ﺟﺎﻣﻌﺔ اﻟﻣﻧﯾﺎ ﻛﻠﯾﺔ اﻟﺳﯾﺎﺣﺔ واﻟﻔﻧﺎدق ﻗﺳم اﻻرﺷﺎد اﻟﺳﯾﺎﺣﻲ اﻟﻔرﻗﺔ اﻻوﻟﻲ ﻣﻘرر ﺣﺿﺎرة واﺛﺎر اﻟﻣﻧﯾﺎ ﻛود اﻟﻣﻘرر: رس ١٢٦ اﻟﻣﺣﺎﺿرة اﻻوﻟﻲ (Hermopolis (El-Ashmunein د. ﻓرج ﻋﺑﯾد زﻛﻲ ﻣدرس اﻻرﺷﺎد اﻟﺳﯾﺎﺣﻲ ﺑﻛﻠﯾﺔ اﻟﺳﯾﺎﺣﺔ واﻟﻔﻧﺎدق -ﺟﺎﻣﻌﺔ اﻟﻣﻧﯾﺎ وﺳﯾﻠﺔ اﻟﺗواﺻل: [email protected] Hermopolis (El-Ashmunein) • Location • Name • Historical and archaeologicl importance of the city • The most distinguished buildings in Hermopolis • The open museum in the site of El-Ahshmunien Location: • It is located near modern el-Ashmunein, on the west bank of the Nile, on the borderline between Upper and Middle Egypt about 8km north-west of Mallawi, opposite Antinoopolis in Minia Governorate, Name: • In the ancient Egyptian language it was called Khemenu (Ḫmnw) which means ‘town of eight’, named after the Ogdoad. According to the Hermopolitan creation myth there were eight primeval deities (four frog-gods and four snake-goddeses) created the cosmos in Hermopolis. These deities symbolized different aspects of chaos before they eventually brought the primeval mound into being. Name: • In the Graeco-Roman Period the city was called Hermopolis which means "The City of Hermes" since the Greeks identified Hermes with Thoth, because the city was the main cult centre of Thoth, the Pharaonic god of magic, healing, and wisdom and the patron of scribes. • In coptic it was known as Shmun, from which the .is derived (اﻷﺷﻣوﻧﯾن :modern name el Ashmunein (Arabic Historical and archaeological importance of the city • It was the cult center of god Thoth, god of wisdom, healing and writing in ancient Egypt. • The city is associated with the Hermopolitan creation myth of the cosmos by the ogdoad. • In the Graeco-Roman Period the city was capital of the 15th Upper Egyptian nome (the Hare nome) . The most distinguished buildings in Hermopolis: • There are no remains of the earliest development of the city and the only surviving elements of the site now comprise of crumbling mounds of mudbrick ruins and destroyed stone temples. The once great Temple of Thoth at el-Ashmunein was visited by several early explorers and in the early 19th century some of the columns of the hypostyle hall were still standing. The remains of buildings, temples statues include the following: • Remains from the Middle Kingdom • Remains of a temple from the New Kingdom built by Amenhotep III, the only remains of the temple are some blocks of stones and the two massive statues of Thoth as a baboon worshipping the sun. The statues bear the name of god Thoth. The two massive statues of Thoth as a baboon in Hermopolis built by Amenhotep III • Remains of a temple built by Rameses II. During the 1930s a German expedition directed by Gunter Roeder excavated the pylon of the temple, finding over one thousand re-used talatat blocks brought from the dismantled Aten temples at el-Amarna. • Excavations were directed by Jeffrey Spencer and Donald Bailey of the British Museum from1980 to 1990 also revealed mudbrick houses dating to the Third Intermediate Period as well as Roman monuments like baths. • Remains of a temple was constructed by Philip Arhideus was dedicated to god Thoth. Only remains of blocks depicted with scenes represent Alexander the Great and Philip worshiping Thoth and other deities. • The most important monument in the city was the remains of a temple built during the reign of Ptolemy II and Ptolemy III. The foundation text was found inscribed on an architrave which bears the name of Ptolemy II. Only some granite columns remained from the temple. • Some granite columns of the Agora of the city (Greek market) which was transformed later to a Christian basilica. Remains of the Greek Agora which was transformed later into a Christian Basilica, El- Ashmunien The open museum in the site of El-Ahshmunien • Most visitors will arrive first at the site of the old archaeological mission house, which has now been turned into an open-air museum containing blocks, statues and stelae from excavations at El-Ashmunein. At the entrance to the museum are the two huge reconstructed baboon statues, their bodies over 4.5m high, representing the god Thoth. These are only two of several baboon colossi which were erected at the site during the reign of Amenhotep III (Dynasty XVIII).