The image of St George as a Roman solider mounted on a fine white Arabian horse and spearing a dragon is a familiar one throughout the Christian East. He is undoubtedly the most popular warrior-saint in the 'hood.
The original Church of St. George was built in the 10th Century. The Holy Family is said to have taken shelter in a place now covered by the Church.
The church had been burned many times. It burned in 1904 and the current structure was built in 1909, but still has some of the older structure's beautiful stained-glass windows.
St. George is the only round church in Egypt (and one of the few round churches still in existence in the East). But unlike the original Church of the Holy Sepulchre and its many imitators, this is only for practical reasons, as the church is built on top the foundations of a Roman round tower.
A relief of St. George and the dragon wrapped around the outer brickwork of the tower
For centuries, the church alternated between Copt and Greek ownership, but since the 15th Century, it has remained Greek Orthodox, and the adjoining monastery of St. George is now the seat of the Greek patriarch. Funnily enough, the church is involved in the Coptic celebration of the Moulid of Mari Girgis (St. George's Day) on April 23 and it is one of the largest Coptic festivals in Cairo.
The church has two main levels: the lower level contains a numbers of small chapels and icons and the upper level is mainly comprised of a large hall. Unfortunately, a large part of the main hall is fenced off. The interior of the hall is very dark and is heavy with incense. Together with the sunbeams that pierced through the stained glass windows, a very special atmosphere was created.
[to be continued]
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