We reached Cairo by flight at 6:30 AM from Mumbai. From there we caught the private bus. The distance from Cairo to Alexandria is approximately 230 km. The journey was made by private bus, taking about 2 hours and 50 minutes. Amid the endless sands and silence of the desert, the bus kept moving forward without pause, as if human curiosity and courage were crossing the vastness of nature. My curiosity truly had no limits, vast like the Sahara Desert itself. I wanted to see and examine every step of Egypt. To see and understand Egypt was my long-awaited dream.
And on top of that, the Catacombs—a UNESCO World Heritage site. Oh no, will I really be able to see these priceless treasures on Earth, which I had only read about and never fully understood? This was a rare and precious opportunity. We took breakfast on the way and dumped our luggage at the check-in counter at the hotel Tolip Alexandria by 11:30 AM and started our plan for today.
Today, we’re planning to visit the Roman Amphitheatre, the Catacombs, and Pompeii’s Pillar, and then we’ll check into our hotel in Alexandria.
Our first destination is the Catacombs of Kom el-Shoqafa, one of the Seven Wonders of the Middle Ages. It is an underground burial complex dating to the Roman period (2nd–4th century CE) and is the biggest in Egypt.
Located in the congested Kom el-Shoqafa area, the catacombs were used initially by wealthy families for burials and funerary rituals. The complex is carved deep into the limestone bedrock and is reached by a spiral staircase that leads down several levels. At the center is a vertical shaft, used to lower bodies into the tombs.
This site is not only a cultural site but also illustrates how ancient Egyptian religious ideas blended with Greco-Roman customs during the late classical period.
Visitors descend through a spiral staircase that winds down into the earth, symbolizing the journey from the world of the living to the realm of the dead. At the heart of the complex is a large circular rotunda and a central shaft, once used to lower bodies to the burial levels below.
The walls of the catacombs are richly decorated with carvings that show an extraordinary fusion of religious traditions. Egyptian gods such as Osiris, Isis, and Anubis appear alongside Roman artistic styles and Greek decorative elements. Figures wear Roman clothing, yet perform ancient Egyptian funerary rituals, revealing how Alexandrians blended beliefs rather than abandoning them.
If we want to understand the fusion, transformation, or blending of three cultures—or to grasp the spirit of the catacombs or the spirit of the Romans—we must read and understand the carved images in these catacombs. Otherwise, visiting the catacombs is meaningless. This is exactly the effort I am making here.
Let us know six Gods which are depicted in most of Catacomb carvings.
Osiris : God of the underworld, fertility, and rebirth, Osiris—originally a benevolent king—was murdered and dismembered by his brother Set; resurrected by Isis, he became judge of the dead, weighing hearts against Ma’at’s feather to determine eternal fate.
Isis : Wife and sister of Osiris, Isis is the supreme goddess of magic, motherhood, and healing; she reassembled Osiris’s body, conceived Horus through ritual magic, and protected the vulnerable, later syncretized with Greek Demeter in Ptolemaic cults like Serapis worship.
Anubis : Jackal-headed god of mummification and embalming, Anubis assisted Isis in preserving Osiris, becoming patron of funerary rites; he guided souls, guarded tombs, and oversaw the heart-weighing ceremony under Osiris’s rule in the Duat.
Further Gods like Apis, Osiris-Apis and Serapis we will understand through the carvings we see in this Catacomb.
One of the most impressive chambers features a relief of the Apis bull, safeguarded by Isis, representing rebirth and everlasting life. This imagery embodies the belief in resurrection and the aspiration for a blessed afterlife under Osiris’s protection. After exploring the intricate catacombs extensively, I believe that if we grasp one carving in the catacomb, we can comprehend most of the other carvings and uncover the philosophy behind the Roman Catacombs.
Apis is a living bull worshipped as earthly menifestation of Ptah (Creator God Bramha). After Apis bull died, it is mummified at serapeum at Saquarra and gets renewal (birth) as Osiris-Apis (God of death and resurrection, hence eternal life). While Osiris is God of Dead and rules afterlife.
Serapis is the Greek form of Osiris-Apis.
So in this left side is figure Goddess Isis is shown as protecting the whole process eternally.
On right side is Anubis, God of mummification or Osiris (God of underworld ) performing rituals to this process of life.
Since Osiris and Isis are Egyptian Gods while Serapis is Greek God so it depicts that how Greeks had embraced Egyptian Gods also in their life. This relief perfectly illustrates how the people buried in the Catacombs of Kom el-Shoqafa blended traditional Egyptian afterlife beliefs with Roman visual culture.
We must understand above figure before we further introduce the Catacomb. Nearby is the triclinium, a stone banquet hall where families gathered to hold memorial meals in honor of the dead, annual commemorations, reflecting Roman dining customs blended with local rituals. reinforcing the bond between the living and the deceased.
The burial chambers contain rows of loculi, or niches, cut into the rock to hold bodies or sarcophagi. Some areas are now partially flooded due to rising groundwater, adding to the atmosphere of mystery that surrounds the site. Probably after few centuries local public also began using the same burial place and below we can see the cabins made.
The Catacombs of Kom el-Shoqafa stand as powerful evidence of Alexandria’s multicultural identity during Roman rule. They mark a time when pagan traditions were still strong, even as Christianity was beginning to spread. Today, the catacombs are one of Alexandria’s most important archaeological sites, offering a rare and moving glimpse into ancient beliefs about death, memory, and eternal life.
The carving shows two standing male deities (Anubis and Osiris) facing each other, carved in high relief inside a recessed niche. Both figures wear Egyptian divine attributes, yet their bodies and clothing are rendered in a Roman artistic style, typical of Alexandria in the Roman period. One figure wears a traditional Egyptian headdress and holds a staff, symbolizing authority in funerary rites. The other figure, also holding a ceremonial object, mirrors him in posture, suggesting ritual balance and order.
These pillars inside the Catacombs funerary banquet hall. These are carved directly out of the living rock, not assembled from separate stone blocks. While on roof beam you can see winged sun disk is a traditional Egyptian symbol of divine protection. Artistically, the columns reflect Roman influence in their proportions and layout, while the Egyptian motifs emphasize protection, eternity, and divine order.
During memorial ceremonies, family members gathered here to share meals in honor of the dead. The presence of columns gives the room the appearance of a Roman dining hall, while the religious symbols remind visitors that the space served a funerary and spiritual purpose.
Carved guardian figure on a pillar, placed inside one of the underground chambers. It represents the idea of protection of the tomb and the deceased, expressed through a blend of Egyptian religious meaning and Roman artistic style Roman-style clothing, including a short tunic and boots.
This relief is carved on a sacrofagous and depicts the mummification rituals during Roman times.
Not sure if this really was followed as atleast I never heard about Roman mummy but i think atleast depiction and life afterlife was desire of Romans too.
Mummified body lies on a lion-shaped platform. Above the body stands Anubis wearing Roman-style clothing, the jackal-headed god of mummification and guardian. On the right, a human figure holding a spear stands as a guard.
At the center, a bull stands on a raised platform. This bull represents a sacred sacrificial animal, In Alexandrian belief, sacrificing such an animal symbolically ensured new life for the deceased. Bull also represents holy animal related to Apis, Osiris or Apis-Osiris. On the right, a human figure raises a knife or ritual weapon, preparing to sacrifice the bull. The figure wears Roman-style clothing. On the left, a priest-like figure pours liquid or burns incense at a tall offering stand.
Both these figures carry spear and standng like guards are the protecting spirits of the dead. They are not normal humans as we see.
Left side wearing Roman garment is presenting offerings on behalf of deceased. A man is shown in middle with hands up is the deceased soul, and right side is representative guardian. The ritual for safe passage into the afterlife
This is carved on a stone sarcophagus (burial chest) inside the Catacombs. Positioned centrally, showing it belonged to a person of high status The flat lid suggests the body was laid inside rather than mummified in the traditional pharaonic style—typical of the Roman period in Egypt.
A carved garland of leaves and fruits runs across the front symbolizes eternal life, wealth in afterlife and carved heads show youthfulness.
Left figure in facing wall is Anubis (jackal-headed god), guardian of mummification and Right figure: A human or divine officiant (possibly the deceased or a priest), wearing a long robe, right side is a tall offering stand or incense altar. THis just shows the funerary rite that prepares the deceased for the afterlife
These fotos I took from one of the rooms in catacomb. This looks a funerel procession. Though the fotos are very faint yet we see there are no No hieroglyphic texts are present. This shows a change in shift of thought for funerel. Looks like story telling as in Greek and Roman traditions. Egyptian afterlife ideas still exist, but expressed differently.
This serpent represents guardian spirit of Alexandria and originates from Greek religion. It reperesents Agathodaimon, a Greek god who is merged in serpent. On left is Roman-style human bust. Even if the figure looks Roman, its purpose is Egyptian to assist afterlife of diceased.
Epilogue
Though catacombs might exist in other countoires also like Italy, Tunisia, Malta and France yet this seems to be very much preserved with time and the carvings are noway inferior to the carvings we see in temples of Roman period. We know Romans did not mummify bodies yet the carvings are mostly limited to Gods who protect the afterlife process, cause the rebirth and for the peace of the deceased. In one shot the carvings look difficult to understand but more or less the Romans express desire and faith in Egyptian faith on rebirth. THis is a must see place but Egypt government must make the venue more pleasant with bigger free area with gardens outside. THis is in a congested place.
Views: 3
[…] we’re planning to visit the Roman Amphitheatre, the Catacombs of Kom el-Shoqafa, and Pompey’s Pillar, and then we’ll check into our hotel in Alexandria. I already […]
Thank you so much