The Pillar Column is an ancient Roman column located in the city of Alexandria, Egypt, and is considered one of its most famous archaeological monuments. It was built on Bab Sidra Hill, between the current Muslim burial area, known as the Pillar Tombs, and the archaeological plateau of Kom el-Shuqafa. It is about 27 meters long and made of red granite. Held in honor of the Emperor Diocletian in the third century AD. It is the last remaining relic of the Serapeum Temple built by Postumus. The exact date of construction of this column has not been determined, but it dates back to the Roman era, and it was said that this column was given to Christianity after its victory in Alexandria over Maryam in the Battle of Al-Qamis. The Mastari Column is the fifth tallest monument as a Roman victory column after Trajan’s Column (35.07 m).
Naming.
The name of the column, the Mast Column, goes back to the Arab era, where it is believed that it came as a result of the towering height of this column among 400 other columns, which resemble ship masts. Therefore, the Arabs called it the Mast Column, which was later corrupted to masts. Since the Crusades, the Pillar Column has been mistakenly known as the Pompey Column. This error is due to the fact that some Europeans thought that the head of the Roman leader Pompey, who fled to Egypt to escape Julius Caesar and was killed in Egypt, thought that his head had been placed in a precious funerary urn and placed on top of the column’s crown.
Design.
The column's body is one piece, with a diameter of 2.70 meters at the base and 2.30 meters at the crown. The total height of the column, including the base, is about 26.85 meters. On the western side of the column are two bases that can be reached by an underground ladder. There are also two statues similar to the Sphinx made of pink granite dating back to the era of Ptolemy VI. On one of them is an inscription of King Horemheb of the Eighteenth Dynasty.
Description of Ibn Battuta.
The Muslim traveler Ibn Battuta described it when he visited Alexandria in 1326 AD, and said:
“One of the curiosities of this city is the huge marble column outside it, which they call the pillar column, and it is located in the middle of a palm tree forest. It is distinguished from its trees in height and height. It is a single, well-carved piece, erected on square stone bases like the great shops, and it is not known how it was placed there and its placement has not been verified.”