The Royal Jewelry Museum ( ar, متحف المجوهرات) is an art and history museum in the Zizenia neighborhood of

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandri ...

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 Medit ...

. It is located in the former palace of Princess Fatma Al-Zahra'. The building's halls contain an inestimable collection of jewels and

jewelry Jewellery ( UK) or jewelry ( U.S.) consists of decorative items worn for personal adornment, such as brooches, rings, necklaces, earrings, pendants, bracelets, and cufflinks. Jewellery may be attached to the body or the clothes. From a w ...

of the Muhammad Ali Dynasty. 19th-century paintings, statues, and

decorative arts ] The decorative arts are arts or crafts whose object is the design and manufacture of objects that are both beautiful and functional. It includes most of the arts making objects for the interiors of buildings, and interior design, but not usual ...

are also exhibited in the rooms and lobbies. The museum was first inaugurated on 24 October 1986. After several years of renovations and expansion it was reopened in April 2010.

Museum

The museum houses major jewelry pieces and art acquisitions of the dynasty of Muhammad Ali of Egypt, Muhammad Ali and his descendants, who ruled Egypt for nearly 150 years from 1805 until the 1952 movement. The mother of Princess Fatima had completed the construction of the western wing before her death, when her daughter had reached the age of eighteen. Princess Fatima added an eastern wing to the palace and linked the two wings with a beautiful corridor. The Palace remained in use for summer residence until July 1952. When the princess’s property was confiscated, she was allowed to reside in the palace. This was until 1964, when Princess Fatima al-Zahra’ "ceded" the palace to the Egyptian government and left for Cairo. Princess Fatima al-Zahra died in 1983. Following 1952, the jewelry left by the Royal Family was kept secure and unseen until a 1986 decree by President

Mubarak Muhammad Hosni El Sayed Mubarak, (; 4 May 1928 – 25 February 2020) was an Egyptian politician and military officer who served as the fourth president of Egypt from 1981 to 2011. Before he entered politics, Mubarak was a career officer in t ...

was issued to assign Princess Fatima Al-Zahra' Palace in Alexandria as a special museum to house those pieces. The museum was renovated and developed in 1986 and 1994. Since late 2004, the Supreme Council of Antiquities has begun a comprehensive development and restoration process for the museum at an estimated cost of 10 million egyptian pounds, with the aim of increasing its capacity to accommodate more valuable exhibits in stores that have not yet been displayed, and the museum was opened in April 2010.http://www.alexandria.gov.eg/Alex/english/Royal%20Jewellry%20Museum.html

Palace design

The palace was built in 1919. Its walls and ceilings are adorned with

oil painting Oil painting is the process of painting with pigments with a medium of drying oil as the binder. It has been the most common technique for artistic painting on wood panel or canvas for several centuries, spreading from Europe to the rest of ...

s depicting various historical scenes and natural scenery. The palace windows are decorated with lead-inlaid glass artwork also depicting European-style historical scenes. It has of interior space, and is surrounded by

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 bot ...

References

External links

Royal Jewelry Museum: anniversary information
{{authority control Art museums and galleries in Egypt History museums in Egypt Decorative arts museums Museums in Alexandria Art museums established in 1986 Jewellery museums Muhammad Ali dynasty 1986 establishments in Egypt

Museum

Palace design

See also

References

External links