Home Excursions Optional Tours Cave Church the monastery of St. Samaan

Cave church that is the famous name of the Monastery of St. Samaan the Tanner at the heart of El Mokattam, is a very beautiful church and one of the largest churches in the country. It dedicated to Saint Samaan, the patron saint of the church who is associated with a miracle of moving the Mokattam hills in 979 AD. It was built to serve the local inhabitants there who are predominantly Christian. They are all of poor trash collectors who were moved there in late 1960s. They work on classifying garbage for recycling processes. The inhabitants built their house in a primitive way and resumed their other activities mainly breeding livestock particularly pigs. The current building of the main church was laid in the 1970s and the body of Saint Samaan the Tanner (the Shoemaker) was later moved in it, the place now is very picturesque and has a unique charm.