Thmuis (;
Greek
Greek may refer to:
Greece
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group.
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family.
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
: ; ar, Tell El-Timai) was a city in
Lower Egypt
Lower Egypt ( ar, مصر السفلى '; ) is the northernmost region of Egypt, which consists of the fertile Nile Delta between Upper Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea, from El Aiyat, south of modern-day Cairo, and Dahshur. Historically, ...
, located on the canal east of the
Nile
The Nile, , Bohairic , lg, Kiira , Nobiin language, Nobiin: Áman Dawū is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa and has historically been considered ...
, between its
Tanitic
The Nile Delta ( ar, دلتا النيل, or simply , is the delta formed in Lower Egypt where the Nile River spreads out and drains into the Mediterranean Sea. It is one of the world's largest river deltas—from Alexandria in the west to ...
and
Mendesian
The Nile Delta ( ar, دلتا النيل, or simply , is the delta formed in Lower Egypt where the Nile River spreads out and drains into the Mediterranean Sea. It is one of the world's largest river deltas—from Alexandria in the west to ...
branches. Its ruins are near the modern city of
Timayy al-Imdid
Timay al-Imdid ( ar, تمي الإمديد ', cop, ⲑⲙⲟⲩⲓ ⲡϭⲓⲙⲉⲛⲧⲏϯ ' ''pčhimentēti''), the ancient Thmuis and Mendes, is a city and markaz in Dakahlia Governorate of Egypt. The estimated population of the markaz in 20 ...
.
History
![Sophilos Mosaic from Thmuis](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/07/Sophilos_Mosaic_from_Thmuis.jpg)
During the
Ptolemaic Ptolemaic is the adjective formed from the name Ptolemy, and may refer to:
Pertaining to the Ptolemaic dynasty
* Ptolemaic dynasty, the Macedonian Greek dynasty that ruled Egypt founded in 305 BC by Ptolemy I Soter
* Ptolemaic Kingdom
Pertaining ...
period, Thmuis succeeded
Djedet
Mendes ( grc-gre, Μένδης, ''gen''.: ), the Greek name of the ancient Egyptian city of Djedet, also known in ancient Egypt as Per-Banebdjedet ("The Domain of the Ram Lord of Djedet") and Anpet, is known today as Tell El-Ruba ( ar, تل ال ...
as the capital of
Lower Egypt
Lower Egypt ( ar, مصر السفلى '; ) is the northernmost region of Egypt, which consists of the fertile Nile Delta between Upper Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea, from El Aiyat, south of modern-day Cairo, and Dahshur. Historically, ...
's 16th
nome of
Kha (
Herodotus
Herodotus ( ; grc, , }; BC) was an ancient Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus, part of the Persian Empire (now Bodrum, Turkey) and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria ( Italy). He is known f ...
(II, 166)). The two cities are only several hundred meters apart.
Ptolemy
Claudius Ptolemy (; grc-gre, Πτολεμαῖος, ; la, Claudius Ptolemaeus; AD) was a mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist, who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were of importanc ...
also states that the city was the capital of the
Mendesian nome
Mendes ( grc-gre, Μένδης, '' gen''.: ), the Greek name of the ancient Egyptian city of Djedet, also known in ancient Egypt as Per-Banebdjedet ("The Domain of the Ram Lord of Djedet") and Anpet, is known today as Tell El-Ruba ( ar, تل ا ...
. From the Ptolemaic-Roman period are preserved the foundations of a temple.
Thmuis was an
episcopal see
An episcopal see is, in a practical use of the phrase, the area of a bishop's ecclesiastical jurisdiction.
Phrases concerning actions occurring within or outside an episcopal see are indicative of the geographical significance of the term, mak ...
in the
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
province of
Augustamnica Prima
''Augustamnica'' (Latin) or ''Augoustamnike'' (Greek) was a Roman province of Egypt created during the 5th century and was part of the Diocese of Oriens first and then of the Diocese of Egypt, until the Muslim conquest of Egypt in the 640s.
Some ...
, suffragan of
Pelusium
Pelusium ( Ancient Egyptian: ; cop, /, romanized: , or , romanized: ; grc, Πηλουσιον, Pēlousion; la, Pēlūsium; Arabic: ; Egyptian Arabic: ) was an important city in the eastern extremes of Egypt's Nile Delta, 30 km to ...
. Today it is part of the
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 ...
Holy Metropolitanate of
Beheira
Beheira Governorate ( ar, محافظة البحيرة ', , "the governorate of the Lake") is a coastal governorate in Egypt. Located in the northern part of the country in the Nile Delta, its capital is Damanhur.
Overview
Beheira Governorate en ...
(Thmuis &
Hermopolis Parva),
Mariout (Mariotis),
Marsa Matruh
Mersa Matruh ( ar, مرسى مطروح, translit=Marsā Maṭrūḥ, ), also transliterated as ''Marsa Matruh'', is a port in Egypt and the capital of Matrouh Governorate. It is located west of Alexandria and east of Sallum on the main highway ...
(
Antiphrae
Marina, also Marina El Alamein ( ar, مارينا العلمين ), ancient ''Leukaspis'' or ''Antiphrae'', is an upscale resort town catering mainly to the Egyptian upper class. It is located on the northern coast of Egypt, with an long b ...
&
Paractorium),
Libya
Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya bo ...
(Livis) and
Pentapolis
A pentapolis (from Greek ''penta-'', 'five' and ''polis'', 'city') is a geographic and/or institutional grouping of five cities. Cities in the ancient world probably formed such groups for political, commercial and military reasons, as happened ...
(
Cyrenaica
Cyrenaica ( ) or Kyrenaika ( ar, برقة, Barqah, grc-koi, Κυρηναϊκή παρχίαKurēnaïkḗ parkhíā}, after the city of Cyrene), is the eastern region of Libya. Cyrenaica includes all of the eastern part of Libya between ...
).
In the
fourth century it was still an important
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
city, having its own administration and being exempt from the jurisdiction of the
Prefect of Alexandria. It was in existence at the time of the
Muslim invasion of Egypt in 642 AD, and was later called
Al-Mourad or "Al-Mouradeh"; it must have disappeared after the
Ottoman conquest of Egypt
Ottoman is the Turkish spelling of the Arabic masculine given name Uthman ( ar, عُثْمان, ‘uthmān). It may refer to:
Governments and dynasties
* Ottoman Caliphate, an Islamic caliphate from 1517 to 1924
* Ottoman Empire, in existence fro ...
.
Its ruins are at Tell El-Timai, about five miles north-west of
Sinbellawein, a station on the railway from
Zagazig
Zagazig ( ar, الزقازيق ' , rural: ) is a city in Lower Egypt. Situated in the eastern part of the Nile delta, it is the capital of the governorate of Sharqia.
It is located on the Muweis Canal and is a hub of the corn and cott ...
to
Mansourah
Mansoura (' , rural: ) is a city in Egypt, with a population of 960,423. It is the capital of the Dakahlia Governorate.
Etymology
''Mansoura'' in Arabic means "victorious". The city is named after the El Mansoura Battle against Louis IX of Fr ...
in the central
Delta
Delta commonly refers to:
* Delta (letter) (Δ or δ), a letter of the Greek alphabet
* River delta, at a river mouth
* D ( NATO phonetic alphabet: "Delta")
* Delta Air Lines, US
* Delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 that causes COVID-19
Delta may also ...
.
Bishopric
Le Quien
Michel Le Quien (8 October 1661, Boulogne-sur-Mer – 12 March 1733, Paris) was a French historian and theologian. He studied at Plessis College, Paris, and at twenty entered the Dominican convent in Faubourg Saint-Germain, where he made his pro ...
(''Oriens christianus'', II, 537) names nine bishops of Thmuis, the last three being
Monophysites
Monophysitism ( or ) or monophysism () is a Christological term derived from the Greek (, "alone, solitary") and (, a word that has many meanings but in this context means "nature"). It is defined as "a doctrine that in the person of the incarn ...
of the Middle Ages. The others are:
* Ammonius, Bishop of Thmuis, deposed by
Heraclas of Alexandria
Pope Heraclas ( grc, Ἡρακλῆς, Theoclas) was the 13th Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria, reigning 232–248.
Pope Heraclas of Alexandria was born to pagan parents who became Christians and were baptized after his birth. They taught him t ...
(d. 247)
[Photius, P.G., CIV, 1229.]
*
Phileas of Thmuis, d. 306 (in the
Martyrology
A martyrology is a catalogue or list of martyrs and other saints and beati arranged in the calendar order of their anniversaries or feasts. Local martyrologies record exclusively the custom of a particular Church. Local lists were enriched by na ...
, 4 February), martyr and saint
*
Saint Donatus
Saints who were named Donatus include:
* Saint Donatus of Muenstereifel, 2nd century military martyr and a patron against lightning
* Saints Donatus, Romulus, Secundian, and 86 Companions, 3rd century
* Saint Donatus of Arezzo, bishop of Arezzo (?- ...
, his successor,
martyr
A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...
*
Liberius (not Caius), at the
First Council of Nicaea
The First Council of Nicaea (; grc, Νίκαια ) was a council of Christian bishops convened in the Bithynian city of Nicaea (now İznik, Turkey) by the Roman Emperor Constantine I in AD 325.
This ecumenical council was the first effort ...
in 325
*
Saint Serapion of Thmuis The ''Sacramentary'' of Serapion of Thmuis is a work of Saint Serapion (fl. ca. 330 to 360, feast day: March 21), bishop of Thmuis (today Tell el-Timai) in the Nile Delta and a prominent supporter of Athanasius in the struggle against Arianism. He ...
, died shortly before 360, the author of various works, in part preserved, a friend of
St. Athanasius
Athanasius I of Alexandria, ; cop, ⲡⲓⲁⲅⲓⲟⲥ ⲁⲑⲁⲛⲁⲥⲓⲟⲩ ⲡⲓⲁⲡⲟⲥⲧⲟⲗⲓⲕⲟⲥ or Ⲡⲁⲡⲁ ⲁⲑⲁⲛⲁⲥⲓⲟⲩ ⲁ̅; (c. 296–298 – 2 May 373), also called Athanasius the Great, ...
*
Ptolemæus
Claudius Ptolemy (; grc-gre, Πτολεμαῖος, ; la, Claudius Ptolemaeus; AD) was a mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist, who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were of importanc ...
at the
Council of Seleucia
The Council of Seleucia was an early Christian church synod at Seleucia Isauria (now Silifke, Turkey).
History
In 358, the Roman Emperor Constantius II requested two councils, one of the western bishops at Ariminum and one of the eastern bishops ...
(359)
*Aristobulus, at the
First Council of Ephesus
The Council of Ephesus was a council of Christian bishops convened in Ephesus (near present-day Selçuk in Turkey) in AD 431 by the Roman Emperors, Roman Emperor Theodosius II. This third ecumenical council, an effort to attain consensus deci ...
(431).
See also
*
List of ancient Egyptian sites
This is a list of ancient Egyptian sites, throughout all of Egypt and Nubia. Sites are listed by their classical name whenever possible, if not by their modern name, and lastly with their ancient name if no other is available.
Nomes
A nome ...
, including sites of temples
*
Serapion Bishop of Thmuis The ''Sacramentary'' of Serapion of Thmuis is a work of Saint Serapion of Nitria, Serapion (fl. ca. 330 to 360, feast day: March 21), bishop of Thmuis (today Tell el-Timai) in the Nile Delta and a prominent supporter of Athanasius of Alexandria, Ath ...
References
Sources
*
*Baines & Malek "Cultural Atlas of Ancient Egypt", 2000.
*M.I. Bakr & H. Brandl, "Various Sites in the Eastern Nile Delta: Thmuis", in: M.I. Bakr and H. Brandl, with F. Kalloniatis (eds.), Egyptian Antiquities from the Eastern Nile Delta. Museums in the Nile Delta, vol. 2. Cairo/Berlin 2014, pp. 79, 294-301. .
{{Authority control
Ptolemaic colonies
Roman sites in Egypt
Catholic titular sees in Africa
Former populated places in Egypt
Nile Delta
Tells (archaeology)