Legacies of Cairo:
Monuments and People
By Monda Rafla
When my family emigrated from Egypt thirty years ago, I never expected to go back. In 1995, a few years after my mother passed away, I decided to accompany my father on what turned out to be his last visit home. During that trip, I began exploring and photographing parts of Cairo that, as a child growing up there, I had never seen or known.
Medieval Cairo (Old Cairo) is a hidden part of Metropolis Cairo that is a treasure mostly overlooked by Cairenes as well as foreign visitors. As I began discovering and pursuing my passion for photography, I became entranced with the beauty of the Islamic and Coptic architecture and the simplicity and humbleness of Cairenes. Walking through the narrow ancient streets, I was surrounded by mosques, hamams (bathhouses), sabils (public fountains), kuttabs (Quranic schools), and madrasas (theological schools). There are over 300 architectural monuments that exist in Islamic Cairo. Over 125 of these monuments were damaged during the 1992 earthquake. While Ibn Tulun Mosque is known to be the oldest mosque built in Cairo, the architecture of the various monuments reflect Egypt's diverse history; Ancient Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Arab, and Ottoman. Some mosques encompass all three arch designs from the Roman, Christian, and Islamic eras. Others show a style particular to the Mamluk times like the Mosque of Al-Maridani or the Ottoman Empire like the Mosque of Muhammad Ali.
The culture and traditions of Islamic Cairo, which
date back to 641
A.D., are visible not only in these magnificent structures, but extend
also
to its people. My visits with Ghaber the shoemaker who insisted on shining
my dusty shoes, Om Saleeb who invited me in for tea and asked me to find
her an American husband, and Father Cherubim whose eyes captured and reflected
the joy of a monk's simple life reminded me of the proud yet ordinary
and humble spirit of Cairenes.
I now go back to Egypt regularly, convinced that
it will not be long before
many of her majestic monuments are destroyed by either time or renovation
attempts. Each trip enriches my passions: photography, Old Cairo, and
her people.
"Whoever drinks from the waters of the Nile
is destined to return to Egypt."
Ancient Egyptian proverb.