Al Moez Ldin Allah Al Fatmi street in Old Cairo

Al Moez street  Old Cairo

Al-Muizz Street is named after the Fatimid Caliph, al-Muizz li-Din Allah (341–365 AH / 953–975 AD), who first founded this street. He is also the founder of the Fatimid caliphates in Egypt since he ruled Egypt in (358-365AH\ 969-975AD). Today, it is the largest open-air museum for Islamic monuments in the world, and a unique heritage site that was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1979. The street has borne many names over the centuries, and in 1937 it came to be known as al-Muizz in honour of the founder of Cairo.

The historical street stretches between two of the gates of Cairo’s old city walls, from Bab al-Futuh in the north to Bab Zuwayla in the south, passing along many of the significant and uniquely preserved ancient alleys and streets, such as Amir al-Guyush Street, Darb al-Asfar, Borgowan Alley, Khan al-Khalili, and al-Ghuriyya.

Twenty-nine monuments dotting the length of al-Muizz allow visitors to experience Islamic Egypt from the 10th to 19th centuries, starting from the Fatimid Period in Egypt (358–567 AH / 969–1171 AD) to the Muhammad Ali Dynasty (1220–1372 AH/ 1805–1953 AD). These monuments include buildings of various types, such as those that had a religious, domestic, commercial, or defensive function. Today, markets, vendors, and local crafts stores line up along al-Muizz ​street, adding to the charm of this historic street.

Hammam of Sultan Inal

Monument No. 562 Sultan al-Ashraf Abu al-Nasr Sayf al-Din Inal commissioned this bathhouse in 861 AH / 1456 AD, during the Mamluk Period. The structure was an important social institution. Like the architecture of Islamic bathhouses, the dog-leg corridor just beyond the entrance gives privacy and opens onto a cool room. 

Here, customers removed their clothes and prepared to bathe, where a number of seating areas and lockers for keeping personal belongings. From here they went into the warm room, where they could rest and enjoy refreshments before entering the steamed basin room. They left the same way they came out, adjusting their body temperature with the changing atmosphere of each chamber. The domes punctured with apertures of stained glass contributed to temperature regulation to circulate warm air and illuminate the building. The bathhouse got its water from a well through a waterwheel (saqiya), which raised this water to the furnace at the back of the building. Waste was burned in the furnace, which thus warmed the water in a large container that was then pumped to the different parts of the bath through pottery pipes and metal spouts.

Madrasa and Mausoleum of al-Saleh Najm al-Din Ayyub

This is one of the most important architectural installations dating to the Ayyubid period.  It is located between al-Qasrayn (the two palaces) on al-Muizz Street. Built in the year 641 AH / 1243 AD, it became known as the Salhiyya Madrasa, referring to its eponym Sultan  al-Salih Nagm al-Din Ayyub. This madrasa was the first institution of its kind to teach all four schools of jurisprudence, replacing the Shi’ite curriculum that had been in place under the Fatimid Dynasty.​ Each of the four schools of jurisprudence has its own allocated area inside the madrasa.

The main façade and distinctive minaret above the entrance still surive. Only the western iwan, in which the Malik madhhab was taught, remains standing. The mausoleum was built in 647 AH\ 1249 AD by Sultana Shajarat al-Durr, wife of Sultan Najm al-Din Ayyub. She commissioned the structure for her husband following his death in the battle against the Crusaders in Mansura. He was buried in al-Rawda Citadel and later removed to the mausoleum when it was completed in 648 AH\ 1250 AD. 

The dome has one main façade with an entrance overlooking al-Muizz Street. A plaque above the main entrance records the date of the Sultan’s death. The wooden cabin inside the dome is a good example of Ayyubid wooden antiques.

El Moez Le Din Allah Street 

It’s a kind of places you will never find a look like. Its full of warm feelings and the odor of long history”… it is one of the oldest streets in Egypt.When the Fatimid reign (969-1171) settled in Cairo under the leadership of El Moez Li-Dinellah it was called "Cairo of El Moez" because they decorated its four suburbs with luxurious buildings, delightful spots and gardens. This increased its delightfulness and beauty. It was the settlement of rulers and princes.  

El Moez Le Din Allah Street is an eloquent witness for historical Cairo with the various monuments spread along both sides of the street. You are walking along history when you walk in Al Moez Street, The most beautiful Islamic street in Cairo, Islamic monuments & mosques are on each side of El Moez Street, there you can visit El Hakem Mosque 1000 years ago ,El Aqmar Mosque. Also in Al Moez Street, you can see Souk, wekala, hamam, khan, hotel, palace, mosque, khankah, college, citadel and fort are flourishing historical Cairo.