City Detail

Cusae (Ancient Greek: Κοῦσαι or Κῶς; Coptic: ⲕⲱⲥⲉⲓ or ⲕⲟⲥⲉⲓ) was a city in Upper Egypt. Its Ancient Egyptian name was qjs (variant qsy), conventionally rendered Qis or Kis. Today, the town is known as El Quseyya, and is located on the west bank of the Nile in the Asyut Governorate. At the beginning of the reign of the Theban pharaoh Kamose, Cusae marked the boundary between the northern Hyksos realm (the 15th Dynasty) and the southern Theban kingdom (the 17th Dynasty). It was a cult centre for Hathor, and also contained a necropolis, Meir, which was used during the Middle Kingdom to hold the tombs of local aristocrats. During the 5th century, the city was the settlement of Legio II Flavia Constantia.