The city, graded
Places
Most of ancient Alexandria lies under the modern city or under the sea, and the rooms people most want to see have never been found. So each place here is graded three times over: whether it existed, where it stood, and what it looked like. A place can be attested by an ancient writer and still never have been found, as the Mouseion and the Library's own rooms were not.
Excavated means the ground shows it; attested means an ancient source describes it; after an analogy means we draw its form after a building known elsewhere, and name that building; conjecture means our own reconstruction. A legend is never drawn as a place. Unlocated places say so first.
The plan of the city
Standing in this year
- Great Harbour, being built, in ruinsPosition known
- Eunostos, being built, in ruinsPosition known
- The palace shore, now drowned, being built, in ruinsPosition known: excavated
- Lochias, being built, in ruinsPosition known: excavated
- Antirhodos, being built, in ruinsPosition known: excavated
- Canopic Way, being built, in ruinsPosition known: excavated
- Street of the Soma, being built, in ruinsPosition probable
- The street grid, being built, in ruinsPosition probable
- Brucheion, being built, in ruinsPosition known
- Mouseion, being built, in ruinsNever found: position conjectured
- Library, being built, in ruinsNever found: position conjectured
- Theatre, being built, in ruinsNever found: position conjectured
- Soma, being built, in ruinsNever found: position conjectured
- Caesareum, being built, in ruinsPosition known
- Book stores, being built, in ruinsNever found: position conjectured
- Delta, being built, in ruinsPosition known
- Heptastadion, being built, in ruinsPosition known: excavated
- Pharos, being built, in ruinsPosition known: excavated
- Citadel of Qaitbay, being built, in ruinsPosition known
- Rhakotis, being built, in ruinsPosition probable
- Serapeum, being built, in ruinsPosition known: excavated
- Serapeum, being built, in ruinsPosition known: excavated
- Book-rooms, being built, in ruinsNever found: position conjectured
- Galleries · not a library, being built, in ruinsPosition known: excavated
- Diocletian's column, being built, in ruinsPosition known: excavated
- Paneion, being built, in ruinsNever found: position conjectured
- Kom el-Dikka halls, being built, in ruinsPosition known: excavated
- Bibliotheca Alexandrina, being built, in ruinsPosition known
Every place
- AlexandriaKnown · ExcavatedExistence: ExcavatedKnown · ExcavatedLocation: Excavated
- AntirhodosKnown · AttestedExistence: AttestedKnown · ExcavatedLocation: Excavated
- Cape LochiasKnown · AttestedExistence: AttestedKnown · ExcavatedLocation: Excavated
- Diocletian's column ("Pompey's Pillar")Known · ExcavatedExistence: ExcavatedKnown · ExcavatedLocation: Excavated
- Kom el-DikkaKnown · ExcavatedExistence: ExcavatedKnown · ExcavatedLocation: Excavated
- RhakotisKnown · AttestedExistence: AttestedKnown · ExcavatedLocation: Excavated
- The Bibliotheca AlexandrinaKnown · ExcavatedExistence: ExcavatedKnown · ExcavatedLocation: Excavated
- The book stores by the harbour
Never found.
Known · AttestedExistence: AttestedConjectured · Our reconstructionLocation: Never found - The book-rooms
Never found.
Known · AttestedExistence: AttestedConjectured · Our reconstructionLocation: Never found - The Brucheion (royal quarter)Known · AttestedExistence: AttestedKnown · AttestedLocation: Attested
- The CaesareumKnown · AttestedExistence: AttestedKnown · AttestedLocation: Attested
- The Canopic WayKnown · ExcavatedExistence: ExcavatedKnown · ExcavatedLocation: Excavated
- The Claudian Mouseion
Never found.
Known · AttestedExistence: AttestedConjectured · Our reconstructionLocation: Never found - The common dining hall (syssition)
Never found.
Known · AttestedExistence: AttestedConjectured · Our reconstructionLocation: Never found - The daughter library
Never found.
Known · AttestedExistence: AttestedConjectured · Our reconstructionLocation: Never found - The Delta quarterKnown · AttestedExistence: AttestedKnown · AttestedLocation: Attested
- The exedra with seats
Never found.
Known · AttestedExistence: AttestedConjectured · Our reconstructionLocation: Never found - The Great HarbourKnown · AttestedExistence: AttestedKnown · ExcavatedLocation: Excavated
- The Harbour of EunostosKnown · AttestedExistence: AttestedKnown · AttestedLocation: Attested
- The harbour on Lake MareotisKnown · AttestedExistence: AttestedKnown · AttestedLocation: Attested
- The HeptastadionKnown · AttestedExistence: AttestedKnown · ExcavatedLocation: Excavated
- The Homereion
Never found.
Known · AttestedExistence: AttestedConjectured · Our reconstructionLocation: Never found - The lecture halls of Kom el-DikkaKnown · ExcavatedExistence: ExcavatedKnown · ExcavatedLocation: Excavated
- The libraries of the CaesareumKnown · AttestedExistence: AttestedKnown · AttestedLocation: Attested
- The Mouseion
Never found.
Known · AttestedExistence: AttestedConjectured · Our reconstructionLocation: Never found - The Paneion
Never found.
Known · AttestedExistence: AttestedConjectured · Our reconstructionLocation: Never found - The PharosKnown · AttestedExistence: AttestedKnown · ExcavatedLocation: Excavated
- The royal Library
Never found.
Known · AttestedExistence: AttestedConjectured · Our reconstructionLocation: Never found - The royal palaces
Never found.
Known · AttestedExistence: AttestedConjectured · Our reconstructionLocation: Never found - The SerapeumKnown · ExcavatedExistence: ExcavatedKnown · ExcavatedLocation: Excavated
- The shrine of the Muses
Never found.
Conjectured · Our reconstructionExistence: ConjectureConjectured · Our reconstructionLocation: Never found - The Soma (Sema), tomb of Alexander
Never found.
Known · AttestedExistence: AttestedConjectured · Our reconstructionLocation: Never found - The theatre
Never found.
Known · AttestedExistence: AttestedConjectured · Our reconstructionLocation: Never found - The Therapeutae by Lake Mareotis
Never found.
Known · AttestedExistence: AttestedConjectured · Our reconstructionLocation: Never found - The underground galleriesKnown · ExcavatedExistence: ExcavatedKnown · ExcavatedLocation: Excavated
- The walk (peripatos)
Never found.
Known · AttestedExistence: AttestedConjectured · Our reconstructionLocation: Never found