Vol.I - The Coptic Orthodox Church

CHAPTER II.
Dair Mari Mtna
ETWEEN Cairo and Old Cairo lies a dair,
or walled enclosure, which is marked by
an Arab domed sibil or drinking-fountain
fronted with bronze grillwork. It con-
tains an ancient church dedicated to St.
Menas, who was an early Coptic martyr, born, it
seems, at Mareotis, and slain in the persecution
under Galerius Maximinus at Alexandria. His
name recalls that of the first king of Egypt, the
reputed founder of Memphis. This saint must not
be confounded with Anba Mina, patriarch in the
eighth century. The ring-wall
of the dair is weak
and low ; the double door large and slender : both
obviously are of recent construction, and were renewed
at a time when the need for bulwarks and
posterns had almost passed away.
Inside the wall
is first a small garden and a few rude dwelling hovels
by which a path
leads to the church. On the left
one sees a flight of stone steps and a door leading to
a new 1 and uninteresting Armenian church ; and a
short way beyond on the same side in the same wall
is a modern-looking doorway. The door, built of
huge vertical beams of timber cramped
across with
iron, stands back on its hinges : one sees within a
small courtyard surrounded on three sides by build-
1 The foundation of the Armenian church is very ancient,
though
the fabric is new.