Behbeit El Hagar

t), lit. 'house of festival hall', Coptic: ⲡⲁϩⲃⲉⲓⲑⲓⲟⲥ, Ancient Greek: Πααβηιθις) is a village and an archaeological site in Lower Egypt that contains the remains of an ancient Egyptian temple to the goddess Isis, known as the Iseion. 5 mi) northeast of Sebennytos and 8 kilometers (5 mi) west of Mansoura. In ancient times it was part of the nome of Sebennytos, the Twelfth Lower Egyptian Nome. Ancient Egyptian texts refer to the site as early as the New Kingdom (c.

1550–1070 BC), but it may have been simply an offshoot of Sebennytos rather than a full-fledged town. Sources as early as the Pyramid Texts, in the Fifth Dynasty indicate that Isis was connected with the region of Sebennytos, and she and her cult may have originated there. However, major temples were not dedicated to her until the Thirtieth Dynasty, when her temples at Philae and at Behbeit El Hagar began construction. The two temples paralleled each other, with Philae serving as Isis's main cult center in Upper Egypt and Behbeit El Hagar as its Lower Egyptian counterpart