Wadi El-Natrun: MRA-EGY-Nat005

Type Sample Item

Geographic Location

Historical note about the site/monument: The Monastery of Saint Macarius, the Great (or Dayr Aba Maqār) is a Coptic orthodox monastery located in Wadi El Natrun (between the city of Cairo and Alexandria). Its foundation dates back the 4^th century AD, and it has been inhabited, since then and until the present day, by a large community of monks. It is said that Saint Macarius of Egypt was the responsible by the foundation of the building. In late 1960’s the monastery’s spiritual life was restored, after the arrival of a group of monks that had been, until then, living in seclusion. At the same time, several architectonic interventions were also carried out, saving the ancient building from ruin. One of these interventions led to the discovery of Saint John the Baptist’s crypt, as well as the one of the prophet Elisha.

Further reading:
“Monastery of Saint Macarius, the Great” in Wikipedia, The free encyclopedia, in https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monastery_of_Saint_Macarius_the_Great (Accessed: 19 April 2019).

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