‘Izbat Abū Qarn, Egypt Travel Journals & Blogs

Greece, Egypt and Jordan
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- Jan 8, 2023, 12:00 PM
- ☀️ 19 °C
- Altitude: 95 ft
- Egypt Cairo ‘Izbat Abū Qarn Kanīsat Dayr Mārī Jirjis 30.006051, 31.23023430°0’22” N 31°13’49” E
Day 19
A visit to the Hanging Church
January 8, 2023 in Egypt ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C
Saint Virgin Mary's Coptic Orthodox Church, also known as the Hanging Church, is one of the oldest churches in Egypt. It was probably built during the patriarchate of Isaac (690–692), though an earlier church building may have existed on the site as early as the 3rd or 4th century. The church was largely rebuilt by the Pope Abraham (975–978). It has seen many other restorations including an extensive repair and restoration of the church and its surroundings completed in 2011.

The Hanging Church is so named because it was built above a gatehouse of the Roman fortress in Old Cairo. Its nave is suspended over a passage. The church is approached by twenty-nine steps. The land surface has risen by six metres since the Roman period, so the Roman tower is mostly buried below ground, reducing the visual impact of the church's elevated position.

The design of the church is based on Noah's Ark with the barrel-vaulted roof representing the upturned hull of the ark. The church's interior is full of intricately carved wooden screens, bright stained glass, striking art, and religious icons.Read more
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Traveler Middle East 2022
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- Oct 31, 2022, 2:03 PM
- ☀️ 27 °C
- Altitude: 25 m
- Egypt Cairo ‘Izbat Abū Qarn Kanīsat Dayr Mārī Jirjis 30.007026, 31.2301130°0’25” N 31°13’48” E
Day 29
Hanging Church
October 31, 2022 in Egypt ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C
Officially called the Church of the Virgin Mary, the Hanging Church is built atop the southern gatehouse of the Roman-built Babylon Fortress and gets its name from the fact that its nave is suspended over a passageway. This unique location gives the church the impression of hanging in mid-air, but this is hard to see until you get in and see through slits the old passageway far below.

The current church was built in the 7th century, and has had a number of renovations. The ceiling is built of vaulted timber and intended to resemble the interior of Noah’s Ark. The church is famous for its religious icons, however, of which 110 remain on display within its walls.

Many of these decorate the sanctuary screens and were painted by a single artist during the 18th century. The oldest and most famous icon is known as the Coptic Mona Lisa. It depicts the Virgin Mary and dates back to the 8th century.Read more
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Traveler Middle East 2022
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- Oct 31, 2022, 2:10 PM
- ☀️ 27 °C
- Altitude: 25 m
- Egypt Cairo ‘Izbat Abū Qarn Kanīsat Dayr Mārī Jirjis 30.006946, 31.23004330°0’25” N 31°13’48” E
Day 29
St George's Church
October 31, 2022 in Egypt ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C
Next door to the Museum is another church, St George's Greek Orthodox. It was originally constructed during the tenth century AD, at which time it was dedicated to Saint George who is said to have once killed a dragon as seen over the door.

The church was destroyed by a major fire, but was later rebuilt. In actual fact, the church which you see today is built on top of an ancient Roman tower which connects to the monastery below, and construction was only completed just over 100 years ago in 1904. It is also one of the few round churches ever built in Egypt.

The Church of St. George is an active church. That is, it is still used as a church. It is the country’s principle Greek Orthodox Church. The monastery is also the official seat of the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Alexandria

The interior of the church has beautiful stained glass and rich darkly stained wood.Read more
Traveler Wow! Incredible! What’s the history?
10/31/22Reply
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Traveler Middle East 2022
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- Oct 31, 2022, 12:33 PM
- ☀️ 26 °C
- Altitude: 27 m
- Egypt Cairo ‘Izbat Abū Qarn Kanīsat Dayr Mārī Jirjis 30.006064, 31.22987330°0’22” N 31°13’48” E
Day 29
Coptic Museum
October 31, 2022 in Egypt ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C
From Tahrir Square subway station, it was a short 5 LE (28 cents) subway ride four stops to the Mar Girgis station literally across the street from the Coptic Museum which is in the centre of a religious complex of many churches and a synagogue.

The Copts are an ethnic group with their own language and go back to the time of the Pharaohs themselves. They became Christian, although one interesting note from the museum is how this happened over a couple of hundred years where you see some of the pagan gods remaining part of the tradition, gradually becoming adapted to have Christian meanings. The Copts have remained in Egypt after Islam defeated the Byzantines despite waves of persecution. The Copts started the concept of monasticism that spread to Europe, and were themselves influential in the early days of the church. They mainly practice an Eastern Orthodox branch, but some adhere to Catholic rites. They are now a significant minority in Egypt of perhaps 10 to 20%

This museum shows some of the art which is quite nice from several centuries.Read more
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skip's retirement travel Egypt
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- Apr 11, 2021, 11:46 AM
- ☀️ 20 °C
- Altitude: 30 m
- Egypt Cairo ‘Izbat Abū Qarn Kanīsat Dayr Mārī Jirjis 30.00667, 31.2330°0’24” N 31°13’48” E
Day 3
St George Greek Orthodox Church
April 11, 2021 in Egypt ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C
This is a round Greek Orthodox Church built on top of an old, perhaps Roman tower, hence it's locsl nickname as the Hanging Church. There is a seminary here and a monastery not far away.
The first 3 pictures are in the church sanctuary. As you might imagine, there are more St. George icons here than I could count. The 4th picture is one of the oldest. The 5th looks through a cave like structure that has many of the icons, the one on the far wall is one example. The last picture is a 4th century baptismal font.Read more
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skip's retirement travel Egypt
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- Apr 11, 2021, 11:59 AM
- ☀️ 21 °C
- Altitude: 30 m
- Egypt Cairo ‘Izbat Abū Qarn Kanīsat Dayr Mārī Jirjis 30.00667, 31.2330°0’24” N 31°13’48” E
Day 3
San Sergio's or Cave Church
April 11, 2021 in Egypt ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C
Much is made here of the flight of the Holy Family from Herod's Slaughter of the Innocents. This church is on the site of a cave where the Holy Family is reported to have sheltered.
The 1st picture is a small chapel in the very cave. At the bottom you can see a bit of the original cave. The 2nd is self explanatory. 3rd is an example of coptic/arabic translation. This church dates to before the switch to arabic and so has a collection of works from that period.
4th is inside the church.
Last is a map showing the journey of the Holy Family in Egypt. I'm told there are records from the time identifying where they stayed.Read more
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Traveler Nilkreuzfahrt & Kairo
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- Jan 5, 2022, 11:00 AM
- ☀️ 16 °C
- Altitude: 25 m
- Egypt Cairo ‘Izbat Abū Qarn Kanīsat Dayr Mārī Jirjis 30.00667, 31.2330°0’24” N 31°13’48” E
Day 8
Koptisches Viertel ✝
January 5, 2022 in Egypt ⋅ ☀️ 16 °C
Nach dem Museum ging es weiter in das koptische Viertel. In Ägypten leben etwa 10% koptische Christen. Die Kopten sind die orthodoxen oder katholischen Christen Ägyptens, es hat aber auch kleineren Gemeinden aussserhalb des Landes. In Viertel hat es verschiedene Kirchen ⛪ und eine Synagoge 🕍. Die Synagoge war leider geschlossen. Die erste Kriche die wir besucht haben war die Sergios-und-Bakchos-Kirche aus dem 4 Jahrhundert. Die Besonderheit der Kirche: In der Krypta im Keller sollen Maria und Josef mit Jesus mehrere Wochen gelebt haben. Weiter ging es in die hängende Kirche. Diese hat ihren Namen da sie auf einer alten römischen Zitadelle erbaut wurde. Sie ist die älteste Kirche in Kario, datiert auf das 3. Jahrhundert. Besonders schön fand ich hier die Mosaike vor der Kirche.Read more
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Greece, Egypt and Jordan
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- Jan 8, 2023, 12:30 PM
- ☀️ 19 °C
- Altitude: 95 ft
- Egypt Cairo ‘Izbat Abū Qarn Kanīsat Dayr Mārī Jirjis 30.006033, 31.23017630°0’22” N 31°13’49” E
Day 19
More photos of the Hanging Church
January 8, 2023 in Egypt ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C
Some more photos 📸 of this incredible church.
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D Brown Egypt, Land Of The Pharaohs
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- Mar 17, 2009, 5:33 PM
- 68 °F
- Altitude: 66 ft
- Egypt Cairo ‘Izbat Abū Qarn Ḩaşan Bābiliyūn 30.00778, 31.2340230°0’28” N 31°14’2” E
Day 2
Hee Haw...
March 17, 2009 in Egypt ⋅ 68 °F
Old Cairo Style.
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Traveler EGIPTO 2023
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- Dec 17, 2023, 11:51 AM
- ⛅ 23 °C
- Altitude: 30 m
- Egypt Cairo ‘Izbat Abū Qarn Kanīsat Dayr Mārī Jirjis 30.006406, 31.23060330°0’23” N 31°13’50” E
Day 7
Iglesia San Sergio
December 17, 2023 in Egypt ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C
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