These were headed with arched vaults in brick. Mention should be made of the fact that the cures effected by the tomb of Saint Menas in the Maryut desert near Alexandria, and those attributed to the waters of the miraculous springs running close by, established the fame of this site from the late third century onward. Near the cemetery is a basilica with the center nave prolonged by a returning apse. This detail hardly exists anywhere else, except in certain churches in North Africa or central Syria but, while becoming more elaborate, will continue to be almost invariable in the architecture of Coptic churches, as we can indeed see near Old Cairo and in Mari Mina. As for the buildings of monasteries they are mostly scattered around two or three and sometimes four courts.
Churches follow the basilican plan with tripartite sanctuaries.
Inside paintings are in most cases those of Christ in Glory aove the Apostles, the Virgin with the Infant Jesus and the Coptic saints whose names are inscribed in Coptic martyrology. The other theme is directly derived from the ancient Egyptian motifs as related to the gods Osiris, Isis, and Horus. The origin of tapestry-weaving in colors remains in dispute. On the one hand, many scholars attribute it to the Hellenistic Orient, possibly reflecting influences from the Orient proper at earlier times. There is some striking similarity between the scenes printed on funerary urns in ancient Greece and ancient Egypt.