Monastery · Egypt
Monastery of St Bishoy (Deir Anba Bishoy)
دير الأنبا بيشوي
Late-4th-century Wadi el-Natrun monastery founded by St Bishoy, with an ancient keep, the Well of the Martyrs and Pope Shenouda III's shrine.
Where it is
30.3191, 30.3600
Why go
Founded at the end of the fourth century by St Bishoy, this monastery lies in the Wadi el-Natrun desert roughly midway between Cairo and Alexandria. Its historic core includes the ancient church of St Bishoy, a defensive keep, old cells, a mill, a refectory table and the Well of the Martyrs, which tradition links to the killing of the Forty-Nine Martyrs of Scetis by raiders. A newer cathedral and the shrine of Pope Shenouda III sit within the walls. The Coptic Church has prepared its holy Myron oil here nine times since 1981, and Pope Tawadros II was a monk of this community.
Near Monastery of St Bishoy (Deir Anba Bishoy)
Monastery
Monastery of the Syrians (Deir al-Surian)
Wadi el-Natrun monastery named after Syrian monks who settled in 984, known for medieval wall paintings and its former Syriac library.
1 km · straight-line distance; driving distance and time differ
Monastery
Baramous Monastery (Deir al-Baramus)
Listed first of Wadi el-Natrun's four ancient monasteries, linked to St Macarius and the Roman saints Maximus and Domadius, inside an 11 m wall.
10 km · straight-line distance; driving distance and time differ
Monastery
Monastery of St Macarius the Great (Deir Abu Maqar)
Southernmost Wadi el-Natrun monastery, grown from St Macarius's 4th-century cell and long a residence of Coptic patriarchs.
12 km · straight-line distance; driving distance and time differ
Museum
Grand Egyptian Museum
Egypt's vast new antiquities museum in Giza, built around the complete Tutankhamun collection and a six-storey statue staircase.
81 km · straight-line distance; driving distance and time differ