Al-Muizz Street with its Islamic architectural treasures that show Egypt’s wealth and power during the mediaeval era is to be a pedestrian zone. Nevine El-Aref inspects the latest development
After Al-Qahira, the “triumphant city”, was built by military commander Gawhar Al-Seqeli in AD 969 by order of the Fatimid Khalif El-Muizz Ledin Allah as Egypt’s new capital, its walls enclosed opulent palaces and the prestigious mosque-university of Al-Azhar. Of the several streets and alleys in the new city, Al-Muizz Street stretching between Bab Al-Fotouh (gate of conquest) and Bab Zuweila was the main thoroughfare of Fatimid Cairo.
Through the different ages, Al-Muizz Street maintained its glorious position and encouraged Mamelukes, Circassians, Ayyubids and Ottomans to enhance its character by building splendid mosques, sabils (water fountains), Kuttabs (Quranic schools), houses and wekalas (trade complex). The one-kilometre-long street then became a spine lined with over 30 soared monuments displaying distinguished styles of Islamic architecture embellished with fine mashrabiya (woodwork) façades, painted mosaic and decorative domes. Among these are the Sultan Qalawun complex, which consists of a palace, a madrassa (school) and a hospital, the school of Ibn Barquq Beit Al-Qadi, the Sultan Al-Saleh Negmeddin dome, the sabil-kuttab of Khesru Pasha, and the Mohamed Ali Pasha sabil.
Time, however, has taken a heavy toll on these historic edifices. Encroachment and misuse by the residents have caused irreparable harm, environmental pollution has undermined foundations and the 1992 earthquake left visible marks on the threatened historical zone. In 2000, when the government launched its huge restoration campaign, the Historic Cairo Rehabilitation Project (HCRP) which aimed at protecting, conserving and preserving historic Cairo with view to develop it into an open air museum, Al-Muizz Street took its share of the LE850-million project.
Ismailimail 