Al-Muizz Street becomes a pedestrian zone
Visitors to Al-Muizz Street in Fatimid Cairo will encounter an unfamiliar scene next October. They will be able to stroll along the street without having to worry about traffic. Nor will they have to negotiate the huge pumps that for years blocked the routes of pedestrians as they pumped out subterranean water. These, like the drainage pipes over which visitors once tripped, are no more. A majority of the monuments that line the street have now been restored and the handful that have not are nearing completion.
Now, between 6am and 12 midnight Al-Muizz Street will be a pedestrian zone, allowing people to enjoy the magnificent Islamic monuments within their original environment and experience the traditions and customs of the area’s inhabitants over several centuries. Though access to emergency vehicles will be allowed at all times, shop keepers will only be able to take deliveries in the small hours of the night.
Over the centuries the kilometre-long street became Cairo’s spine, the iconic heart of the city, adorned with monumental buildings embellished with fine mashrabiya, mosaics and decorative domes. Among the most notable buildings are the Sultan Qalawun complex, which consists of a palace, madrasa (school) and hospital, the school of Ibn Barquq and Beit Al-Qadi, the dome of Sultan Al-Saleh Negmeddin, the sabil- kuttab of Khesru Pasha, and the Mohamed Ali Pasha sabil.
Time, though, exacted a heavy toll on these historic buildings. Encroachment and misuse by residents harmed the monuments, environmental pollution undermined foundations and the 1992 earthquake left visible scars across the historic zone.
Transforming Al-Muizz Street into a pedestrian zone is a dream come true, turning the street into the most important attraction in Cairo, the embodiment of Egypt’s tangible and intangible Islamic heritage.
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