| Location |
Along the coast of the Mediterranean sea in north Egypt |
|---|---|---|
| Nome |  West - the 3rd
Nome of Lower Egypt
| |
| Local deity | Serapis | |
| Ancient name | The village of Rhakotis | |
| Historical Development |
1- Alexandria was built by the Greek architect Dinocrates (332-331 BC), at the orders of Alexander the Great 2- The city flourished as the greatest center of Hellenistic civilization, a prominent cultural and economic metropolis. 3- Alexandria formally became part of the Roman Empire in 30 B.C. It was the greatest of the Roman provincial capitals, with a population of about 300,000 inhabitants. 4- In A.D. 391, Theodosius I had pagan temples and other structures razed. 5- In the later centuries of Roman rule and under the Byzantine Empire, Alexandria rivaled Rome and Constantinople as a center of Christian learning, and became the seat of a patriarch of the Eastern Orthodox Church 6- When the Arabs took Alexandria in 642, its prosperity had withered, largely because of a decline in shipping. 7- In 969 the capital of Egypt was moved to Cairo, and Alexandria's decline continued, accelerating in the 14th century, when the canal to the Nile silted up. | |
| Monuments |
a) Bibliotheca Alexandrina -The celebrated royal library contained a collection of 700,000 rolls. b) The Pharos Lighthouse - The tallest building on Earth, ensured a safe return to harbor for sailors |
