Coptic heritage · Sohag
Red Monastery
An ancient Coptic Orthodox monastery near Sohag, known for its walls of red brick and its architectural kinship with the White Monastery.
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The story
Also known as the Monastery of Apa Pshay, this is a Coptic Orthodox monastery in Upper Egypt, roughly 12 km west of the city of Sohag. Sources date the start of monastic life there to the fourth or fifth century AD. The name comes from the red burnt brick of its outer walls. These walls are thicker at the base than at the top and are crowned with cavetto mouldings, like the walls of ancient Egyptian temples. Architecturally it resembles the nearby White Monastery.
Good to know
- The monastery lies about 3 to 4 km north-west of the White Monastery.
- It takes its name from the red burnt brick used for its walls.
- Its walls are topped with cavetto mouldings, as on ancient Egyptian temples.
- Late antique wall paintings cover about eighty percent of the church's walls, begun in the late fifth century, and have been through a long conservation project.