Ancient Egyptian city.
Located on what was once the easternmost mouth of the Nile River , its ruins lay southeast of modern Port Said . Beginning in the 26th dynasty ( 0441; 7th century BC), it was the main frontier fortress facing Palestine and was a customs post for Asian goods. In 522 BC the Achaemenian Persians, under Cambyses II, defeated the pharaoh Psamtik III there. In Roman times it was a station on the trade route to the Red Sea ; its ruins date from the Roman period.