Tanis, Egypt Laila bukhamseen 201200278

Introduction The city of Tanis is relatively unknown among Egypt's wealth of historical sites, though it yielded one of the greatest archeological troves ever found. Once the capital of all Egypt, Tanis's royal tombs have yielded artifacts on par with the treasures of Tutankhamun.

A City Vanishes: Tanis was known by many names. Ancient Egyptians called it Djanet, and the Old Testament refers to the site as Zoan. Today it's called Sân el-Hagar.

The site, in the Nile Delta northeast of Cairo, was capital of the 21st and 22nd dynasties, during the reign of the Tanite kings in Egypt's Third Intermediate period.

The brief history of Tanis: Tanis was founded in the late Twentieth Dynasty, and became the northern capital of Egypt during the following Twenty-first Dynasty. It was the home city of Smendes, founder of the 21st dynasty.

During the Twenty-second Dynasty Tanis remained as Egypt’s political capital (though there were sometimes rival dynasties located elsewhere in Upper Egypt). It was an important commercial

and strategic city until it was threatened with inundation by Lake Manzala in the 6th century AD, when it was finally abandoned. The refugees founded the nearby city of Tennis.

The ruins of Tanis There are ruins of a number of temples, including the chief temple dedicated to Amun, and a very important royal necropolis of the Third Intermediate Period.

Many of the stones used to build the various temples at Tanis came from the old Ramesside town of Qantir (ancient Pi-Ramesses), which caused many former generations of Egyptologists to believe that Tanis was, in fact, Pi-Ramesses.

Recent discovery of a sacred lake In 2009, the Egyptian Culture Ministry reported archaeologists had discovered the site of a sacred lake in a temple to the goddess Mut at the San al- Hagar archaeological site in ancient Tanis.

The lake, built out of limestone blocks, had been 15 meters long and 12 meters wide. It was discovered 12 meters below ground in good condition. This was the second sacred lake found at Tanis. The first lake at the site had been identified in 1928.

Tanis in popular culture in the film Raiders of the Lost Ark, Tanis was said to be the resting place of the Ark of the Covenant which was hidden in a secret chamber. Tanis was inaccurately depicted as having been destroyed in a sand storm

and buried until 1936 when it was discovered by a German expedition outside Cairo . In fact, Tanis was the site of numerous archaeological digs beginning in the 19th century, involving Flinders Petrie and Auguste Mariette.

Conclusion Now we all know about Tanis. in the Nile Delta northeast of Cairo and even though its very old city but still until today they discover a new things about it. I hope someday we can go and visit it .

thank you for your attention Laila Bukhamseen ID:201200278