Hierakonpolis

   Greek name for the Egyptian city of Nekhen, modern Kom el-Ahmar on the west bank of the Nileopposite Elkab. The city was a major settlement during the Predynastic Period and Early Dynastic Period and probably the capital of the kings of Upper Egypt before the unification of the country. Important remains and objects from this period were discovered in Hierakonpolis during a British expedition from 1897–1899, including the famous Narmer Palette and the Scorpion Macehead. The main deity of the city was the falcon god Horus. The site continued to be occupied through the Roman Period and Coptic Period. Further excavation took place during an expedition by the University of Liverpool from 1905–1906, the Brooklyn Museum from 1907–1908, a British expedition in 1927, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art from 1934–1935. Work was resumed by an American expedition from 1967–1969 and since 1978.

Historical Dictionary Of Ancient Egypt by Morris L. Bierbrier