Pithom in Easton's Bible Dictionary
Egyptian, Pa-Tum, "house of Tum," the sun-god, one of the
"treasure" cities built for Pharaoh Rameses II. by
the
Israelites (Ex. 1:11). It was probably the Patumos
of the Greek
historian Herodotus. It has now been satisfactorily
identified
with Tell-el-Maskhuta, about 12 miles west of
Ismailia, and 20
east of Tel-el-Kebir, on the southern bank of the
present Suez
Canal. Here have recently (1883) been discovered the
ruins of
supposed grain-chambers, and other evidences to show
that this
was a great "store city." Its immense ruin-heaps
show that it
was built of bricks, and partly also of bricks
without straw.
Succoth (Ex. 12:37) is supposed by some to be the
secular name
of this city, Pithom being its sacred name. This was
the first
halting-place of the Israelites in their exodus. It
has been
argued (Dr. Lansing) that these "store" cities "were
residence
cities, royal dwellings, such as the Pharaohs of
old, the Kings
of Israel, and our modern Khedives have ever loved
to build,
thus giving employment to the superabundant muscle
of their
enslaved peoples, and making a name for themselves."
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