The Mithraic material documented in Roman Aegyptus reflects the exceptional cultural and religious complexity of the province, particularly in connection with Alexandria and its cosmopolitan environment. The evidence illustrates the interaction of Mithraic communities with broader networks of trade, administration and eastern Mediterranean religious exchange.
Mithraic monuments of Aegyptus
Gnostic amulet with Mithras monogram
This silver amulet depicts Abraxas on one side and the first verses of the Book of Genesis in Hebrew on the other.
Tauroctony from Hermopolis
In the Tauroctony of Hermopolis, Cautes and Cautopates are placed over two columns at each side of the sacrifice.
CIMRM 91
Aion of Oxyrhynchus
According to Pettazzoni Aion in general finds its iconographical origin in Egypt. Mithras must have been worshipped in Egypt in the third century B.C.
CIMRM 103
Mithraeum of Memphis (Kom Dafbaby)
At about a mile's distance from the village of Mit-Rahine near Memphis a Mithraeum has been discovered, which itself has not yet been described.
CIMRM 91
Tauroctony from Memphis
This Mithras killing the Bull relief from Memphis, Egypt, it is preserved in the Museum of Cairo.
CIMRM 93
Tauroctony medallion of Egypt
This tauroctony may have come from Hermopolis and its style suggests a Thraco-Danubian origin.
CIMRM 105
Tauroctony from Memphis
Discovered in Memphis, Egypt, a second relief depicting Mithras killing the bull.
CIMRM 92
CIMRM 101
Two figures of women, of which it is not sure that they have been found inside the enclosure of the Mithraeum (H. 0.45 and 0.50).
CIMRM 101
Places in Aegyptus
Alexandria
Alexandria was founded by Alexander the Great in April 331 BC as one of his many city foundations. After he captured the Egyptian Satrapy from the Persians, Alexander wanted to build a large Greek city on Egypt’s coast that would bear his name.
Hermopolis
Hermopolis, the city of Hermes, was an important city located between Lower and Upper Egypt. A provincial capital since the Old Kingdom of Egypt, Hermopolis developed into a major city of Roman Egypt.
Memphis
Mampsis or Memphis, today Mamshit, Arabic Kurnub, is a former Nabataean caravan stop and Byzantine city.
Mendes
Mendes was a famous city that attracted the notice of most ancient geographers and historians, including Herodotus, Diodorus, Strabo, Mela, Pliny the Elder, Ptolemy, and Stephanus of Byzantium. The city was the capital of the Mendesian nome.
References
- J.R. Harris (1996) Mithras at Hermopolis and Memphis. Archeological research in Egypt: The Proceedings of The Seventeenth Classical Colloquium of The Department of Greek and Roman Antiquities, British Museum
- Leu Numismatik (2020) The first verses of the Book of Genesis in Hebrew on a Gnostic Amulet
- Tertullian.org
