The Catacomb of Kom El Shoqafa Alexandria, Egypt | History, Facts, Descriptions
The Catacomb of Kom El Shoqafa Alexandria is one of top tourist attractions and it is considered to be one of the Seven Wonders of the Middle Ages. This Catacomb is the oldest one in the world before the Italian catacombs of Rome. Meanwhile, Alexandria Catacombs are unique as it is a mixture of ancient Egyptian, Greek, and Roman architectural styles.
Where is the Catacomb of Kom El Shoqafa?
The Catacomb of Kom El Shoqafa is located in Alexandria, Egypt in the district of Karmouz south of the neighborhood Mena El Basel area near Pompey’s Pillar.
Who built the Catacomb of Kom El Shoqafa?
It is not known for sure who built the Catacomb till now even though we found the statue of the owner and his wife in its burial chamber but without names. Most probably it was for a rich family during the Roman Period, and some believed that it was for the governor of Alexandria during the 2nd century AD.
Why it was called Kom El Shoqafa?
The word Kom el Shoqafa means “Mound of Shards” or “Potsherds Hill” in Arabic. In the Roman era, the visitors to the Catacomb often eat and drink wine inside the tomb. Later on, they broke the containers and terracotta jars and through them outside the catacomb’s entrance. At the time of the discovery, they found hills of these jars on the site.
When the Catacomb was discovered?
The Catacomb of Kom El Shoqafa was first discovered in 1892 by the locals but the head of the Italian mission Giuseppe Botti working in the area thought it was a Christian cemetery and he did not pay attention to the local words.
In 1900, Alexandria Catacomb was rediscovered but this time by a donkey when he fell into a hole about 10 meters deep. Later on, they discovered it was the shaft of the burial chamber of the Catacomb.
When the Catacomb of Kom El Shoqafa was built?
Archeologists found a lot of objects date back to 117 AD and 138 AD. So, they agree that the Catacomb dates back to the 2nd century and was used till the end of the 4th century.
There is another way to date the Catacomb of Kom El Shoqafa from the end of the spiral staircase, we found two resting places decorated with a shell and the top. That kind of decoration was used from Trajan to Antoninus Pius between 98 till 161 AD.
The layout of the Catacomb of Kom El Shoqafa
Entrance above the ground
Round Central shaft
Spiral staircase
Vestibule
Triclinium
Rotunda
Banquet Hall
Hall of Caracalla
burial Chamber
Description of Kom El Shoqafa Catacomb
Entrance above the ground
The entrance to Kom El Shoqafa Catacomb is located above the ground level right now.
Round Central shaft
The main purpose of the Shaft is to lower the dead person with ropes down to the rotunda then he will be taken later to be buried in the locali. The Locali was the way of burying the mummies which was a very common practice in Greek cultures. There are many windows in the shaft, some said
Spiral staircase
The spiral staircase is the way how to go down to the burial chamber. It is made up of 91 steps and leads down to the burial chambers. These stairs are designed with larger steps at the beginning and smaller ones at the end to make it easier for those who go up and down.
Two resting placing
Once we finish the spiral staircase, we find in front of us two places carved in stone with half circle Mastaba decorated with the Roman shell. That was the way how we date the tomb.
Rotunda
A circle chamber with a domed ceiling is located at the end of the spiral staircase and its room is supported by 4 rectangular columns carved from stones. Archeologists found in the rotunda a depiction of a priest of the Graeco-Egyptian deity Serapis. It may be a place where the relatives of the dead wait to be sure that he was buried.
Banquet Hall | Triclinium
The triclinium or the banquet hall was the place where the relatives and friends of the dead person rest, eat and drink. This room has the highest roof in the Catacomb referring it was for the living people.
We can notice here that there are 3 benches and an altar in between. There 3 benches are not against the wall, they are far from the walls. It was the Roman protocol of serving the guest, coming from behind, and offering drinks or food.
Hall of Caracalla | The Hall of holy horses
The Hall of Caracalla has its own entrance or staircase access and seems it was added later to the Catacomb. When the hall was found, a lot of bones were found and directly historians connected the bones with the Caracalla massacre in 214.
Emperor Caracalla was the son of Septimius Severus and the brother of Geta. Seems the empire suppose to be divided between them. Caracalla rules the west, while Geta control the east from Alexandria. Alexandrian people supported Geta against Caracalla, when he came to Egypt, he heard that Alexandria people ridiculed and insulted him after he murdered his brother.
He ordered to design hippodrome for horse and chariot racing and invited the Alexandria people, once they gathered, his soldiers killed them.so, it was thought that the bones of the killed people but now we know they are horse bones.
It is believed now that the hall was for burring the racing horses and the altar was found there to offer them sacrifices.
Burial Chamber
From the rotunda, a staircase led down to the burial chamber where we can see the unique blend of Roman, Egyptian, and Greek styles.
The entrance is decorated with two pillars with a winged solar disc at the top representing god Horus. The capitals of the pillars are a mix of Roman and Egyptian art.
On both sides, there is the Egyptian copra wearing the double crown of Upper and Lower Egypt with the head of Medusa representing God Dionysus.
Behind that hall, we found two statues seems the owner and his wife with romaine features and the Egyptian way with the left leg forward. Also, there are two carved figures of the god Anubis for protection once as a human figure and the second with a dragon tail.
The burial chamber is decorated with the winged sun disc and Egyptian cobras symbol of protection.
Facing the entrance of the burial chamber, there is a sarcophagus and two more to the right and left of the entrance.
The central part of the room is decorated with a beautiful scene of the dead person in the Osiris form laying on the bed. Anubis the god of Mummification with a jackal head mummifying him. Under the bed, we can see two of the Canopic Jars used to contain the organs of the dead person.
On both sides of the mummification bed, we can see God Horus and God Ibis holding the scepters.
There are two scenes showing the Egyptian bull god Apis receiving gifts from a Pharaoh standing in front of him. Behind the bull Apis, there is a goddess could be Isis or Maat.
Burial types of the Catacomb of Kom El Shoqafa
There are different types of burying the mummies in the Catacomb
- In sarcophagus but one piece without led or cover. This means the sarcophagus had an aperture on one side through which they put the mummy inside it.
- Locali, or carved niches on the walls where they bury the people and the Catacomb was big enough for 300 bodies. Meanwhile, we found that some mummies have either bronze or gold coins in their mouths. This is because of their beliefs in the afterlife where they needed to pay Charon who was the ferryman of the underworld for safe passage across the River of Styx.
- The third way was later when they had no chance to be buried or had money to pay, they burned them.
More monuments around the Catacomb of Kom El Shoqafa Alexandria
- The tomb from Tigrane
- 17 statues for the Sphinx
- 39 sarcophagi
- Fountain
- 156 columns capitals and bases
- Wardian tomb
- Selfago tomb
For more information about ancient Egyptian history and ancient Egyptian religion and the life and beliefs of Egyptians during the Greco-Roman era, please check our blog posts about the history of Alexandria, the top tourist attractions in Alexandria such as
Qaitbay Citadel
The Roman amphitheater
Pompey’s Pillar
The Serapeum of Alexandria
Catacombs of Kom El Shoqafa opening hours
Daily from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Kom El Shoqafa entrance fee
You can purchase an Entrance ticket for the Catacomb of Kom El Shoqafa at the entrance of the area
Adult: EGP 80 (4 $)
Students with valid cards: EGP 40(2 $)
Children aged 6-12 years: EGP 40 (2 $)
Children under 6 years: FREE
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