In celebration of the 117th anniversary of the opening of the Museum of Islamic Art at Bab Al-Khalq, the museum, in cooperation with the Baron Empain Palace in Heliopolis, is organizing two art exhibitions titled “Treasures of Lead”, at the Museum of Islamic Art, and another titled “From Bab Al-Khalq to Heliopolis”, at Baron Empain's Palace, from 28th and December 29th 2020 to January 13th 2021.

Dr. Mamdouh Othman, Director of the Museum, said the exhibition “Treasures of Lead”, which will be held at the Museum of Islamic Art, will be the first of its kind in Egypt and the Middle East. He added that it displays sculptures made by artists on pencils depicting a number of the artifacts of the museum. He explained that these sculptures will be displayed using magnifying lenses with a photograph of the artifact placed beside it. He pointed out that these pieces have artistic and historical links to The Baron Empain's palace, and its construction.

Dr. Basma Selim, Director of the Baron Empain Palace, said the exhibition “From Bab El Khalq to Heliopolis”, which will be displayed at the palace, includes 35 photographs of artifacts inside the Museum of Islamic Art reflecting artistic, cultural and historical links between the museum and the palace.

In addition to these celebrations, a number of technical and educational workshops and seminars will be held.

It is worth mentioning that Dr. Khaled El Enany, Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, made entry to the Museum of Islamic Art free for Egyptians on Monday, December 28,, to celebrate that occasion.

A number of archaeologists will also be at the museum to explain the artifacts to visitors while implementing the precautionary measures and hygiene safety regulations during the visit.

The Museum of Islamic Art in Bab al-Khalq, in the heart of Historic Cairo, is the largest Islamic art museum in the world. It includes more than 100,000 archeological masterpieces of Islamic arts from India and China, Saudi Arabia, the Levant, Egypt, North Africa and Andalusia.

These masterpieces showcases islamic art throughout the ages, which makes them a beacon for Islamic arts and its civilization.

The idea of ​​establishing a museum of Islamic art and antiquities began in the era of Khedive "Ismail" in the year 1869 AD, and this was built during the reign of Khedive "Tawfiq" in 1881 AD when "Franz Pasha" collected the archaeological artifacts dating back to the Islamic era in the eastern era of Al Hakim Mosque, After that, a small building wa