# Monastery of Saint Psote

Source: https://coptic-lore-forge.lovable.app/wiki/monastery-of-saint-psote — Coptic Orthodox Wiki (updated 2026-10-02)

The Monastery of Saint Psote, also called Dayr Anba Bisadah, stands south of Akhmim and preserves the memory and relics of the fourth-century martyr bishop of Psoi.[^1]

## Location and dedication

The Monastery of Saint Psote, known as **Dayr Anba Bisadah**, is situated in the village of al-Ahaywah Sharq on the right bank of the Nile, about 11 miles (18 km) south of Akhmim. It preserves the memory and relics of Psote, the fourth-century martyr bishop of Psoi, also known as Ptolemais.[^1]

The monastery stands opposite al-Manshiyyah, which perpetuates the ancient town of Psoi. It is a pilgrimage site, and it is likely that the monastery was built over the bishop’s tomb, consistent with the account that he was buried east of the town.[^2]

## Historical evidence

The foundation date cannot be established with certainty. A monastery of the martyr bishop Psote is mentioned on the right bank of the Nile, south of Abydos; the tradition preserved in ninth-century manuscripts is older than those manuscripts.[^3]

The monastery is described as an enclosed cenobium. Local tradition assigns its surviving buildings to the thirteenth century, although they incorporate older elements; al-Maqrizi also recorded the monastery.[^4]

## Church and enclosure

The architectural account describes a walled enclosure containing the priest’s house, smaller structures, and a church on the east. The church doorway is decorated with a stone cross in relief and lozenge-shaped bricks, some arranged as stars. It opens into an irregular narthex added after the church’s earliest surviving section, which consists of the remains of a triconch.[^5]

Surviving early features include the eastern apse, part of the southern side apse, and a room between them containing a tomb traditionally identified as that of Anba Bisadah. The room retains a stone doorway with a carved lintel and traces of carving on the southern jamb.[^6]

The church’s dating remains uncertain: its plan could be early Christian, but P. Grossmann suggested a later date on the basis of its poor construction, while O. Meinardus recorded the traditional thirteenth-century date.[^7]

Later additions include four sanctuaries, two to the north of the main sanctuary and two south of the tomb chamber, with a solid wooden iconostasis before each altar. A room accessible from the tomb chamber contains a baptismal font; other rooms farther east, accessible only from above, have been used for burial.[^8]

## Sources
[^1]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 3, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 176)
[^2]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 3, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 176)
[^3]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 3, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 176)
[^4]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 3, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 176)
[^5]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 3, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 178)
[^6]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 3, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 178)
[^7]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 3, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 178)
[^8]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 3, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 178)