The Coptics were early Egyptian Christians who were introduced to the religion by St. Mark. While most people associate Christian art with Western influences, the Coptics created a distinct Eastern Christian art style. They invoke Christian themes, but the Coptics also include various ancient Egyptian influences, like geometry, flowers, and the Pharaoh’s Cross, to increase Christianity’s appeal to the Egyptians. Marcus Simaika Pasha, with permission from Patriarch Kyrillos V, began construction on the Coptic Museum in 1908. By 1910, the Coptic Museum was completed. This museum contains 8000m square feet, multiple buildings, and a garden devoted to Coptic Art and early Egyptian Christianity. Its collection consists of 16,000 artifacts, including 6,000 papyrus manuscripts of the Psalms of David and Nag Hammadi’s manuscripts. It also contains sculptures from the 4th and 5th centuries. In 2006, ahead of its centennial, Egypt renovated the Coptic Museum.
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