 Drawing of the Faras citadel in 1819 | |
 Interactive map of Faras | |
| Location | FarasWadi Halfa |
|---|---|
| Region | Wadi HalfaNubia |
| Coordinates | 22°12′00″N31°28′00″E / 22.2°N 31.4666°E /22.2; 31.4666 |
| History | |
| Cultures | NubiaAncient Egypt |
Faras (formerlyAncient Greek:Παχώρας,Pakhôras;Latin:Pachoras;Old Nubian: Ⲡⲁⲭⲱⲣⲁⲥ,Pakhoras[1]) was a major city inLower Nubia. The site of the city, on theborder between modernEgypt andSudan atWadi Halfa Salient, was flooded byLake Nasser in the 1960s and is now permanently underwater. Before this flooding, extensive archaeological work was conducted by aPolish archaeological team led by professorKazimierz Michałowski.
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Dating back to theA-Group period, the town was a major centre during theMeroitic period, and was the site of a major temple. During the period ofancient Egyptian control overNubia, Faras became an Egyptian administrative centre and, located upriver fromAbu Simbel, Egyptian cultural influences were prominent.
The city reached its height during the Christian period of Nubia, when Faras was the capital of thebasiliskosSilko of Nobadia. When Nobatia was absorbed intoMakuria, it remained the most prominent center in the north, the seat of Nobadia'separch.
In 1909–1912, research on the site was conducted by a British expedition from theUniversity of Oxford headed byF.Ll. Griffith. Meroitic and Christian cemeteries, as well as Egyptian temples, were uncovered.[2] At the turn of the 1960s,UNESCO organized the Nubian Salvage Campaign to preserve monuments from the area, which was to be flooded byLake Nasser. Work in Faras, entrusted toProfessor Kazimierz Michałowski, was carried out from 1960 to 1964 by thePolish Centre of Mediterranean Archaeology of the University of Warsaw in Cairo, which he had founded (nowPolish Centre of Mediterranean Archaeology University of Warsaw).[3] It turned out that the hill where the mission began excavations concealed a Christiancathedral with magnificent wall paintings. The researchers distinguished three main phases of its functioning. The cathedral was founded by bishop Aetios in 620 and then twice rebuilt: by Paulos at the beginning of the 8th century and Petros I at the end of the 10th century. The subsequent buildings were called after these bishops.[2] The cathedral had been completely filled with sand thanks to which its structure and decoration were well preserved.[4] These paintings are the best surviving examples of Christian Nubian art and depict portraits of archangels, mainlyMichael, various monarchs and bishops of Faras, Christian saints,Virgin Mary and a number of Biblical scenes. They were executed in tempera on dry plaster, on several layers dated from the 8th to the 14th century. Of the 169 uncovered paintings, 120 were taken down from the walls. Sixty-six of them were transported to Poland and are today on display in the PolishNational Museum in Warsaw, and inSudan National Museum inKhartoum.[3] In addition, a major pottery workshop was found.
Thanks to the discovery of the List of Bishops of Faras, it was possible to date each episcopate and thus to establish the date of some of the wall paintings.[3]
In the turbulent later years of Christian Nubia, Faras seems to have declined and the administrative centre moved to the more easily defended area ofQasr Ibrim.
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