| Location |
Upper Egypt - southwest of Memphis West bank of the Nile |
|---|---|---|
| Nome |  AAtef-Pehu - the 21st Nome of Upper Egypt
| |
| Type of Settlement | Religious center | |
| Local deity | The crocodile god Sobek | |
| Necropolis |
Meidum Pyramid from the 4th Dynasty Kahun Hawara | |
| Ancient name | Egyptian - Shedyet Greek - Arsinoe (after the wife of Ptolemy 2 Philadelphus ) | |
| Contemporary name | Medinet El-Fayum | |
| Historical Development | - The City area is separated from the Nile Valley by a thin ridge and contains the large Lake Moeris, around which the life in the area has always rotated.
- Middle Kingdom - Crocodilopolis first gained prominence after draining of the Fayum oasis swamp, creating a new, fertile province. The level of the lake was artificially regulated, and large monuments were built around its shore. In the 12th Dynasty the city became the capital of Egypt. - Late Kingdom - The nearby town of Dionysius flourished (today called Qasr Karun) - Ptolemaic Period - Ptolemy 2 Philadelphus extended the town, building Greek temples and schools, and turned it into a Hellenic city, of which he made his wife Arsinoe the protective goddess - Thereafter the district became known as the Arsinoite Nome and the capital as Arsinoe. - Greek Arsinoe had a population of more than 100,000. The level of the lake was lower than in the past but still higher than today | |
| Monuments | - Very few remains of antiquity, except a few sculptured blocks, have been found
- A great stone obelisk erected by Senusret 1 during the 12th Dynasty |
Video: The portraits of Faiyum | Rafael Pérez Arroyo, Hymn to the Seven Hathor
"Faces from the Past" The portraits of Faiyum (Egypt - I th BC - II th AD) Music: Hymn to the Seven Hathor (from 'Music in the Age of the Pyramids') composed......