The Monastery of Saint Matthew the Potter, also known as the Monastery of Saint Matthew the Poor, is a Coptic Orthodox monastery in Upper Egypt. It was founded by a

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 ...

monk of the same name. It is located in Luxor Governorate near the town of Naq 'al-Zinaiqa, about seven kilometers northwest of the village of Asfun al-Matana near Esna. The monastery is built at the edge of the desert. It was uninhabited for a period of time, but in 1975, Coptic Orthodox monks reestablished a presence there. Excavations done by French archeologists between the Monastery of Saint Matthew the Poor and the

Monastery of the Martyrs The Monastery of Saint Ammonius, also known as the Monastery of the Martyrs, is a Coptic Orthodox monastery near Esna. See also * Coptic monasticism References *2000 Years of Coptic Christianity. By Meinardus, Otto F. A. 1999. American Univer ...

have revealed much about the history of

Coptic monasticism Coptic monasticism is said to be the original form of monasticism as St. Anthony of Egypt became the first one to be called "monk" (Gr: μοναχός) and he was the first to establish a Christian monastery which is now known as the Monastery of ...

in this region.

References

*2000 Years of Coptic Christianity. By Meinardus, Otto F. A. 1999. American University in Cairo Press. . *Christian Egypt: Coptic Art and Monuments Through Two Millennia. By Capuani, Massimo. 1999. Liturgical Press. . *Churches and Monasteries of Egypt and Some Neighboring Countries. By Abu Salih the Armenian. Edited and Translated by Evetts, B.T.A. 2001. Gorgias Press. . Matthew The Potter Matthew The Potter Christian monasteries established in the 8th century Buildings and structures in Luxor Governorate {{Christian-monastery-stub