Mary's Tree (Shagaret Mariam)
๐ Location: Matariyya district, north-east Cairo ย ยท ย ๐บ Period: Tradition dates to the 1st century AD ย ยท ย ๐๏ธ Tickets: 120 EGP foreign adults
A short walk from the obelisk of Ayn Shams, in the dense Cairene district of Matariyya (ancient Heliopolis), stands a venerable old sycamore in a small walled garden. Coptic tradition holds that the Holy Family rested under a sycamore at this spot during their flight into Egypt, and that a freshwater spring miraculously appeared so the Virgin could wash the infant Christ's clothes. Pilgrims have come here since at least the Middle Ages.
The original tree died and collapsed in 1656, but Franciscan friars saved branches and replanted them; the present tree, propped up with iron supports, is the latest survivor of that line. The little site also contains the spring, an Italian-built chapel, and historic graffiti carved by Napoleonic soldiers in 1800. Empress Eugรฉnie of France stopped here during her trip to inaugurate the Suez Canal in 1869.
Highlights
- The sycamore itself, propped and protected
- The sacred spring beside it
- Italian chapel and 1800 French-army inscriptions
- Within walking distance of the obelisk of Senwosret I at Ayn Shams
Visiting
- Opening hours: 9 am โ 5 pm daily
- Tickets: 120 EGP foreign adults; 60 EGP students; 10 EGP Egyptians
- Best time: combine with the Heliopolis obelisk for a Matariyya half-day
- Nearby: Ayn Shams, Heliopolis