Ostrakine was an Ancient Egypt

Ancient Egypt

Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...

ian city at a location that is known as El Felusiyat today.

Location

Ostrakine was located on the road between Alexandria

Alexandria

Alexandria is the second-largest city of Egypt, with a population of 4.1 million, extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the north central part of the country; it is also the largest city lying directly on the Mediterranean coast. It is Egypt's largest seaport, serving...

 and Gaza

Gaza

Gaza , also referred to as Gaza City, is a Palestinian city in the Gaza Strip, with a population of about 450,000, making it the largest city in the Palestinian territories.Inhabited since at least the 15th century BC,...

 at Lake Bardawil

Lake Bardawil

Lake Bardawil is a large, very saline lake in Egypt on the north coast of the Sinai Peninsula. The lagoon is shallow and is separated from the Mediterranean Sea by a narrow sandbar. It has Ramsar Convention protected wetlands.Lake Bardawil is about long, and wide...

, a saltwater lagoon near the Meditarranean coast of the northern Sinai.

History

Established as a harbour in the first century BC, near Sirbonis

Serbonian Bog

Serbonian Bog relates to the lake of Serbonis in Egypt. Because sand blew onto it, the Serbonian Bog had a deceptive appearance of being solid land, but was a bog...

, the longtime border between Egypt and Syria, archaeological evidence suggests that Ostrakine was a centre of glass-making in the classical period. A bishopric during the Byzantine period, there is evidence of three Byzantine churches, and that the town remained important as a stop along the trade route in the early Muslim period.

Tradition

Ostrakine has traditionally been thought to be the site of the tomb of the prophet Habakkuk

Habakkuk

Habakkuk , also spelled Habacuc, was a prophet in the Hebrew Bible. The etymology of the name of Habakkuk is not clear. The name is possibly related to the Akkadian khabbaququ, the name of a fragrant plant, or the Hebrew root חבק, meaning "embrace"...

 and the martyrdom of James the Less

James the Less

James the Less is a figure of early Christianity. He is also called "the minor", "the little", "the lesser", or "the younger", according to translation. He is often confused with James the Great and may or may not be James the Just.- Sources :...

 

Madaba Map

Ostrakine is depicted on the Madaba map

Madaba Map

The Madaba Map is part of a floor mosaic in the early Byzantine church of Saint George at Madaba, Jordan. The Madaba Map is a map of the Middle East. Part of it contains the oldest surviving original cartographic depiction of the Holy Land and especially Jerusalem...

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