WELCOME ΤΟCairo

Founded in AD 970 as the centerpiece of the newly created Fatimid city, Al Azhar is one of Cairo’s earlier mosques. The building is a harmonious blend of architectural styles, the result of numerous enlargements over more than 1000 years. The tomb chamber, located through a doorway on the left just inside the entrance, has a beautiful mihrab (a niche indicating the direction of Mecca) and should not be missed. The central courtyard is the earliest part, while from south to north the three minarets date from the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries; the latter, with its double finial, was added by Sultan Al Ghouri, whose mosque and mausoleum stand nearby. A madrasa was established here in AD 988, growing into a university that is the world’s second-oldest educational institution. At one time the university was one of the world’s preeminent centers of learning, drawing students from Europe and all over the Islamic empire.

Bab Zuwayla, with its impressive dimensions, perfect stone masonry, and graceful twin minarets rising from its round-fronted towers, is one of Cairo’s most iconic monuments. It is the only remaining gate of the southern wall of the city’s Fatimid phase. It lies at the end of Khiyamiyya Street and opens onto the historic al-Muizz Street, which leads to Bab al-Futuh. Built by the Fatimid vizier, Badr al-Jamali, in 485 AH/1092 AD. The gate was named after the tribe of Zuwayla, who came from north Africa with Jawhar al-Siqili and quartered near the gate. Bab Zuwayla was also known as Bawabat al-Mitwalli, after Mitwalli al-hesba, the official in charge of finances and tax collection, who was based here. Mitwalli, "one of the righteous friends of Allah," resides in this area, and performs miracles. The gate consists of two semicircular towers and the entrance lies between them. The minarets were not added until 818 AH/1415 AD, when the Mamluk Sultan al-Muayyad Shaykh built a mosque next to Bab Zuwayla.

Saints Sergius and Bacchus Church is traditionally believed to have been built on the spot where the Holy Family, Joseph, Mary and the infant Jesus Christ, rested at the end of their journey into Egypt. The most interesting feature is the crypt where Mary, Joseph and the infant Jesus are said to have rested. The crypt is 10 meters deep and, when Nile levels are high, is often flooded. the most precious and ancient of the icons are on the southern wall.

The Coptic Museum is a museum in Coptic Cairo, Egypt with the largest collection of Coptic Christian artifacts in the world. It was erected on 8,000 square meter. The Coptic Museum contains the world's largest collection of Coptic artifacts and artwork. Coptic monuments display a rich mixture of Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman traditions.

The Hanging Church is Al-Fustat (Old Cairo's) oldest church. Its name, Al-Muallaka (the hanging), was given to it since it was built on the ruins of two old towers belonging to an ancient fortress known as the Fortress of Babylon. The church was originally built at the end of the 3rd Century A.D and beginning of the 4th Century A.D, although it has been reconstructed and renovated several times since. This church has played an important role in the history of the Coptic Church because it was once the seat of the Patriarchs, after it was transferred from Alexandria to Al-Fustat. There are 110 icons here, the oldest of which dates back to the 8th Century. In 1898 A.D., the overseer of the church, Nakhla Al- Baraty Bey, bestowed some of them as gifts.

This enormous mosque - the biggest in Cairo in terms of land area - was built in the 9th century CE under the orders of Ahmad Ibn Tulun. A slave-soldier, he was sent to govern Egypt under the Abassid Caliphate, and within four years had effectively established himself as an independent ruler. He created his own capital city, Al-Qata'i, and commissioned the mosque as its main focal point. When the short-lived Al-Qata'i was destroyed in the 10th century, the Mosque of Ibn Tulun was the only building that survived. Covering a space of over 6 acres (2.5 hectares), the Mosque of Ibn Tulun consists of an immense courtyard that was built to separate the inner sanctum from the secular society surrounding it. Four covered halls line each side of the courtyard, and in the center, a fauwara - fountain - from the 13th century has replaced the original 9th century gilt-domed version. One of the mosque's most magnificent features is its minaret, famous for its exterior spiral staircase, similar to that of the Great Mosque of Samarra, in Iraq.

The Mosque of al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah is the fourth oldest mosque in Egypt, and the second largest after the Mosque of ibn Tulun. The construction of the mosque was begun by al-Hakim’s father, the Fatimid Caliph al-Aziz bi Allah in 990 AD, but he died before its completion, leaving his son to finish it. The main entrance lies on the western facade of the mosque, and is monumental in size and design. It is one of the oldest architectural examples of projecting entrances, and was influenced by the great Mosque of Mahdiya in Tunis. The plan of the mosque consists of a triangle with four arcades centering a courtyard. Two minarets flank either side of the façade. The mosque has undergone several restoration phases throughout the years. The mosque has a long and intriguing history, including its role as a barracks during the French campaign, when its minarets were utilized as watch-towers. Its qibla arcade was used as a museum of Islamic art called the House of the Arab Antiquities.

The Mosque of Muhammad Ali is located inside the Citadel of Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi (Saladin) in Cairo. It was built by Muhammad Ali Pasha in 1848 AD on the site of Mamluk palaces. This mosque is known as the "Alabaster Mosque", in reference to its marble paneling on its interior and exterior walls. The mosque’s twin minarets are the highest in all of Egypt, each reaching a height of 84 meters. The mosque was built in the Turkish style that consists of an open court and prayer hall. The prayer hall is a square space surmounted with a large central dome which is surrounded by four semi-domes and four shallow domes in the corners. There are two minbars (pulpits) inside the mosque. The original of the two is made of wood decorated in green. The other was a later addition made of marble. ​ The outer open court contains a copper clock tower, which was gifted to Muhammad Ali Pasha by Louis Philippe of France in 1845 AD. Muhammad Ali Pasha reciprocated the gesture with an obelisk of Ramesses II’s (c.1279–1213 BC) that stood in front of Luxor Temple. Today, it stands in the Place de la Concorde Square, Paris.

The Pharaonic Village is a unique place where Egypt's entire history is explained in 2-3 hours, from ancient living to modern times. It is located on an island in the Nile, just 3 miles south of the center of Cairo. The village also boasts a complete replica of King Tutankhamun's tomb complete with all of his exquisite treasures as well as 12 new museums about (mummification and medicine, pyramid building, arts and beliefs, ancient Egyptian boats, Cleopatra's museum, Coptic history, Islamic civilization, Napoleon's expedition to Egypt, Egypt's modern history museum).

Djoser’s Step Pyramid in Saqqara is one of Egypt’s most iconic monuments—and rightfully so. It constitutes a significant historical turning point in ancient Egyptian funerary monuments, revolutionizing stone architecture and royal burials. In addition to its beauty and monumental scale, it is not only the very first pyramid that the ancient Egyptians ever built, but also the oldest known ancient Egyptian stone structure. The sheer age of the Step Pyramid is astounding. It was built in the early Third Dynasty, during the reign of King Netjerikhet (c.2667–2648 BC), who is now more well-known as Djoser. The Step Pyramid is composed of six stacked mastabas, thus creating the stepped effect. Imhotep, its architect, may very well have been responsible for this major innovation. At one end of the pyramid complex, a structure known as the South Tomb is believed to have acted as an additional, symbolic, tomb for Djoser, perhaps reflecting his role as the dual king of both Upper and Lower Egypt.

The Church of Simon the Tanner (Saint Samaan Al-Kharaz) or the Monastery of Semaan Kharaz in Mokattam is an Egyptian Coptic church excavated inside the Mokattam Mountains in Cairo. it is the largest church in Egypt, accommodating 20,000 people, and has 76 engraved images.Simon the Tanner lived toward the end of the tenth century and many Coptic Christians in Egypt were engaged in handicrafts. Saint Simon worked in tanning. Reaching the monastery is not an easy feat; it is difficult to get to, due to having to wind through the Zabbaleen(garbage collectors) village.

Massive yet elegant, this grand structure is regarded as the finest piece of early Mamluk architecture in Cairo. It was built between 1356 and 1363 by Sultan Hassan, a grandson of Sultan Qalaun; he took the throne at the age of 13, was deposed and reinstated no less than three times, then assassinated shortly before the mosque was completed. Beyond the striking recessed entrance, a dark passage leads into a peaceful square courtyard surrounded by four soaring iwans (vaulted halls). The iwans were dedicated to teaching the four main schools of Sunni Islam. At the rear of the eastern iwan, an especially beautiful mihrab (niche in the mosque indicating the direction of Mecca) is flanked by stolen Crusader columns. To the right, a bronze door leads to the sultan’s mausoleum. During construction one of the minarets collapsed and killed some 300 onlookers sparking superstitious rumors that Sultan Hassan's rule was at an end. They weren't wrong. Just over a month later, he was murdered by his army commander.

the second great pyramid of Giza was built by Khufu’s second son Khafre. Khafre lived during the ‘golden age’ of the Old Kingdom. The pyramids built by him and his family were the greatest in the history of Egypt and some of the greatest achievements in human history. In addition to this pyramid, the pharaoh also ordered the construction of his workers: The Sphinx, the Valley Temple, the processional road that goes from the pyramid to the funerary temple, and a solar boat. At the very top, a section of outer casing stones like those that would have originally covered all three of the Great Pyramids still survives. Although this monument appears larger than that of his father, it is actually slightly smaller but was constructed 10 meters higher on the plateau. The interior is much simpler than that of Khufu’s pyramid, with a single burial chamber, one small subsidiary chamber, and two passageways. The mortuary temple at the pyramid base was more complex than that of Khufu and was filled with statues of the king—over 52 life-size or larger images originally filled the structure.