, settlement_type =

Village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to ...

, image_skyline = , imagesize = , image_caption = , image_flag = Governadorat_d%27Asyut.png , flag_size = 100 px , image_seal = , seal_size = , image_shield = , shield_size = , nickname = , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Egypt , pushpin_label_position = bottom , pushpin_mapsize = 250 , pushpin_map_caption = Location in Egypt , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = , subdivision_type1 =

Governorate A governorate is an administrative division of a state. It is headed by a governor. As English-speaking nations tend to call regions administered by governors either State (administrative division), states or province, provinces, the term ''govern ...

, subdivision_type2 = , subdivision_type3 =

Dairut Dairut ( ) is a city in Egypt. It is located on the west bank of the Nile, in the Asyut Governorate. This is the point where the Nile divides, and a branch wanders off and eventually ends up in the Faiyum. Climate Köppen-Geiger climate cla ...

, subdivision_name1 = , subdivision_name2 = , subdivision_name3 = , established_title = , established_date = 4th-century , government_footnotes = , government_type =

Asyut Governorate AsyutAlso spelled ''Assiout'' or ''Assiut'' ( ar, أسيوط ' , from ' ) is the capital of the modern Asyut Governorate in Egypt. It was built close to the ancient city of the same name, which is situated nearby. The modern city is located at , ...

, leader_title = , leader_name = , leader_title1 = , leader_name1 = , unit_pref = Imperial , area_footnotes = , area_magnitude = , area_total_km2 = 0.5 , area_land_km2 = , elevation_footnotes = , elevation_m = , elevation_ft = , population_total = 9516 , population_as_of = 2006 , population_footnotes = , population_density_km2 = , population_density_sq_mi = , population_metro = , population_density_metro_km2 = , population_density_metro_sq_mi = , population_blank1_title = Social metro village , population_blank1 = 12,000 , population_blank2_title = Religion , population_blank2=

Sunni Islam Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word '' Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disagre ...

with Some

Shia Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest Islamic schools and branches, branch of Islam. It holds that the Prophets and messengers in Islam, Islamic prophet Muhammad in Islam, Muhammad designated Ali, ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his S ...

adherents live in social village , population_density_blank1_km2 = , population_density_blank1_sq_mi = , population_note = , postal_code_type = , postal_code = , area_code = , website = , footnotes = , , timezone =

EET "Eet" is a song from Regina Spektor's fifth studio album, ''Far (album), Far''. It was released as the album's second official single in October 2009. In Europe it was released as a digital download on November 27, 2009. Music video A Viral vide ...

, utc_offset = +2 , timezone_DST = , utc_offset_DST = , blank_name = , blank_info = , blank1_name = , blank1_info = Bawit ( ar, باويط ''Bāwīṭ''; Coptic: ⲡⲁⲩⲏⲧ ''Bawet'') is an

archaeological Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...

site located north of

Asyut AsyutAlso spelled ''Assiout'' or ''Assiut'' ( ar, أسيوط ' , from ' ) is the capital of the modern Asyut Governorate in Egypt. It was built close to the ancient city of the same name, which is situated nearby. The modern city is located at , ...

, near the village of Dashlout, in Egypt. It covers an area of , and houses a cemetery and the ruins of the Hermopolite monastery of Apa Apollo founded by

Apollo Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label=Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label= ...

in the late fourth century. The structures on this site are relatively well preserved, and demonstrate different aspects of a monastic complex of

Middle Egypt Middle Egypt () is the section of land between Lower Egypt (the Nile Delta) and Upper Egypt, stretching upstream from Asyut in the south to Memphis in the north. At the time, Ancient Egypt was divided into Lower and Upper Egypt, though Middle E ...

History

The Apa Apolla monastery (

Coptic Coptic may refer to: Afro-Asia * Copts, an ethnoreligious group mainly in the area of modern Egypt but also in Sudan and Libya * Coptic language, a Northern Afro-Asiatic language spoken in Egypt until at least the 17th century * Coptic alphabet ...

: ⲧⲟⲡⲟⲥ ⲛⲁⲡⲁ ⲁⲡⲟⲗⲗⲱ) is a Coptic monastery founded c. 385/390 and had about 500 monks. The sixth and seventh centuries were a period of prosperity for this monastery, which then hosted a community of women, under the patronage of

Rachel Rachel () was a Biblical figure, the favorite of Jacob's two wives, and the mother of Joseph and Benjamin, two of the twelve progenitors of the tribes of Israel. Rachel's father was Laban. Her older sister was Leah, Jacob's first wife. Her aun ...

. A fresco found at the monastery depicting Rachel dates to the sixth century. After the Islamic invasion, the monastery declined, and was abandoned around the tenth century.

Excavation

In early 1901, a survey of the site and surrounding areas was made by

Jean Clédat Jean Clédat (7 May 1871 – 29 July 1943) was a French Egyptologist, archaeologist and philologist. He became a resident at the (French Institute of Oriental Archaeology). At various times, Clédat's expeditions was sponsored by (the Suez ...

, who was based at the French Institute of Oriental Archaeology in Cairo. Continuing into 1902, Clédat was assisted by Émile Gaston Chassinat and Charles Palanque. Clédat found hermitages he called "chapels" that contained

Coptic art Coptic art is the Christian art of the Byzantine-Greco-Roman Egypt and of Coptic Christian Churches. Coptic art is best known for its wall-paintings, textiles, illuminated manuscripts, and metalwork, much of which survives in monasteries an ...

. His colleagues discovered two churches, today simply called North and South Church, with stone and wood carvings that were removed to the

Coptic Museum The Coptic Museum is a museum in Coptic Cairo, Egypt with the largest collection of Coptic Christian artifacts in the world. It was founded by Marcus Simaika in 1908 to house Coptic antiquities. The museum traces the history of Egypt from its be ...

in Cairo and the

Musée du Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central l ...

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

. Numerous sculptures and paintings were unearthed during the excavations. The papyrologist

Jean Maspero Jean Maspero (20 December 1885 – 17 February 1915) was an early 20th-century French papyrologist. He was the son of egyptologist Gaston Maspero and his wife ''née'' Louise d'Estournelles de Constant (Sister of Paul d'Estournel de Constant, wi ...

(1885–1915) resumed excavations in 1913, discovering a common room with several entrances. In 1976, then 1984 and 1985, the

Supreme Council of Antiquities The Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA) was a department of the Egyptian Ministry of Culture from 1994 to 2011. It was the government body responsible for the conservation, protection and regulation of all antiquities and archaeological excavatio ...

resumed excavations and added to the collections of the Coptic Museum. Since then, excavations have continued under various organizations.

History

Excavation

References

Further reading