Hanging Church

The Hanging Church, built in the 3rd century, is Cairo's most famous Coptic church

The interior of the church with pulpit (left) and iconostasis (right)

The "Hanging Church" in Old Cairo

The Coptic Orthodox Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary or Hanging Church ( Egyptian-Arabic الكنيسه المعلقه al-Kanīsa al-Muʿallaqa ) is one of the oldest churches in Egypt ; the history of a church on this site dates back to the 3rd century.

The Hanging Church is named after its location above a gatehouse of the Babylon Fortress , the Roman Citadel in Coptic Cairo ( Old Cairo ); its nave is above a passage. To reach the church, 29 steps must be climbed. Early travelers to Cairo called it the "Staircase Church".

From the 11th to the 13th centuries the church was the seat of the Coptic Patriarch of Alexandria .

The Hanging Church has 110 icons , the oldest dating back to the 8th century, but most of them are from the 18th century. Nachla al-Baraty Bey gave some of them as gifts in 1898 when he was the overseer of the Church. The iconostasis is made of ebony , worked into the ivory, and is covered with icons of the Virgin Mary and the Twelve Apostles . The image of the main altar ( Egyptian-Arabic heikal ) consists of ebony inlay with ivory, which is carved into segments that show different variants of the Coptic cross ; these date from the 12th or 13th century. Above the altar is a long row of seven large icons, the central one depicts Jesus Christ seated on the throne. The icons of the Virgin Mary, Archangel Gabriel and Saint Peters are lined up on one side. On the other side are the icons of Saint John the Baptist, Archangel Michael and Saint Paul.