The Hanging Church

Saint Virgin Mary's Coptic Orthodox Church (Coptic: Ⲉⲕⲕⲗⲏⲥⲓⲁ ⲛⲧⲉⲙⲁⲥⲛⲟⲩⲧ) also known as the Hanging Church (Egyptian Arabic: الكنيسة المعلقة‎ El Muallaqa, Coptic: Ⲉⲕⲕⲗⲏⲥⲓⲁ ϫⲓⲛⲓⲱⲓ) is one of the oldest churches in Egypt and the history of a church on this site dates to the 3rd century AD.

The Hanging (The Suspended) Church is named for its location above a gatehouse of Babylon Fortress, the Roman fortress in Coptic Cairo (Old Cairo); its nave is suspended over a passage. The church is approached by twenty-nine steps; early travelers to Cairo dubbed it "the Staircase Church." The land surface has risen by some six metres since the Roman period[why?] so that the Roman tower is mostly buried below ground, reducing the visual impact of the church's elevated position. The entrance from the street is through iron gates under a pointed stone arch. The nineteenth-century facade with twin bell towers is then seen beyond a narrow courtyard decorated with modern art biblical designs. Up the steps and through the entrance is a further small courtyard leading to the eleventh-century outer...