著者

辻村 純代

出版者

国士舘大学イラク古代文化研究所

雑誌

ラーフィダーン = al-Rāfidān = JOURNAL OF WESTERN ASIATIC STUDIES (ISSN:02854406)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.37, pp.189-201, 2016-03-31

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There are two opinions concerning the period of Christianization in Egypt. One is that Christianity acted as a substitute for the traditional pagan cult was declining rapidly in the first half of the 3^rd century, altering the existing social structure centering on a city society to a rural community. The other is that it survived and coexisted with the pagan cult to the 4^th-5^th century. In the present paper, the author studied the western temple at the site of Akoris to reexamine the above-mentioned opinions. The temple worshipping Ammon and Souchos (Sobek), controlling navigation on the Nile was supported strong, Roman imperial demand for steady supply of stones and a strongpoint in the long distance commerce in the 1^st and 2^nd centuries. Certainly, no stele dedicated by Roman emperors has been found in the temple, likewise temples at other sites after that time. However, amongst the 13 graffiti of the Nile hymn preserved on walls in the hypostyle hall, the 2 graffiti were written at the end of the 4^th century. In addition, the court of the temple was reconstructed on a large scale after the end of the 3^rd century. This reconstruction was probably executed by Diocletianus who is known as a persecutor of Christians. Furthermore, just under Dioscuri and a goddess carved on the cliff on the south side of the crag, on the opposite side of the temple, a rock-cut stairs on which many animal bones were scattered and charcoal for sacrifices were found. Judging from pottery and lamps, the pagan rite accompanied with burning is supposed to have been performed from the 1^st century to the 4^th century. It thus appears that pagan temple had kept peoples’ loyal up to the 4^th century. The temple area proceeded to suffer from disfiguration by olive oil presses, grind stones of a flour mill and houses after the 5^th century. If destruction of idols inscribed on ostraca was linked with subversive activities led by Apa Shenoute in the White Monastery, monks may have taken this opportunity to begin living in the temple area They had fishing right besides managing the olive estate and workshops for making oil. According to other papyrus, a riot which dragged in all of the residents participated happened in 698. It was probably the riot that heralded a rash of riots to protest high taxes in the next century. As a result of the riots, residents became impoverished and at last at the beginning of the 8^th century Akoris was abandoned.