Cairo to restore Saladin's citadel
The Art Newspaper
April 30, 2014
© Louis Comfort Tiffany, around 1872
Like many of Egypt’s post-Pharaonic sites, the historic complex has not received the same level of conservation as more ancient attractions.
As part of the Historic Cairo Rehabilitation Project, launched in 2000, Egypt’s Ministry of Antiquities will soon be accepting bids in an international competition to restore the Citadel of Saladin.
To make the Medieval site more accessible to visitors, governmental officials also intend on improving signage and adding tourist facilities.
Almost 1,000 years old, the Citadel was built on a hill overlooking Cairo to protect the city from crusaders; it then remained Egypt’s centre of government until 1860.
Today, it encompasses various historic buildings and museums, including the imposing mosque of Mohammed Ali, built in the 19th-century, and the Suleyman Pasha Mosque, the first Ottoman-style mosque in the country.
Despite the large numbers of visitors it receives each year, and the numerous festivals and special events hosted there, the Citadel has been in need of restoration for some years. Like many of Egypt’s post-Pharaonic historic sites, it has not received the same level of conservation care as the country’s more ancient attractions.
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