The renovated Dar Al Kotub in Bab El Khalq is a design gem, combining beauty with functionality
Circa 1801 what we now know to be Cairo was little more than a swampy flood plain stretching between Ramses Square and the Nile. With the rule of Mohammed Ali Pasha’s dynasty, all that changed. The founder of modern Egypt and his successors had spearheaded a cultural renaissance the repercussions of which can be seen and felt until today.
The magnificent renovated national library in Bab El Khalq is one of the remnants of Cairo’s Belle Epoch.
Mohammed Saber Arab, professor of history at Al-Azhar University and Chairman of the National Library of Egypt, explains that the very first Kotub Khana (State Library) was the brainchild of intellectual Ali Pasha Mubarak. In 1870 his proposal to build a national library caught the attention of Khedive Ismail, the son of Mohammed Ali, who modeled it in the style of the French National Library in Paris.
Prince Mostafa Fadel, the Khedive’s brother, donated his palace in Sayeda Zeinab to the project, and soon after the library was filled with the private collections of the royal family and aristocracy – an invaluable host of rare books and manuscripts in English, French, Italian and Arabic.
“The library served as a university and became the breeding ground to thousands of thinkers and scientists, says Arab.
When in 1886 the Khedive decreed that copies of every new release be placed in the library, the building became overcrowded. In 1898, then Khedive Abbas Helmi II decreed the construction of a new library in Bab El Khalq.
Designed in a combination of Islamic and Moorish architecture, complete with vaulted ceilings and arches, the new library was inaugurated in 1904. Apart from the ground floor dedicated to the Antique-Khana (House of Islamic monuments known today as the Islamic Museum) the entire edifice was full of books.
“Dar Al Kokub [The National Library] helped create a remarkable cultural atmosphere and played a significant role in enriching cultural life, says Arab. “All major intellectuals of the 20th century have anecdotes related to this place.
He pointed out that after the 1952 revolution the significance of the Dar was compounded. The flurry of cultural activities, theater and cinema productions led to even more people using it and soon it overflowed with books, prompting plans to build a new site. Overlooking the Nile, the building was officially opened in 1971, and since then, the Bab El Khalq edifice had been left virtually unused, until its renovation completed in December 2006.
It took six years at a cost of LE 85 million to revive this cultural gem.
Seamlessly combining tradition with modernity, beauty with functionality, the 3,200 square-meter building is a breathtaking architectural masterpiece completely repurposed to suit the needs of post-technological revolution scholars.
With the capacity to hold over 3 million books, manuscripts, papyri and periodicals, the library again uses the National Library in Paris as a prototype.
Although it is not open to the public yet, it includes a three-story massive exhibit of rare manuscripts of literary classics in Arabic, Persian and Turkish, early copies of the Holy Quran as well as a rare coins collection.
In addition to the basement and main floor, two mezzanine floors were introduced to make maximum use of space, since the building is at least 15 meters high. This raises the total area to 5,280 square meters.
The main floor features three main reading rooms, the Oriental Languages Library and the Rare Publications Library. A bookstore, a large photocopy center, cafeterias and an outdoors theater are also beautifully designed to create the optimum atmosphere for scholars and cultural connoisseurs. The first mezzanine is dedicated to the microfilm room for the public, Internet facilities, the electronic database, and the heritage verification unit; while the second mezzanine houses the microfilm and restoration labs.
“The preservation of ancient manuscripts is the hallmark of Dar Al Kotub, says Arab, adding that between the Bab El Khalq and the Corniche facilities, the National Library uses the most up-to-date equipment.
He adds: “Four hundred employees are currently involved in creating a comprehensive database of some 100 million historic documents which will be made available electronically in a couple of years when the three-year project is complete.
In a collaborative effort with the ministry of communication and information technology, the Dar another mega-project to create an archive for daily newspapers is in the pipeline.
“We also have open links with the biggest national archives in Japan, the US and Russia, where we send at least 20 trainees in various fields each year to learn the latest technology and systems.
But is contemporary society aware, or even interested in books anymore?
The history professor’s tone instantly changes.
“I must say we suffer from a reading crisis. A deteriorating education system has upstaged the value of reading. Schools no longer have libraries and reading is not encouraged, says Arab.
“But Egypt’s role in the region, and indeed in the world, has always been cultural. And we hope that this project will reinstate our rich heritage in this area, he says.
