Al-Muizz Street is the main street of medieval Cairo, about a kilometer long, running from the northern gate of Bab al-Futuh to the southern gate of Bab Zuweila. It has more medieval Islamic monuments along it than almost any street in the world, and walking it is like walking through an open-air museum.
Muizz StreetHistory
The street was laid out when the Fatimids founded Cairo in 969 AD and named after the caliph al-Muizz li-Din Allah. Over the following centuries sultans and emirs competed to build the grandest mosques, schools, hospitals and fountains along it.
What to see
Highlights include the complex of Sultan Qalawun, built in 1284 to 1285 with a hospital that treated patients for centuries; the Madrasa of Barquq; the small Fatimid Mosque of al-Aqmar with its carved stone front; and Bayt al-Suhaymi, an Ottoman merchant’s house with courtyards, fountains and wooden lattice windows. At the southern end you reach Khan el-Khalili and, beyond, the gates of Cairo.
Visiting
The northern part is closed to cars, which makes it pleasant to walk, especially in the evening when the monuments are lit. Allow two hours or more. It is part of our Islamic Cairo Cairo day tours.
