Craftsmanship

This is a detail of a door at Rifaii mosque in old Cairo. The mosque was built during the late 1800's and early 1900's. It houses the tombs of the royal family of Egypt and also the tomb of the late Shah of Iran.  The door is made out of small pieces of wood and ivory that have been fitted together to form the pattern. If you touch it, you can feel each piece of wood or ivory move independently.

Soft Lighting

In the restaurant complex at Al Azhar park there is this lovely chandelier that gives off a soft light diffused by hundreds of fine brass chains.

Antique Seating

I was in a large village nearby and we were parked on the side of the road to pick up some things from a hardware store when I noticed these stone posts placed against a wall. Then I realised that these were large chunks of stone pillars, probably some that had been dug up by someone plowing.

The Perfect Place to Buy Antiques

The same dry air that is responsible for the preservation of mummies, also helps to preserve other objects in Egypt. The fact that the turn of the 20th century saw a huge building boom in the country also leads to there being some amazing antiques here. The wheels and the norag (the benchlike object) that was used for threshing grain are often bought to decorate gardens.

A Magical Object

I found this in a junk shop in Khan el Khalili. It was black but I could see that it was initially brass. There were three metal discs with designs carved into them that fit inside the circular face of the object. A hand, also engraved with designs fit onto a post so that it could allow the discs and a specially cut out disc of heavier weight brass rotate. My handyman at the farm cleaned everything and now we have this totally fascinating object that no one knows how to use.

Let Your Light Shine

An old glass chandelier in an antique shop in Khan el Khalili would only fit in one of the old villas with huge rooms. A modern apartment would be dwarfed.
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Ali Baba's Cave

Wandering in to a dark copper shop in the Khan can be an adventure in itself.

Shave And A Haircut

Most of the farmers in my area rely on a traveling barber who comes around and shaves the men in the shade of a tree, while both men are sitting on the ground. There's a good deal of trust involved because the barber uses an old fashioned straight razor and the shave that he gives is amazingly close and clean. Most men shave about once a week. While visiting Khan el Khalili the other day, I spotted one of the men in an open area on the upper level of an old caravanseri having a shave with a traveling barber. Nice weather, friends wandering by, sunshine...what could be better?

All Lit Up

The coffee shop on the garden level of the Marriott Hotel in Zamalek is an extraordinary sight. The palace that forms the administrative center of the hotel was built for the opening of the Suez Canal and shows some of the most amazing word and brass work in Cairo.

Just A Cottage

I went to a jazz concert at Manial Palace the other night, the opening night of a European/Egyptian jazz festival. There was a reception before the concert in a palace that had belonged to Prince Mohamed Ali, a fascinating space covered in gold and marble with a bedroom containing a solid silver bed. Just a weekend place I guess.

Into Infinity

Boxes and tables made of inlaid mother of pearl are a traditional craft here. I remember my mother having one that had been brought back to the UK by an uncle stationed in Egypt before WWI. When I was preparing for the birth of my children, my birthing coach suggested having something to focus on while doing the breathing exercises, and I used an inlaid plate that we'd brought back from Egypt. If you look at the shining pattern long enough, you just sort of vanish.

Everything Old Is New Again

Egypt is an old country but when people think of old Egyptian items it's always pharoanic statues and pyramids and things like that. But there are lots of wonderful antiques to be found here from the days when Egypt was wealthier and was modernising. When Mohamed Ali founded the last dynasty to rule Egypt before the military coup in the 1950's, he decided that Egypt should have all the things that Europe did. He took advantage of the American Civil War to push the Egyptian cotton crop and increase the country's revenues drastically. He brought in European architects and workmen to build Cairo and Alexandria in the images of European capitals with new railways, metro systems, and schools. With the military coup, Egypt was transformed into a socialist state and many of the wealthier families with ties to the Europeans who had come to change Egypt found themselves under scrutiny. Many left for North America and Europe, leaving behind many of their belongings, which are now to be found in shops all over the country. Now people are going back to find these old treasures.