(CE:1317a)
JABAL AL-TARIF (Nag Hammadi), mountainous mass on the right bank of the Nile, facing the town of Nag Hammadi on the opposite bank and forming part of the Arabian chain. It is pierced by caves and ancient tombs that were occupied by hermits and still preserve traces of them. These have been carefully noted by P. Bucher (1931, pp. 157-60).
The search for the precise place where the famous Nag Hammadi Coptic papyri were found has been the cause of some archaeological prospecting in the region. Coins have been found that show that the sites were occupied in the fifth and sixth centuries.
RENÉ-GEORGES COQUIN
MAURICE MARTIN, S.J.
Claremont Coptic Encyclopedia
