The Historic Cairo Restoration Project (HCRP) is an effort by the governments of

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

and

Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...

to restore and renovate historic Medieval Islamic Cairo. ''Al-Qahira'' (Cairo) was officially founded here in 969 CE by the Fatimid caliphs as an imperial capital and walled city, just to the north of the preceding capital Fustat.Worldpress.org; "Rescuing Cairo's Lost Heritage;" by Rose Aslan; May 10, 2006
. (article first appeared in 'Islamica Magazine' - Issue 15) . accessed 5.25.2011 There are two parts to the HCRP: the remaking of the historic area and the restoration of its monuments.Cairo Cosmopolitan: Politics, culture, and urban space in the new Globalized Middle East"
pp. 275-285 - via Google Books . accessed 5.25.2011

Concept

The Historic Cairo Restoration Project is a project started by the governments of Egypt and Cairo. The main project's intention is to create new museums in a sequence of historical sites in an open-air museum district, that will be widely accessible to both the citizens of Cairo and tourists. The project is currently focused on restoring historic landmarks from the medieval Fatimid era in Cairo (969 CE - 1250 CE). The number of potential historic monuments is estimated between 450 and 630 structures. According to the Ministry of Culture, the HCRP plan is to "''transform the whole area into an open-air museum.''" The HCRP is first focusing on this Islamic arts district in order to be a part of the Museum With No Frontiers. This is a museum organized by the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...

, and the Fatimid area project will be a part of its Euromed Heritage program — "Islamic Art in the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...

Projects

A primary concept of the project is to feature the actual historical sites as the main exhibits for this open-air museum by providing extensive information resources and catalogs on-site at each of them. Visitors would therefore be able to truly experience medieval Egyptian culture and history by seeing the structures and sites while concurrently learning more about them from the on-site resources. As a part of this project, to increase pedestrian accessibility there are plans to create a paved walkway along al-Muizz li-Din Allah, the main ceremonial path of Fatimid Cairo. There are also plans to demolish less significant adjacent

vernacular A vernacular or vernacular language is in contrast with a "standard language". It refers to the language or dialect that is spoken by people that are inhabiting a particular country or region. The vernacular is typically the native language, n ...

structures to create large

garden A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the cultivation, display, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The single feature identifying even the wildest wild garden is ''control''. The garden can incorporate both ...

settings surrounding the landmarks.

Criticisms

Medieval context

The HCRP has issued many plans, which have been met with resistance by some Cairens, the citizens of Cairo. For example, the plans to create gardens and walkways is seen by some as an assault on the original dense medieval layout and 'urban fabric' of Fatimid Cairo that diminishes the historical value of the retained sites. The reasoning is that in

Medieval Cairo Medieval Cairo may refer to: * History of Cairo during the Middle Ages * Islamic Cairo Islamic Cairo ( ar, قاهرة المعز, lit= Al-Mu'izz's Cairo), also called Historic Cairo or Medieval Cairo, refers generically to the historic areas of ...

, the context of a building was determined by its relationship to neighboring buildings. Buildings and monuments of importance were intentionally constructed adjacent to conventional ones, to convey and enhance their high stature and prestige. It is this urban clustering and juxtaposition that actually gives the landmark buildings authentic context and meaning for visitors to experience. Some Cairens think that by eliminating this context from the buildings the HCRP is lessening the value and historical understanding of their heritage sites. Some architectural conservation experts have claimed the HCRP has used incorrect building materials in its conservation work. Other conservation experts counter that the massive and immediate intervention for landmarks, despite the inevitable mistakes, has stopped the threat of many just disappearing.

Funding

Some residents of historic Cairo have also become suspicious of the HCRP motives, questioning if the project really has historical preservation and interpretation as its true primary intention. Some believe that tourism and commerce are instead the main reason for the project's creation and funding. The large amount of spending necessary for the intended project has also become a point of controversy, with some estimates as high as $350 million. Some residents believe that the massive cost of creating the open-air museum and restoring its landmarks would be better spent for other local public social and economic needs.

References

External links

Islamica Magazine: Medieval Islamic Cairo article - "Rescuing Cairo's Lost Heritage"
- ''history of district, conservation projects, and the HCRP.''
Scribd: "Islamic Monuments in Cairo, the practical guide"
- ''online edition'' {{Landmarks of Cairo Conservation projects History of Cairo Medieval Cairo Muizz Street Conservation and restoration organizations Cairo