Abu Mena
Abu Mena (Egypt) By: Porsha Lee. Instructor: Dr. Greta Bolin Date: 11/10/2013
Abu Mena was the name of a soldier who was an officer in the Diocletian army. Once Menas army won the war, he refused to kill any Christians, he declared his Christianity which made a tremendous motive for other Christians to bear the suffering and abuse from the Diocletian’s army ("Abu Mena-Unesco World Heritage Centre",). Legend has it that his remains were brought back from Phrygia by camel and were buried where the animal refused to walk. After Abu Mena was buried in AD 296, water welled up in the desert at the exact spot, filling the area with vines and olive trees, which is now known as St. Mena’s Vineyard ("Abu Mena-Unesco World Heritage Centre",). Abu Mena is located just south of Alexandra who is between Wadi el-Natrun and Alexandria. In the early Christian holy city, churches, basilicas, baptistery, streets, monasteries, and public building were built over the tomb of the martyr of Alexandria. Egypt is well known for more than the legend of Au Mena, Egypt is also known for their different types of plants and their different uses. Egypt’s plants surprisingly are varied and lush considering the country is made up of mostly desert. There native tree is called Phoenician juniper, which is the only tree near the oases and drainages. There plant life included succulents, reeds, louts flowers and papyrus. The Eastern desert has very little rainfall, but has a variety of vegetation such as tamarisk, acacia, markh, thorny shrubs, and aromatic herbs. In the areas they are more arid, the seeds of flowers sprout quickly after rainfall, completing their growing cycle and producing seeds in a matter of days ("Vegetation-The Wonders of Egypt",). The new seeds lay dormant waiting for the next rainfall to repeat the growth pattern ("Vegetation-The Wonders
Abu Mena was the name of a soldier who was an officer in the Diocletian army. Once Menas army won the war, he refused to kill any Christians, he declared his Christianity which made a tremendous motive for other Christians to bear the suffering and abuse from the Diocletian’s army ("Abu Mena-Unesco World Heritage Centre",). Legend has it that his remains were brought back from Phrygia by camel and were buried where the animal refused to walk. After Abu Mena was buried in AD 296, water welled up in the desert at the exact spot, filling the area with vines and olive trees, which is now known as St. Mena’s Vineyard ("Abu Mena-Unesco World Heritage Centre",). Abu Mena is located just south of Alexandra who is between Wadi el-Natrun and Alexandria. In the early Christian holy city, churches, basilicas, baptistery, streets, monasteries, and public building were built over the tomb of the martyr of Alexandria. Egypt is well known for more than the legend of Au Mena, Egypt is also known for their different types of plants and their different uses. Egypt’s plants surprisingly are varied and lush considering the country is made up of mostly desert. There native tree is called Phoenician juniper, which is the only tree near the oases and drainages. There plant life included succulents, reeds, louts flowers and papyrus. The Eastern desert has very little rainfall, but has a variety of vegetation such as tamarisk, acacia, markh, thorny shrubs, and aromatic herbs. In the areas they are more arid, the seeds of flowers sprout quickly after rainfall, completing their growing cycle and producing seeds in a matter of days ("Vegetation-The Wonders of Egypt",). The new seeds lay dormant waiting for the next rainfall to repeat the growth pattern ("Vegetation-The Wonders
References: Abu Mena (Egypt) African World Heritage Sites. (2011). Retrieved from http://www.africanworldheritage.org Ancient Egyptian Animals. (). Retrieved from http://www.experience-ancienegypt.com/ancient-egyptian-animals.html Vegetation-The Wonders of Egypt. (). Retrieved from http://glhegypt.weebly.com/vegetation.html Abu Mena-UNESCO World Heritage Centre. (). Retrieved from http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/90 In-Text Citation