Sumenu
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25°31′48″N 32°27′27″E / 25.53000°N 32.45750°E
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| smn(t)[1][2][3] in hieroglyphs | ||||||
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| Era: Ptolemaic dynasty (305–30 BC) | ||||||
Sumenu or Smenu (Egyptian: S(w)mnw) was an ancient Egyptian town located in Upper Egypt. It housed the most prominent early-Middle Kingdom sanctuary of the crocodile-god Sobek.[4]
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| smnw[1][3] in hieroglyphs | |||
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Uncertainties about the exact location of the city – tentatively identified with Gebelein or with Rizeiqat, the latter location being suggested by Gaston Maspero[5] – seem to have been resolved thanks to archaeological excavations started in the late 1960s, which finally allowed to identify Sumenu with the village of Awlad Mekky Dahmash south of the modern town of Al-Mahamid Qibly, located between Armant and Gebelein.[4][6]
It is almost certain that Sumenu has to be identified with Imiotru (Ancient Egyptian: ʼIwmìtrw) and thus also with the Crocodilopolis (Ancient Greek: Κροκοδείλων πόλις) which was distinct from the one in the Faiyum and, according to Strabo's Geographica, was located between Hermonthis (Armant) and Aphroditopolis (Gebelein).[7] It appears most likely that Sumenu was the toponym where the temple stood, while Imiotru/Crocodilopolis referred to the whole city; in later times, the "Sumenu" denomination became obsolete.[8]