Akhmim Attractions
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The modest district capital of Akhmim lies 3mi/5km east of Sohag on the right bank of the Nile, just north of a wide loop in the river. It has a number of cotton mills and a lively bazaar. Akhmim is one of the great centers of the Coptic faith, with several churches.
History
Akhmim occupies the site of the ancient Chemmis or Panopolis, which was the chief town of a nome. The Egyptians called it Epu, and also Khente-Min, after its protective deity, the ithyphallic harvest god Min: hence the Coptic name of Shmin and the Arabic Akhmim. Herodotus (ii, 91) praises the citizens of Chemmis as the only Egyptians who favored Greek customs and relates that they erected a temple to Perseus and worshiped him with Hellenic rites.
History
Akhmim occupies the site of the ancient Chemmis or Panopolis, which was the chief town of a nome. The Egyptians called it Epu, and also Khente-Min, after its protective deity, the ithyphallic harvest god Min: hence the Coptic name of Shmin and the Arabic Akhmim. Herodotus (ii, 91) praises the citizens of Chemmis as the only Egyptians who favored Greek customs and relates that they erected a temple to Perseus and worshiped him with Hellenic rites.
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