Introduction

Following Alexander the Great’s conquest of Egypt, the country was ruled by the Ptolemies, a dynasty of Macedonians. In the northwestern Delta Alexander founded the city of Alexandria, which became a great royal center - with palaces, temples, and other monuments, including the famous lighthouse. New settlements were founded in the Faiyum, where irrigation projects greatly extended the land under cultivation. The Ptolemies continued to support Egyptian temples, and some of the best preserved examples in Egypt today were built during this dynasty. Although the early Ptolemaic rulers extended Egypt’s holdings abroad, from the mid-2nd century bc onward conflict with the other powers in the eastern Mediterranean was increasingly resolved by the Romans.

In 31 bc the last Ptolemaic ruler, Cleopatra VII, and her Roman ally Marc Antony, were defeated by Octavian, the later emperor Augustus, resulting in Egypt becoming a Roman province in 30 bc. The Roman emperors ruled from Rome and Egypt was governed by a prefect, chosen by the emperor. In the beginning three Roman legions were stationed there to provide control, and Egypt (including the oases in the Western Desert) was greatly exploited by Rome for its agricultural wealth. Rome was also interested in the ports that the Ptolemies had established on the Red Sea, which were transit points for overseas trade to the southern Red Sea region and India.

Although the Roman emperors continued to build and decorate temples of Egyptian gods, support of the Egyptian priesthood was reduced. In the 2nd and 3rd centuries Christianity increasingly gained adherents in Egypt, and in the century after the emperor Constantine’s acceptance of Christianity in 312, most Egyptian temples were closed. The civilization of the pharaohs finally came to an end in the 5th century.

This chapter takes a very selective look at the evidence of Greco-Roman Egypt, as so much has been written about these two periods in Egypt, which are included in studies of the classical world. The evidence is also divided between Greek and Egyptian culture, especially for the written material. As with the Late Period sites, there is a lack of evidence for many major settlement areas, in the Delta and at Memphis.

Greco-Roman Egypt