Heliopolis

(Ancient Egyptian City)

Heliopolis (ancient Egypt) (Greek, city of the sun), city of ancient Egypt, the center of sun worship during the pre-Christian Egyptian civilization. The ruins of the city are 8 km (5 mi) east of the Nile River at the apex of the Nile delta, and about 10 km (about 6 mi) northeast of Cairo. Heliopolis was originally the center of worship of the god Tem, deity of the setting sun, later regarded as a form of the sun god Ra. In Egyptian theological literature, the city was known as Per-Ra (City of Ra), of which the Greek name is a translation. In the Bible, Heliopolis is referred to as On, Aven, and Beth-Shemesh. Although its history goes as far back as about 2900 BC, the city reached its greatest development during the New Kingdom, beginning about 1570 BC, when Ra, later called Amon-Ra, came to be regarded as the chief god of the Egyptian pantheon. Under the pharaoh Ramses II during the 13th century BC, the temple of Heliopolis reached the height of its influence, with almost 13,000 priests and slaves serving in it. Most of the religious literature of ancient Egypt was written by the priests of Heliopolis, who were renowned for their learning, and the temple was the repository for royal records. The city declined under later dynasties, especially after the founding of Alexandria (332 BC), and the Ptolemies almost disregarded it. When Rome occupied Egypt, the obelisks of Heliopolis were removed, and the walls of its buildings were used as construction materials for other cities.