Bubastis
|
|
Bubastis is an Ancient Egyptian city, located along the River Nile in the Delta region of Lower Egypt. It was a center of worship for the feline goddess Bast (also called Bastet (emphasising the feminine ending t), or even Bubastis (after the city)), and it served as the capital of the nome of Am-Khent, the 18th nome of Lower Egypt.
It became a royal residence after Shoshenq I, the first ruler of the 22nd dynasty, was made pharaoh in 952 BC. Bubastis was at its height during this dynasty and the 23rd. It declined after the Persian conquest by Cambyses II in 525 BC, which heralded the end of the 26th dynasty and the start of the Achaemenid dynasty.
Its ruins are near the modern city of Zagazig. There were archaeological expeditions to the ruins in 1886, 1887, and 1906, the last of which uncovered a 6th dynasty chapel and a 8th century BC temple.