village Materia, about six miles from Cairo, towards the north-east. Nothing now remains but immense dikes and mounds, full of pieces of marble, granite and pottery; some remnants of a sphynx, and an obelisk, still erect, of a single block of granite, 58 feet above ground, and covered with hieroglyphics.
Pathros, a city or canton of Egypt. It is probably the Phaturis of Pliny It had its name from Pathrusim, the fifth son of Mizraim, who built or peopled it.—(Gen. x. 14; Isa. xi. 11. Comp. Jer. xliv 1, 15, and Ezek. xxix. 14, xxx, 14.) This is the Thebais of the Greeks, and Said of the Arabs, the same with Upper or Southern Egypt. Some of the Jews, had withdrawn to this region, and there given themselves up to idolatry; but Jeremiah forewarns them of the tremendous judgments which awaited them.
Pithom and Rameses were the two cities for the building of which the Hebrews made brick.—(Ex. i. 11.) The situation of them is now unknown. Herodotus mentions a city called Pathumos, situated on the canal made to join the Red Sea and the river Nile. Pithom, (Ex. i. 11,) was one of Pharaoh's treasure cities, public granaries, or places for the storage of grain. It is supposed, from its relative situation, to be the Patoumos of the Greeks; inasmuch as the facilities of access to it and transportation from it would lead to its selection for this purpose. Raamses or Rameses, (Gen. xlvii. 1 1; Ex. xii. 37; Num. xxxiii. 3,) was also one of Pharaoh's treasure cities or public granaries, probably fortified for the security of the stores.
Rosetta was located on the west bank of one of the branches of the Nile, near the Mediterranean, and was the city of Haroun el Raschid, a name celebrated in the Arabian Nights. Rosetta was a truly oriental city, the buildings being nearly all of Saracenic architecture, which differs from the light Gothic only in substituting minarets for towers, and in surrounding them with majestic domes. It contained about 12,000 inhabitants, principally Mahometans; and was picturesquely situated among groves of palm trees; and in approaching it, the minarets and towers presented a beautiful appearance, peering above the trees.
