Pompey’s Pillar

The name of it is deceptive. This lone pillar of him, who was a rival of Julius Caesar in the civil war and the Roman consul and general Gaius Pompey, died in 48 BC, is situated on a rocky hill in the middle of Alexandria. It is irrelevant. While escaping Alexandria, Chr. was killed by a Ptolemaic pharaoh.

The crusaders who believed the 30-meter-tall Aswan red granite pillars to be his tomb gave rise to this narrative. The column is a triumphal monument created for the Roman Emperor Diocletian in the year 300 AD, but what was here before the column is what matters most. The Serapeum, Alexandria’s Acropolis, is located here.

Alexandria served as the centre of Christianity’s expansion into Egypt throughout the early centuries of the Common Era. Christianity gradually overtook other religions in Egypt, reducing followers of traditional customs and pagan deities to an unimportant minority and making them less and less popular.

The Serapeum, which was devoted to Serapis, the patron goddess of Alexandria, represented this antiquated institution and stood in opposition to the increasingly prevalent idea of Christianity. A Christian mob was led by Patriarch Theophilus of Alexandria to destroy the Serapeum and other pagan symbols in the city in 391 AD. Despite being debatable, some even attribute the Great Library of Alexandria’s destruction to the mob.

The location of what was once a massive, elaborate temple made of marble with precious metal decorations within is now marked by a lone pillar. A few of the complex’s surrounding tunnels have been maintained for visitors to explore, and some temple items have been found. The Greco-Roman Museum features a life-size black basalt bull emerging from the temple and a gold plaque honoring Serapis’ founding.

you can visit Pompey’s Pillar in Alexandria during your Cairo trip with Al Sahel Travel