a solar deity through his connection to Horus, but this was further strengthened in later periods with the emergence of Sobek-Ra, a fusion of Sobek and Egypt's primary sun god, Ra . Sobek-Horus persisted as a figure in the New Kingdom (1550–1069  BCE ), but it was not until the last dynasties of Egypt that Sobek-Ra gained prominence. This understanding of the god was maintained after

144-784: Is debated among scholars, but many believe that it is derived from a causative of the verb "to impregnate". Though Sobek was worshipped in the Old Kingdom, he truly gained prominence in the Middle Kingdom ( c.  2055–1650  BCE ), most notably under the Twelfth Dynasty pharaoh, Amenemhat III . Amenemhat III had taken a particular interest in the Faiyum of Egypt, a region heavily associated with Sobek. Amenemhat and many of his dynastic contemporaries engaged in building projects to promote Sobek – projects that were often executed in

180-468: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Faiyum Originally founded by the ancient Egyptians as Shedet, its current name in English is also spelled as Fayum , Faiyum or al-Faiyūm . Faiyum was also previously officially named Madīnat al-Faiyūm ( Arabic for The City of Faiyum ). The name Faiyum (and its spelling variations) may also refer to

216-530: Is from this association with healing that Sobek was considered a protective deity. His fierceness was able to ward off evil while simultaneously defending the innocent. He was thus made a subject of personal piety and a common recipient of votive offerings , particularly in the later periods of ancient Egyptian history . It was not uncommon, particularly in Ptolemaic and Roman Egypt, for crocodiles to be preserved as mummies to present at Sobek's cultic centers. Sobek

252-499: Is on the canal, with four waterwheels which were adopted by the governorate of Fayoum as its symbol; their chariots and bazaars are easy to spot. The city is home of the football club Misr Lel Makkasa SC , that play in the Egyptian Premier League . The Köppen-Geiger climate classification system classifies its climate as hot desert (BWh). The highest record temperatures was 46 °C (115 °F) on June 13, 1965, and

288-467: Is one of the few reptiles seen to diligently care for their young, and often transports its offspring in this manner. The practice of preserving this aspect of the animal's behavior via mummification is likely intended to emphasize the protective and nurturing aspects of the fierce Sobek, as he protects the Egyptian people in the same manner that the crocodile protects its young. In Ptolemaic and Roman Egypt,

324-708: Is the source of some famous death masks or mummy portraits painted during the Roman occupation of the area. The Egyptians continued their practice of burying their dead, despite the Roman preference for cremation . While under the control of the Roman Empire, Egyptian death masks were painted on wood in a pigmented wax technique called encaustic —the Faiyum mummy portraits represent this technique. While previously believed to represent Greek settlers in Egypt, modern studies conclude that

360-582: The Faiyum Oasis , although it is commonly used by Egyptians today to refer to the city. The modern name of the city comes from Coptic  ̀Ⲫⲓⲟⲙ / Ⲡⲉⲓⲟⲙ epʰiom/peiom (whence also the personal name Ⲡⲁⲓⲟⲙ payom ), meaning the Sea or the Lake , which in turn comes from late Egyptian pꜣ-ym of the same meaning, a reference to the nearby Lake Moeris ; the extinct elephant ancestor Phiomia

396-593: The Osirian triad of Osiris , Isis , and Horus in the Middle Kingdom , Sobek became associated with Isis as a healer of the deceased Osiris (following his violent murder by Set in the central Osiris myth ). In fact, though many scholars believe that the name of Sobek, Sbk , is derived from s-bAk , "to impregnate", others postulate that it is a participial form of the verb sbq , an alternative writing of sAq , "to unite", thereby meaning Sbk could roughly translate to "he who unites (the dismembered limbs of Osiris)". It

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432-532: The crocodile god, reads: Unis is Sobek, green of plumage, with alert face and raised fore, the splashing one who came from the thigh and tail of the great goddess in the sunlight ... Unis has appeared as Sobek, Neith 's son. Unis will eat with his mouth, Unis will urinate and Unis will copulate with his penis. Unis is lord of semen, who takes women from their husbands to the place Unis likes according to his heart's fancy. The origin of his name, Sbk in Egyptian ,

468-451: The "Land of the Lake" in Egyptian (specifically referring to Lake Moeris ) – served as a cult center of Sobek. Most Faiyum towns developed their own localized versions of the god, such as Soknebtunis at Tebtunis, Sokonnokonni at Bacchias, and Souxei at an unknown site in the area. At Karanis, two forms of the god were worshipped: Pnepheros and Petsuchos. There, mummified crocodiles were employed as cult images of Petsuchos. Sobek Shedety,

504-489: The Faiyum portraits instead represent mainly native Egyptians, reflecting the complex synthesis of the predominant Egyptian culture and that of the elite Greek minority in the city. The construction of the settlement of Philadelphia under Ptolemy II Philadelphus was recorded in detail by a 3rd-century BC Greek public official named Zeno (or Zenon, Greek : Ζήνων ). Zeno, a native of Kaunos in lower Asia Minor , came to Faiyum to work as private secretary to Apollonius ,

540-477: The Faiyum, Kom Ombo , in southern Egypt, was the biggest cultic center of Sobek, particularly during the Ptolemaic and Roman periods. Kom Ombo is located about 30 miles (48 km) north of Aswan and was built during the Graeco-Roman period (332 BCE – 395 CE). The temple at this site was called the "Per-Sobek", meaning the "house of Sobek". Sobek is, above all else, an aggressive and animalistic deity who lives up to

576-459: The Faiyum. In this period, Sobek also underwent an important change: he was often fused with the falcon-headed god of divine kingship, Horus . This brought Sobek even closer with the kings of Egypt, thereby giving him a place of greater prominence in the Egyptian pantheon. The fusion added a finer level of complexity to the god's nature, as he was adopted into the divine triad of Horus and his two parents: Osiris and Isis . Sobek first acquired

612-559: The Greeks called it "Crocodile City" ( Koinē Greek : Κροκοδειλόπολις Krokodeilópolis ), which was borrowed into Latin as Crocodīlopolis . The city worshipped a tamed sacred crocodile called, in Koine, Petsuchos , "the Son of Soukhos", that was adorned with gold and gem pendants. The Petsoukhos lived in a special temple pond and was fed by the priests with food provided by visitors. When Petsuchos died, it

648-666: The area has been further investigated by a team from the UCLA/RUG/UOA Fayum Project. According to Roger S. Bagnall , habitation began in the fifth millennium BC and a settlement was established by the Old Kingdom ( c.  2685 –2180 BC) called Shedet (Medinet el-Fayyum). It was the most significant centre of the cult of the crocodile god Sobek (borrowed from the Demotic pronunciation as Koinē Greek : Σοῦχος Soûkhos , and then into Latin as Suchus ). In consequence,

684-472: The arrival of Christianity , Arsinoë became the seat of a bishopric , a suffragan of Oxyrhynchus , the capital of the province and the metropolitan see . Michel Le Quien gives the names of several bishops of Arsinoë, nearly all of them associated with one heresy or another. The Catholic Church , considering Arsinoë in Arcadia to be no longer a residential bishopric, lists it as a titular see . Fayyum

720-459: The dangers presented by the Nile . Sobek enjoyed a longstanding presence in the ancient Egyptian pantheon, from the Old Kingdom of Egypt (c. 2686–2181 BCE) through the Roman period ( c.  30  BCE –350  CE ). He is first known from several different Pyramid Texts of the Old Kingdom, particularly from spell PT 317. The spell, which praises the pharaoh as the living incarnation of

756-462: The fall of Egypt's last native dynasty in Ptolemaic and Roman Egypt ( c.  332  BCE – 390  CE ). The prestige of both Sobek and Sobek-Ra endured in this time period and tributes to him attained greater prominence – both through the expansion of his dedicated cultic sites and a concerted scholarly effort to make him the subject of religious doctrine. The entire Faiyum region –

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792-415: The finance minister to Ptolemy II Philadelphus (and later to Ptolemy III Euergetes ). During his employment, Zeno wrote detailed descriptions of the construction of theatres, gymnasiums, palaces and baths in the 250s and 240s BC, as well as making copious written records of various legal and financial transactions between citizens. During the winter of 1914–1915, a cache of over 2,000 papyrus documents

828-474: The kingdom. Ptolemy II Philadelphus also established a town at the edge of Faiyum named Philadelphia . It was laid out in a regular grid plan to resemble a typical Greek city, with private dwellings, palaces, baths and a theatre. Under the Roman Empire , Arsinoë became part of the province of Arcadia Aegypti . To distinguish it from other cities of the same name, it was called "Arsinoë in Arcadia". With

864-428: The lowest record temperature was 2 °C (36 °F) on January 8, 1966. People from Faiyum may be known as al-Fayyumi: Petsuchos B C D F G H I K M N P Q R S T U W Sobek ( Ancient Egyptian : sbk , Coptic : Ⲥⲟⲩⲕ , romanized:  Souk ), also known as Suchus ( Ancient Greek : Σοῦχος , romanized :  Soûchos ),

900-727: The main temple at Shedet functioned solely to serve Sobek, boasting titles like "prophet of the crocodile-gods" and "one who buries of the bodies of the crocodile-gods of the Land of the Lake". For the Greco-Roman period, the settlements Bakchias, Narmouthis , Soknopaiou Nesos , Tebtunis and Theadelphia at the edges of the Faiyum provide numerous papyri , ostraca and inscriptions that relate to temples and priests of Sobek and his local incarnations: The sources from these five settlements are central to study cult practice, temple economy and social networks of priestly families under Roman rule. Outside

936-482: The patron of the Faiyum's centrally located capital, Crocodilopolis (or Egyptian "Shedet"), was the most prominent form of the god. Extensive building programs honoring Sobek were realized in Shedet, as it was the capital of the entire Arsinoite nome and consequently the most important city in the region. It is thought that the effort to expand Sobek's main temple was initially driven by Ptolemy II . Specialized priests in

972-614: The river: one of three arches, which carries the main street and bazaar, and one of two arches, over which is built the Qaitbay mosque, a gift from his wife to honor the Mamluk Sultan in Fayoum. Mounds north of the city mark the site of Arsinoe, known to the ancient Greeks as Crocodilopolis, where in ancient times the sacred crocodile kept in Lake Moeris was worshipped. The center of the city

1008-494: The same term This disambiguation page lists articles about distinct geographical locations with the same name. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Arsinoe,_Egypt&oldid=636616802 " Category : Place name disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Articles containing Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text Short description

1044-430: The vicious reputation of his patron animal, the large and violent Nile crocodile / West African crocodile . Some of his common epithets portray this nature succinctly, the most notable of which being: "he who loves robbery", "he who eats while he also mates", and "pointed of teeth". However, he also displays grand benevolence in more than one celebrated myth. After his association with Horus and consequent adoption into

1080-530: Was also offered mummified crocodile eggs, meant to emphasize the cyclical nature of his solar attributes as Sobek-Ra. Likewise, crocodiles were raised for religious reasons as living incarnations of Sobek. Upon their deaths, they were mummified in a grand ritual display as sacred, but earthly, manifestations of their patron god. This practice was executed specifically at the main temple of Crocodilopolis . These mummified crocodiles have been found with baby crocodiles in their mouths and on their backs. The crocodile

1116-429: Was an ancient Egyptian deity with a complex and elastic history and nature. He is associated with the sacred and Nile crocodiles and is often represented as a crocodile-headed humanoid, if not as a crocodile outright. Sobek was also associated with pharaonic power, fertility, and military prowess, but served additionally as a protective deity with apotropaic qualities , invoked especially for protecting others from

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1152-432: Was identified as the former location of ancient Philadelphia. Today, the precise location of the town is unknown, although archaeologists have identified two sites in north-east Faiyum as the possible location for Philadelphia. Faiyum has several large bazaars, mosques , baths and a much-frequented weekly market. The canal called Bahr Yussef runs through the city, its banks lined with houses. There are two bridges over

1188-472: Was named after it. Archaeological evidence has found occupations around the Faiyum dating back to at least the Epipalaeolithic . Middle Holocene occupations of the area are most widely studied on the north shore of Lake Moeris , where Gertrude Caton Thompson and Elinor Wight Gardner did a number of excavations of Epipalaeolithic and Neolithic sites, as well as a general survey of the area. Recently

1224-519: Was replaced by another. Under the Ptolemaic Kingdom , the city was called Ptolemais Euergétis ( Koinē Greek : Πτολεμαῒς Εὐεργέτις ) until Ptolemy II Philadelphus (309–246 BC) renamed the city Arsinoë and the whole nome after the name of his sister-wife Arsinoe II (316–270 or 268), who was deified after her death as part of the Ptolemaic cult of Alexander the Great , the official religion of

1260-519: Was the seat of Shahralanyozan , governor of the Sasanian Egypt (619–629). The 10th-century Bible exegete, Saadia Gaon , thought el-Fayyum to have actually been the biblical city of Pithom , mentioned in Exodus 1:11. Around 1245 CE, the region became the subject of the most detailed government survey to survive from the medieval Arab world, conducted by Abū ‘Amr ‘Uthman Ibn al-Nābulusī . Faiyum

1296-588: Was uncovered by Egyptian agricultural labourers who were digging for sebakh near Kôm el-Kharaba el-Kebir . Upon examination by Egyptology scholars, these documents were found to be records written by Zeno in Greek and Demotic . These papyri, now referred to as the Zenon Archive or the Zenon Papyri , have provided historians with a detailed record of 3rd-century BC Philadelphia society and economy. The discovery site

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