destroyed or fell into ruins. The one remaining to this day
is in a small town that also bears the saint’s name and is
located in the vicinity of Mallawi (the ancient Arsinoe) in
middle Upper Egypt.
- Abba Paphnuti, an outstanding Egyptian ascetic
who was also a writer. He gained special renown because
he became the biographer of the monks, both those who
preceded him and those who were his contemporaries.
B. 237. At this point in the story of the Copts, it
seems appropriate to mention the development of the art
that came to be distinguished later as Coptic art.
As already mentioned, the Copts were the
descendants of the ancient Egyptians, a point that must be
frequently emphasised so that it will not be forgotten.
Over a period of three centuries after Christ, these people
had adopted Christianity in spite of all the fierce
upheavals which shook their country intermittently for the
sake of breaking their faith. Furthermore the artistic
spark within their collective consciousness had not been
extinguished. It had been rooted so deeply into
civilisation, already thousands of years old, which they
had inherited, that it had occasion to flower whenever a
sensitive and talented individual responded to it. And so
there was no lack of artists in the country. There were
painters, sculptors and craftsmen; textile workers, brass
engravers and wood carvers. During the Ptolemaic period
and through the first tow of three Christian centuries the
various foreign influences affected Egyptian art and could
be detected through the themes the Egyptian artists used
even when the dominant features were definitely those of
their ancient heritage. They were subtly interwoven with
them. However, this happened only in an interim period,