Qus Explained

Qus
قوص
Settlement Type:City
Pushpin Map:Egypt
Pushpin Label Position:bottom
Pushpin Mapsize:300
Pushpin Map Caption:Location in Egypt
Pushpin Relief:1
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name: Egypt
Subdivision Type1:Governorate
Subdivision Name1:Qena Governorate
Unit Pref:Imperial
Area Footnotes:[1]
Area Total Km2:215.1
Population As Of:2021
Population Total:512,827
Population Density Km2:auto
Population Density Sq Mi:auto
Population Density Metro Km2:auto
Population Density Metro Sq Mi:auto
Population Blank1 Title:Ethnicities
Population Density Blank1 Km2:auto
Population Density Blank1 Sq Mi:auto
Timezone:EST
Utc Offset:+2
Timezone Dst:+3
Coordinates:25.9333°N 78°W

Qus (Arabic: قوص, older name Arabic: قوص واروير|translit=qus warwir, from Coptic: ⲕⲱⲥ ⲃⲉⲣⲃⲓⲣ)[2] [3] is a city in the modern Qena Governorate, Egypt, located on the east bank of the Nile.

History

Naming

Its modern name is one of many borrowings in Egyptian Arabic from Coptic, the last living phase of Ancient Egyptian. In Graeco-Roman times, it was called Apollonopolis Parva or Apollinopolis Mikra (Greek: Greek, Ancient (to 1453);: Ἀπόλλωνος ἡ μικρά;[4] Greek, Ancient (to 1453);: Ἀπόλλων μικρός),[5] or Apollonos minoris.[6]

During the Roman Empire it was renamed Diocletianopolis; and it corresponds, probably, to the Maximianopolis of the later Empire.

Overview

In the late Old Kingdom and First Intermediate Period, important people of Qus were buried at Naqada at the other side of the Nile. Here were found several stelae belonging to local governors of Qus, including those of Hetepi (priest).Gesa was an important city in the early part of Egyptian history. Because at that time it served as the point of departure for expeditions to the Red Sea. The city gradually lost its importance, only to regain it in the 13th century with the opening of an alternate commercial route to the Red Sea. Since then, Qus replaced Qift as the primary commercial center for trading with Africa, India, and Arabia. It thus became the second most important Islamic city in medieval Egypt, after Cairo.

Today, Qus is the site of a major American/German commercial project to convert the waste products of sugar cane refining (bagasse) into paper products.

The census of 2017 recorded a population in Qus of 464,288, which was estimated to have increased to 512,827 in 2021.

Main sights

Temple of Haroeris and Heqet

The temple of Haroeris (Horus) and Heqet was built during the Ptolemaic Period. Nowadays, only two ruined pylons of the temple remain.[7] It is located at 25.9158°N 32.7642°W.

The pylon shows scenes of Ptolemy X Alexander I harpooning hippopotami, presenting offerings to Horus, and offering crowns to both Horus and Heqet. The texts also include the cartouches of Ptolemy IX Soter II(called Lathyros) and his mother Cleopatra III. Near this site a green basalt naos was discovered. It was dedicated to Horus by Ptolemy II Philadelphus. The naos is presumed to have come from the temple as well.[8] [9]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Qūṣ (Markaz, Egypt) - Population Statistics, Charts, Map and Location . www.citypopulation.de . 17 March 2023.
  2. Book: Černý, Jaroslav . Coptic Etymological Dictionary . Cambridge University Press . 1976 . Cambridge . 345.
  3. Web site: أسماء بعض البلاد المصرية بالقبطية - كتاب لغتنا القبطية المصرية St-Takla.org . 2022-10-11 . st-takla.org.
  4. [Stephanus of Byzantium|Steph. B.]
  5. [Hierocles (author of Synecdemus)|Hierocl.]
  6. [Antonine Itinerary|It. Anton.]
  7. Wilkinson, Richard H., The Complete Temples of Ancient Egypt, Thames and Hudson, 2000, pp 152,
  8. Porter, Bertha and Moss, Rosalind. Topographical Bibliography of Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphic Texts, Reliefs and Paintings, V Upper Egypt: Sites (Volume 5). Griffith Institute. 2004.
  9. The numbering of the Ptolemaic rulers can differ in several sources. The numbering used by Porter and Moss seems to be off by 1 compared to Wikipedia. The internal links are based on the second name used. For instance Ptolemy Alexander I is numbered Ptolemy X on Wikipedia, while he is numbered Ptolemy XI in Porter and Moss.