Sedment al-Gabal () is a village in the

Beni Suef Governorate Beni Suef ( ') is one of the governorates of Egypt. It is situated in the center of the country and is located in northern Upper Egypt. Overview The governorate's capital is the city of Beni Suef, located about 120 km south of Cairo on the ...

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

. It attracts a large number of Christians each year to celebrate the feast day of

Saint George Saint George (;Geʽez: ጊዮርጊስ, , ka, გიორგი, , , died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was an early Christian martyr who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to holy tradition, he was a soldier in the ...

Etymology

The Arabic name of the village comes from its Coptic name pi-Sotoment (), which is probably related to the word "west" ().

History

The village is mentioned in the connection with the events described in the Coptic martyrdom of Apa Ioule and Pteleme, according to which account, during the reign of

Diocletian Diocletian ( ; ; ; 242/245 – 311/312), nicknamed Jovius, was Roman emperor from 284 until his abdication in 305. He was born Diocles to a family of low status in the Roman province of Dalmatia (Roman province), Dalmatia. As with other Illyri ...

, it was one of the places where the edict against Christians was enforced.

Comes ''Comes'' (plural ''comites''), translated as count, was a Roman title, generally linked to a comitatus or comital office. The word ''comes'' originally meant "companion" or "follower", deriving from "''com-''" ("with") and "''ire''" ("go"). Th ...

, a

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

official, established his judgment seat here, leading to the martyrdom of Apa Ioule. The narrative indicates the existence of a Christian community in Sedment as early as the 4th century. In medieval times, Sedment was referenced in historical documents, such as Arabic papyrus records from the 8th century, that mentions the village in the context of ship freight transportation. These records also show that the

Nubians Nubians () ( Nobiin: ''Nobī,'' ) are a Nilo-Saharan speaking ethnic group indigenous to the region which is now northern Sudan and southern Egypt. They originate from the early inhabitants of the central Nile valley, believed to be one of th ...

settled in the village. The medieval lists of Egyptian churches and monasteries mentions the existence of a Church of Saint George in Sedment, which is still intact. In the 11th century, Sedment was associated with monastic life. The

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian diaspora, Armenian communities around the ...

monk Peter, also known by the name al-Sedmenti, spent his early years as a monk at St. George's Monastery, located near Sedment. This suggests that the Christian community in Sedment maintained its vitality well into the medieval period. By the time of

al-Maqrizi Al-Maqrīzī (, full name Taqī al-Dīn Abū al-'Abbās Aḥmad ibn 'Alī ibn 'Abd al-Qādir ibn Muḥammad al-Maqrīzī, ; 1364–1442) was a medieval Egyptian historian and biographer during the Mamluk era, known for his interest in the Fat ...

, St. George's Monastery in Sedment had lost much of its former importance and was partially abandoned. In the early 20th century, two Coptic monks undertook the renovation of the old monastery complex in Sedment. They also constructed a new St. George's Church.

Archaeology

Egyptology Egyptology (from ''Egypt'' and Ancient Greek, Greek , ''wiktionary:-logia, -logia''; ) is the scientific study of ancient Egypt. The topics studied include ancient Egyptian History of Egypt, history, Egyptian language, language, Ancient Egypt ...

it is mainly known for a series of cemeteries excavated near this village. The cemeteries were the target of several expeditions, the most substantial one under

Flinders Petrie Sir William Matthew Flinders Petrie ( – ), commonly known as simply Sir Flinders Petrie, was an English people, English Egyptology, Egyptologist and a pioneer of systematic methodology in archaeology and the preservation of artefacts. ...

and

Guy Brunton Guy Brunton (1878 – 17 October 1948) was an English archaeologist and Egyptologist who discovered the Badarian predynastic culture. Biography At the age of 18, he moved to South Africa. On 28 April 1906, he married Winifred Newberry, a me ...

. Their work was published in two volumes.Sir Flinders Petrie/Guy Brunton: ''Sedment I + II''. London 1924 They found several hundred burials dating from around 3000 BC to the

New Kingdom New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 1 ...

. Especially many burials were found dating to the

First Intermediate Period The First Intermediate Period, described as a 'dark period' in ancient Egyptian history, spanned approximately 125 years, c. 2181–2055 BC, after the end of the Old Kingdom of Egypt, Old Kingdom. It comprises the seventh Dynasty, Seventh (altho ...

and New Kingdom. The First Intermediate Period burials contained several inscribed coffins, but also many burials with wooden models. The New Kingdom burials were found much looted, but some reliefs found demonstrate that several tombs were adorned with a relief–decorated chapel above ground. The largest tomb was that of the

vizier A vizier (; ; ) is a high-ranking political advisor or Minister (government), minister in the Near East. The Abbasids, Abbasid caliphs gave the title ''wazir'' to a minister formerly called ''katib'' (secretary), who was at first merely a help ...

Prehotep, who was in office under king

Ramses II Ramesses II (sometimes written Ramses or Rameses) (; , , ; ), commonly known as Ramesses the Great, was an Pharaoh, Egyptian pharaoh. He was the third ruler of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt, Nineteenth Dynasty. Along with Thutmose III of th ...

References

{{Authority control Archaeological sites in Egypt Populated places in Beni Suef Governorate