Wadi El-Natroun | The Monasteries of Wadi El Natrun

Location: The wadi is located 62 miles from Cairo , Cairo-Alexandria road.

How to reach?

By vehicle: If you need a private transfer, Memphis tours can arrange that for you by Air-conditioned modern vehicle from anywhere in Cairo or Giza.

Explanation: Wadi El-Natroun was once important to the ancient Egyptians, as it was providing them with carbonated sodium required for the mummification process, because the area was very rich with its salts. The Romans extracted silica for glass from here. During the British occupation era, a railroad system was built to move the salt in the valley to Cairo.

Christianity reached the area with St. Macarius the Great who retreated there in C.330.Then the area became a sanctuary for Christians who were fleeing the systematic Roman persecution in the 4th century and there they started to develop a monastic order.

The area was once flourished by tens of monasteries of which only four survived the time. This was to protect monks against the Berbers and Bedouins, though without avail in some cases.

The Specific Monasteries of the Area: 1.The Monastery of Anba Bishoy 2.The Monastery of Baramus 3. The Monastery of Abu Makar 4. The Monastery of El - Suryan