Historic site · Egypt
Virgin Mary's Tree, Matariya
شجرة العذراء مريم
A Matariya pilgrimage site honouring the tree where, by tradition, the Holy Family rested during their flight into Egypt.
Where it is
30.1206, 31.3089
Why go
Christian tradition holds that the Holy Family took shelter beneath a tree at Matariya, on the ground of ancient Heliopolis, and the spot has drawn pilgrims for centuries. The original tree weakened and fell in 1656; Franciscan priests replanted from its branches. Medieval historians including al-Maqrizi and al-Suyuti came to see it, as did Empress Eugénie in 1869, and French soldiers of 1800 are said to have cut their names into its limbs. It is set in a garden close to the Senusret I obelisk.
Near Virgin Mary's Tree, Matariya
Monument
Obelisk of Senusret I, Matariya
The Middle Kingdom granite obelisk still standing at Matariya, a standing trace of ancient Heliopolis (Iunu), the sun god's city.
1 km · straight-line distance; driving distance and time differ
Historic site
Baron Empain Palace
A distinctive early-twentieth-century palace in Heliopolis, designed for Belgian entrepreneur Baron Empain.
4 km · straight-line distance; driving distance and time differ
Mosque
Mosque of al-Zahir Baybars
A 1260s congregational mosque in Cairo’s al-Zahir district, among the oldest Mamluk mosques, restored in a project completed in 2022.
8 km · straight-line distance; driving distance and time differ
Historic site
Khanqah of Sultan Faraj ibn Barquq
A vast early-fifteenth-century mosque, Sufi khanqah and family tomb in Cairo’s eastern Mamluk cemetery, marked by twin minarets and domes.
8 km · straight-line distance; driving distance and time differ