The Coptic Museum
Marble column capital
The capital block is hollow, suggesting that it was perhaps used for immersion of children inside it for baptism, and there are two holes for draining water.
Wall painting from a niche
Monastery of St. Jeremiah, Saqqara, 6th or 7th century AD Tempera. Excavations at the Monastery of St. Jeremiah in Saqqara have yielded several niches that were pierced into the eastern walls of monks’ cells. Monks used these niches as spaces in which to pray. These niches bear Christian scenes showing the enthroned Jesus. Two niches are decorated with the Virgin Mary nursing the infant Jesus. She is depicted flanked by angels and saints.
Tombstone
Al-Badari, Asyut Governorate, 6th century AD Sandstone. This tombstone is carved with a looped cross that looks like the pharaonic ankh hieroglyph, which is popularly—but erroneously—known as “the key of life”. It is decorated with a wreath-like pattern and flanked by Greek crosses
Decorated storage jar
Saqqara, Monastery of St. Jeremiah, 7th century AD This large storage jar with four handles was used as a container for liquid or food. It is decorated with floral motifs and fish
Fresco depicting Adam and Eve
Faiyum, 11th century AD Tempera. This unique fresco depicts Adam and Eve before and after their fall from Eden. On the right side is a horse tied to a tree symbolizing self-control and on the left is a snake, which symbolizes the devil.
Museum
The Coptic Museum is one of the oldest and most important museums in Egypt. It was founded in 1910 by Marcos Semaika Pasha (1864-1944), the first director of the Egyptian Museum, with the support of the Coptic Church, represented by Pope Cyril V, Patriarch of Alexandria (211 AD). Location: The Coptic Museum is located in the Old Cairo area (the religious complex), within the walls of the Roman fortress of Babylon, which dates back to the reign of Emperor Trajan (98-117 AD). It is surrounded by a group of the oldest and most important churches in Egypt, perhaps the most famous of which is the Church of the Virgin Mary and Saint Demiana, known as the Hanging Church, and the Church of Saints Sergius and Bacchus, or the Church of Abu Serga, which was built over the cave where the Holy Family stayed for a period during their stay in Egypt, fleeing Herod, King of the Jews. In the same area is the oldest Jewish synagogue (Ben Ezra), dating back to the 9th century AD. A few minutes' walk from the museum is the famous Fustat Mosque, which was built by Amr ibn al-As in 346 AD as the first mosque in Egypt.
Curtain
Antinopolis (modern al-Sheikh Ibada), 4th–5th centuries AD Linen, wool, Length: 142 cm, Width: 103 cm .The Copts were famous for their outstanding weaving skills. They exported their products to countries around the Mediterranean. The textiles were mainly made of plain linen, while the surface was decorated with dyed woolen threads. This technique is called tapestry. One of the finest examples of Coptic tapestry was probably used as a curtain and is decorated with a dark-skinned piper (on the right), dancers, warriors, and men on horseback.
Fresca oriental bawit
A niche representing Jesus Christ on the throne surrounded by the four evangelists, and the lower part shows the Virgin Mary with the twelve disciples and two others from Bawit itself.
Icon of the Holy Family’s flight into Egypt
Wood.This icon depicts the flight of the Holy Family into Egypt. The Virgin Mary is riding a white horse, while Jesus can be seen sitting on St. Joseph’s right shoulder.
Lnk-pot
Silver, 18th century AD. Octagonal ink-pot with conical cover, bronze chain, and crosses.
Ostracon
Deir al-Bahari, 7th century AD, Limestone. Long before the Coptic era, ostraca were favored material for drawing unconventional sketches. This example depicts of a man falling from a palm tree
The oldest book of Psalms
The Book of Psalms, dating back to the fourth century, was found in the village of Al-Mudal in Al-Bahnasa, Beni Suef Governorate. It was written in the Coptic language of Al-Bahnasa.
Ivory comb
An ivory comb with a wreath on one side, representing Jesus Christ's entry into Jerusalem. On the other side, two miracles of Jesus Christ.
Icon, 13th century AD
This icon depicts the most important events in the last week of Jesus Christ’s life. These events are commemorated every year during Holy Week, the last week of fasting before Easter
Tombstone
A tombstone with a cross in the middle and the letters alpha and omega (the first and last letters of the Coptic alphabet) on the sides, as well as an ankh sign topped by two small crosses.
The Four Gospels
Linen, paper. The four Gospels in Arabic are decorated with punctuation marks as gilt rosettes St. John painted in tempera
Flasks
V–VI centuries AD, Pottery. The flasks are decorated with a figure of St. Menas
Mural
A 7th century mural depicting Abraham's sacrifice of his son. It shows the lower part of Abraham and his son, as well as the lamb sacrificed for his son, and the legs of a person symbolizing the angel who brought the lamb.
Frieze decorated
Wood. This frieze is decorated with a Nilotic scene depicting a crocodile surrounded by fish, various blossoms, and other vegetation
Eagle
Old Cairo, Fortress of Babylon, 3rd–4th centuries AD Bronze. A majestic eagle with outspread wings holds in its talons a horn filled with leaves and fruit-bearing branches. The eagle is an ancient symbol of power, beauty, and independence. In Christianity, the eagle became a symbol of resurrection and St. John the Evangelist. This bronze eagle was discovered in the debris of the Fortress of Babylon, but it is unknown what it was used for.
Tapestry fragment
Unknown provenance, 5th–7th centuries AD Linen, wool. A roundel tapestry with woolen and linen threads. In the middle are geometric designs surrounded by fruit baskets and turtles.
Wooden Toys
Wood. These three wooden toys are among the best-preserved examples discovered in late Antique children’s tombs.
A shell
A shell containing a statue of the goddess of beauty, Aphrodite, topped by a shell-shaped niche from the Ahnesia Hall, made of limestone.
Lamp
A bronze lamp in the shape of a crescent and a cross with a stand supported by three horses
