Brucheum

Brucheum is the Royal or Greek quarter and forms the most magnificent portion of
the city. In Roman times Brucheum was enlarged by the addition of an official
quarter, making four regions in all. The city was laid out as a grid of parallel streets,
each of which had an attendant subterranean canal;
The Jewish quarter
This quarter is the northeast portion of the city;
Rhakotis
Rhakotis is the old city that was absorbed into Alexandria. It was occupied chiefly
by Egyptians. (from Coptic Rakotə "Alexandria").

Engraving by L F Cassas of the Canopic Street in Alexandria, Egypt made in 1784.

Two main streets, lined with colonnades and said to have been each about 60
meters (200 ft) wide, intersected in the center of the city, close to the point
where the Sema (or Soma) of Alexander (his Mausoleum) rose. This point is
very near the present mosque of Nebi Daniel; and the line of the great East–
West "Canopic" street, only slightly diverged from that of the modern Boulevard
de Rosette (now Sharia Fouad). Traces of its pavement and canal have been
found near the Rosetta Gate, but remnants of streets and canals were
exposed in 1899 by German excavators outside the east fortifications, which
lie well within the area of the ancient city.
Alexandria consisted originally of little more than the island of Pharos, which
was joined to the mainland by a 1,260-metre-long (4,130 ft) mole and called
the Heptastadion ("seven stadia"—a stadium was a Greek unit of
length measuring approximately 180 metres or 590 feet). The end of this
abutted on the land at the head of the present Grand Square, where the "Moon
Gate" rose. All that now lies between that point and the modern "Ras al-Tin"
quarter is built on the silt which gradually widened and obliterated this mole.
The Ras al-Tin quarter represents all that is left of the island of Pharos, the site
of the actual lighthouse having been weathered away by the sea. On the east
of the mole was the Great Harbor, now an open bay; on the west lay the port of
Eunostos, with its inner basin Kibotos, now vastly enlarged to form the modern
harbor.
In Strabo's time, (latter half of the 1st century BC) the principal buildings were
as follows, enumerated as they were to be seen from a ship entering the Great
Harbor.

1. The Royal Palaces, filling the northeast angle of the town and
occupying the promontory of Lochias, which shut in the Great Harbor
on the east. Lochias (the modern Pharillon) has almost entirely
disappeared into the sea, together with the palaces, the "Private Port,"
and the island of Antirrhodus. There has been a land subsidence here,
as throughout the northeast coast of Africa.
2. The Great Theater, on the modern Hospital Hill near the Ramleh
station. This was used by Julius Caesar as a fortress, where he
withstood a siege from the city mob after he took Egypt after the battle
of Pharsalus[citation needed][clarification needed]
 3. The Poseidon, or Temple of the Sea God, close to the theater
4. The Timonium built by Marc Antony
5. The Emporium (Exchange)
6. The Apostases (Magazines)
7. The Navalia (Docks), lying west of the Timonium, along the seafront as
far as the mole
8. Behind the Emporium rose the Great Caesareum, by which stood the
two great obelisks, which become known as "Cleopatra's Needles,"
and were transported to New York City and London. This temple
became, in time, the Patriarchal Church, though some ancient remains
of the temple have been discovered. The actual Caesareum, the parts
not eroded by the waves, lies under the houses lining the new seawall.
9. The Gymnasium and the Palaestra are both inland, near the Boulevard
de Rosette in the eastern half of the town; sites unknown.
10. The Temple of Saturn; alexandria west.
11. The Mausolea of Alexander (Soma) and the Ptolemies in one ring-
fence, near the point of intersection of the two main streets.
12. The Musaeum with its famous Library and theater in the same region;
site unknown.
13. The Serapeum of Alexandria, the most famous of all Alexandrian
temples. Strabo tells us that this stood in the west of the city; and
recent discoveries go far as to place it near "Pompey's Pillar," which
was an independent monument erected to commemorate Diocletian's
siege of the city.
The names of a few other public buildings on the mainland are known, but
there is little information as to their actual position. None, however, are as
famous as the building that stood on the eastern point of Pharos island.
There, The Great Lighthouse, one of the Seven Wonders of the World, reputed
to be 138 metres (453 feet) high, was situated. The first Ptolemy began the
project, and the second Ptolemy (Ptolemy II Philadelphus) completed it, at a
total cost of 800 talents. It took 12 years to complete and served as
a prototype for all later lighthouses in the world. The light was produced by a
furnace at the top and the tower was built mostly with solid blocks of limestone.
The Pharos lighthouse was destroyed by an earthquake in the 14th century,
making it the second longest surviving ancient wonder, after the Great Pyramid
of Giza. A temple of Hephaestus also stood on Pharos at the head of the mole.
In the 1st century, the population of Alexandria contained over 180,000 adult
male citizens,[24] according to a census dated from 32 CE, in addition to a large
number of freedmen, women, children and slaves. Estimates of the total
population range from 216,000[25] to 500,000[26] making it one of the largest
cities ever built before the Industrial Revolution and the largest pre-industrial
city that was not an imperial capital.[citation needed]

Geography[edit]

Skyline from Qaitbay Citadel

Satellite image of Alexandria and other cities show its surrounding coastal plain

Lake Mariout

Alexandria is located in the country of Egypt, on the southern coast of the

Mediterranean.

Climate[edit]
Alexandria has a borderline hot desert climate (Köppen climate classification:
BWh),[27] approaching a hot semi-arid climate (BSh). As the rest of Egypt's
northern coast, the prevailing north wind, blowing across the Mediterranean,
gives the city a less severe climate from the desert hinterland.[28] Rafah and
Alexandria[29] are the wettest places in Egypt; the other wettest places
are Rosetta, Baltim, Kafr el-Dawwar, and Mersa Matruh. The city's climate is
influenced by the Mediterranean Sea, moderating its temperatures, causing
variable rainy winters and moderately hot summers that, at times, can be very
humid; January and February are the coolest months, with daily maximum
temperatures typically ranging from 12 to 18 °C (54 to 64 °F) and minimum
temperatures that could reach 5 °C (41 °F).
Alexandria experiences violent storms, rain and
sometimes sleet and hail during the cooler months; these events, combined
with a poor drainage system, have been responsible for occasional flooding in
the city.[30] July and August are the hottest and driest months of the year, with
an average daily maximum temperature of 30 °C (86 °F). The average annual
rainfall is around 200 mm (7.9 in) but has been as high as 417 mm (16.4 in)[31]
Port Said, Kosseir, Baltim, Damietta and Alexandria have the least
temperature variation in Egypt.
The highest recorded temperature was 45 °C (113 °F) on 30 May 1961, and
the coldest recorded temperature was 0 °C (32 °F) on 31 January 1994.[32]
 hideClimate data for Alexandria
Y
J M A
Fe Ma Ju J Au Se O No De e
Month a a p
b y n ul g p ct v c a
n r r
r
2
9
4 4 4 3 4
.
0. 1. 45. 43. 3. 38. 41. 8. 5.
6 33. 35. 31.
Record 0 0 0 8 0 6 4 2 0
( 0 7 0
high °C (1 (1 (11 (11 (1 (10 (10 (1 (1
8 (91 (96 (87
(°F) 0 0 3.0 0.8 0 1.5 6.5 0 1
5 .4) .3) .8)
4. 5. ) ) 9. ) ) 0. 3.
.
0) 8) 4) 8) 0)
3
)
1
8
. 2 2 2 2 2
4 19. 0. 4. 26. 28. 9. 30. 29. 7. 24. 20. 4.
Averag
( 3 9 0 5 6 7 4 6 6 1 1 9
e high
6 (66 (6 (7 (79 (83 (8 (86 (85 (8 (75 (68 (7
°C (°F)
5 .7) 9. 5. .7) .5) 5. .7) .3) 1. .4) .2) 6.
. 6) 2) 5) 7) 8)
1
)
1
3
. 1 1 2 2 2
4 13. 5. 8. 21. 24. 5. 26. 25. 2. 18. 14. 0.
Daily
( 9 7 5 2 3 9 3 1 0 7 9 0
mean
5 (57 (6 (6 (70 (75 (7 (79 (77 (7 (65 (58 (6
°C (°F)
6 .0) 0. 5. .2) .7) 8. .3) .2) 1. .7) .8) 8.
. 3) 3) 6) 6) 0)
1
)
9
.
1 1 2 1 1
1
0. 3. 16. 20. 2. 23. 21. 7. 14. 10. 5.
Averag ( 9.3
8 4 6 3 8 1 3 8 3 6 8
e low 4 (48
(5 (5 (61 (68 (7 (73 (70 (6 (57 (51 (6
°C (°F) 8 .7)
1. 6. .9) .5) 3. .6) .3) 4. .7) .1) 0.
.
4) 1) 0) 0) 4)
4
)
 0
.
1 1
0 2. 3. 0.
11. 7. 17. 0.
Record ( 0.0 3 6 7.0 14 1.0 1.2 0
6 0 7 7
low °C 3 (32 (3 (3 (44 (57 (33 (34 (3
(52 (6 (63 (5
(°F) 2 .0) 6. 8. .6) ) .8) .2) 2.
.9) 2. .9) 1.
. 1) 5) 0)
6) 3)
0
)
5
2
1
. 1
Averag 3. 0. 9. 9
8 29. 4. 31. 52.
e 6 1.3 0.0 0 0.1 0.8 4 5.
( 2 3 7 7
rainfall (0 (0. (0. (0 (0. (0. (0 9
2 (1. (0 (1. (2.
mm .1 05) 0) .0 00) 03) .3 (7
. 15) .5 25) 07)
(inches) 4) ) 7) .7
0 6)
)
8
)
Averag
1
e rainy 4
1 6. 1. 0. 2.
days (≥ 8.9 1.0 0.0 0.0 0.2 5.4 9.5 6.
. 0 9 0 9
0.01 8
0
mm)

Averag
6
e relativ
6 6 6 7 6 7.
e 67 66 68 71 67 68 68
9 7 5 1 8 9
humidit
2
y (%)
Mean 1 3,
2 2 3 2
monthl 9 3
21 4 7 316 354 6 344 297 8 22 19
y sunshi 2 0
7.5 8. 3. .2 .0 2. .1 .0 2. 5.0 5.3
ne . 7.
0 0 7 1
hours 2 1
Source #1: World Meteorological Organization (UN),[33] Hong Kong
Observatory for sunshine and mean temperatures,[34] Climate Charts for
humidity[35]
Source #2: Voodoo Skies[32] and Bing Weather[36] for record temperatures
Alexandria mean sea temperature[37]
J
Fe Se No
a Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Oct Dec
b p v
n
1 17 ° 18 ° 20 ° 23 ° 20 °
17 25 26 22
8 C C C C 26 °C 25 °C C
°C °C °C °C
° (63 ° (64 (68 (73 (79 °F) (77 °F) (68
(63 (77 (79 (72
C F) °F) °F) °F) °F)
 (6 °F °F °F °F
4 ) ) ) )
°
F
)

Historical sites and landmarks[edit]

Egypt – Obelisk, Alexandria. Brooklyn Museum Archives, Goodyear Archival Collection.

Roman Amphitheater

Roman Pompey's Pillar

Due to the constant presence of war in Alexandria in ancient times, very little of
the ancient city has survived into the present day. Much of the royal and civic
quarters sank beneath the harbour due to earthquake subsidence in AD 365,
and the rest has been built over in modern times.
 Kom El Shoqafa

"Pompey's Pillar", a Roman triumphal column, is one of the best-known ancient

monuments still standing in Alexandria today. It is located on Alexandria's
ancient acropolis—a modest hill located adjacent to the city's Arab cemetery—
and was originally part of a temple colonnade. Including its pedestal, it is 30 m
(99 ft) high; the shaft is of polished red granite, 2.7 m (8.9 ft) in diameter at the
base, tapering to 2.4 m (7.9 ft) at the top. The shaft is 88 feet (27 m) high, and
made out of a single piece of granite. Its volume is 132 cubic meters (4,662
cubic feet) and weight approximately 396 tons.[38] Pompey's Pillar may have
been erected using the same methods that were used to erect the
ancient obelisks. The Romans had cranes but they were not strong enough to
lift something this heavy. Roger Hopkins and Mark Lehrner conducted
several obelisk erecting experiments including a successful attempt to erect a
25-ton obelisk in 1999. This followed two experiments to erect smaller obelisks
and two failed attempts to erect a 25-ton obelisk.[39][40] The structure was
plundered and demolished in the 4th century when a bishop decreed that
Paganism must be eradicated. "Pompey's Pillar" is a misnomer, as it has
nothing to do with Pompey, having been erected in 293 for Diocletian, possibly
in memory of the rebellion of Domitius Domitianus. Beneath the acropolis itself
are the subterranean remains of the Serapeum, where the mysteries of the
god Serapis were enacted, and whose carved wall niches are believed to have
provided overflow storage space for the ancient Library. In more recent years,
many ancient artifacts have been discovered from the surrounding sea, mostly
pieces of old pottery.
Alexandria's catacombs, known as Kom El Shoqafa, are a short distance
southwest of the pillar, consist of a multi-level labyrinth, reached via a
large spiral staircase, and featuring dozens of chambers adorned with sculpted
pillars, statues, and other syncretic Romano-Egyptian religious symbols, burial
niches, and sarcophagi, as well as a large Roman-style banquet room, where
memorial meals were conducted by relatives of the deceased. The catacombs
were long forgotten by the citizens until they were discovered by accident in
1900.[41]
The most extensive ancient excavation currently being conducted in
Alexandria is known as Kom El Deka. It has revealed the ancient city's well-
preserved theater, and the remains of its Roman-era baths.