City of the Dead Cairo. City of dead. City of the Dead Cairo - El Arafa
This is not just the name of a cemetery. They really live here, among the crypts - 
It happened this way, probably not because of a good life
The cemetery is capital, vast, really an entire city.
Going to the Scavengers, from, City of dead you won't miss it.
We were not allowed into the territory; the escort only allowed us to slow down and look through the fence at the cemetery architecture.
They explained - so as not to disturb the peace of the inhabitants.
I wasn’t particularly eager, but my traveling friends tried to get through, but it didn’t work out.
Note about maintenance -
All tourists are required to take an accompanying person “on board”. In addition to the fact that there was also a police car following relentlessly.
We called the “tour guides” in civilian clothes (with a short-barreled machine gun under the hood) “jackets” - the poor fellows steamed day after day in a thick suit, trailing behind us through the pyramids, slums, sands and deserts, despite the fact that the Egyptian sun even in September It's still roasting all the way.
As for me, it’s safer with an escort, although - don’t go there, you can’t go here, coordinate every step with the authorities - that was also the case. Which was quite depressing for our warm company; I am eager for exploits)
The guide - a local, a Cairo man - for some reason began to assure us that the security forces were not there to protect us, but to keep an eye on us so that they wouldn’t go where they shouldn’t. What is so forbidden there you can spy among the devastation, God knows. But one way or another, local beggars and other scoundrels stayed away, and the police were respected. In one of the hotels they decided to cheat us - the jacket was ruined, it was also more interesting for him to sleep in the room, and not to shepherd a restless group. They treated us normally, on occasion they suggested something through the guide, they themselves did not enter into conversations, they did not command the “formation” =) By the way, unlike the people on the streets (also calmly and friendly in general), the “jackets” knew that we are Israelis.
A unique place to live, of course.
Related pictures.
On the topic of the horrors of the waste recyclers' quarter - this is already far beyond its borders,
consider the city center as a bridge over the Nile
Under the bridge there is a bus station with a street market -
Buses are crowded, minibuses are the capital, after all
The wind constantly blows dust from the desert, which is why everything is withered. And the pieces of paper under one’s feet apparently don’t float.
The buildings all around are not too different from the dwellings of the Zabbaleen -
Somewhere it’s more neat, somewhere it’s completely fear-and-horror -
This, of course, can be found anywhere if you set your mind to it, even in Tel Aviv, even in Rostov, even Europe is not all brand new,
but I didn’t rummage through garbage dumps, I took pictures of everything along the route
The authorities are doing what they can, at least with the roads
The streets are not bad, the highways are more or less. The broken-down road was found only in the completely deserted wilds, in distant Sivy
Scooter-based tuk-tuks are a very common form of transport.
An advertisement has turned up - oil products from Libya are being advertised. Egypt doesn't have its own. And there is nothing special to trade. Hence the gaps in the economy.
The picture is the same in Jordan. Tourism is perhaps the only export item.
When provocative publishers compare - “here’s how the Arabs live in the territories! And how the Israelis live!” - they forget to compare with the rest of the Middle East,
Who’s stopping them from cleaning up the streets? If he doesn’t bother anyone there, except the passing European public.
Beauty center, not halam-balam
The house is not yet fully occupied; it is beginning to deteriorate as it goes along. The winds are certainly strong...
What I liked were the niches for the condos so that the façade would not be spoiled.
Skinny sheep or dogs? you can't tell right off the bat
They can when they want
Cemeteries of Cairo or "city of the dead" most interesting place old town. A huge number of monuments from the Mamluk period of Egyptian history have been preserved there. And despite this, the city of the dead is rarely visited by tourists. There are many fears and phobias associated with this place, including the ubiquitous beggars, homeless people living in graves, and in general the fear of any necropolis. The cemeteries of Cairo are really inhabited by people, and this does not fit well in the mind of a tourist from the civilized world. I decided to dispel these myths for myself and spent the whole day visiting the “city of the dead”; it turned out that during this time I could only briefly examine the main attractions; much was left “overboard”...
The cemeteries of Cairo circle the old Islamic city with east side, interrupted by the hill of the Citadel, which divides the “city of the dead” into Northern and Southern parts. They are called the Northern Cemetery and, accordingly, the Southern Cemetery. You can get there by taxi, but I came to the Northern Cemetery on foot from Hussein Square, the distance is about half a kilometer.
Previously, the Mamluk mausoleums stood freely behind the fortress wall, now they are squeezed on all sides residential areas, and found ourselves almost in the city center. This is clearly visible in old photographs and paintings from the 19th century.
Cemeteries began to be actively populated in the 60s of the last century; refugees from the Suez Canal area were settled here. At first, there were problems with the infrastructure here - there were a lot of people, but apparently, the government dealt with it. Now, in my subjective opinion, the cemeteries are at best half populated, the streets are absolutely deserted during the day, while adults can still go to work, children should be running around in huge numbers - but none of this is noticeable.
This is a quiet, calm area, similar to ours summer cottages. There are shops, buses run, fences and houses are very good for Egypt - you can see a lot of renovations, there are also modern buildings. At the Southern Cemetery, things are somewhat worse, but still, it seems to me that it is better to live here than in makeshift high-rise buildings on the outskirts, which will collapse on the heads of the residents a little longer.
Of course, the idea that people were supposedly forced into cemeteries to live in crypts is incorrect from the very beginning. There were vacant lots here, which were later reclaimed local population. It seems that people first came here in the year 1967, built houses, and then filled the cemeteries - the mortality rate in Egypt is very high, otherwise I cannot explain such a density of burials, because in old photos the mausoleums stand absolutely free.
You can start exploring the “city” from anywhere, but first you should assess the area from some hill and plot an approximate route - it’s very difficult to navigate “on the ground”, even with a map. The bulk of the monuments of the Northern Cemetery stretch from north to south along a line passing approximately through the center. The mausoleums of the Southern Cemetery are grouped for the most part in the north, near the Citadel
The most significant monuments of the Northern Cemetery are the mosque, khanqah and mausoleum of Sultan Inal, the mosque and mausoleum of Faraj Barkuk, the Barsbey complex and the complex of Sultan Qaitbey, and numerous mausoleums scattered throughout the area of the “dead city”.
The Sultan Inal complex, built in 1451-1456, is located in the very north of the cemetery. It consists of the ruins of a mosque, a madrasah, a Sufi khanaka, in fact, it is an entire Islamic monastery.
Sultan Al-Inal, being a purebred Circassian Mamluk, until the end of his days never mastered the Arabic language - he could neither read nor write. He used only his Caucasian dialect, but he built many religious buildings, thus showing his zeal for Islam.
Adjacent to it is the burial complex of Emir Kurkumys (1506), who led the Mamluk army under Sultan Kaitbey.
Together the two complexes constitute a huge archaeological zone.
Complex of Emir Kurkumys and Sultan Inal (painting by David Roberts - early 19th century)
During the examination, I was helped, or most likely hindered, by a young man in a shirt and trousers, energetic and clear-cut as in the army. He opened the doors to the interior, regulating my stay at the site, like you can’t go here, but you can go there, and he constantly got into the lens, making it very difficult to take a picture without him. There are a lot of such young people in identical shirts in the “city of the dead”. Of course, I am impressed that the Egyptian government is concerned about my safety, but without them it would be much more convenient. If you really can’t do without guides, then I personally like clergymen better, they are more relaxed and meditative, and less interested in the course of events.
The Great Mosque and Mausoleum of Faraj ibn Barquq (1400-1411) was built by the son of the founder of the Burji Mamluk tower corporation for his father.
He is also known for the fact that he was able to quite easily get rid of the troops of the great Tamerlane, giving him Alleppo and Damascus. The Mamluks used scorched earth tactics, and the Iron Lame did not reach Cairo.
The complex of the Sultan of Barsbay (1433) consists of several mausoleums and a mosque. The “tower” Mamluk Al-Ashraf Barsbey is known as the conqueror of Cyprus; under him, Egypt had a very significant Mediterranean navy.
The complex of Sultan Qaitbay (1472-1474) consists of huge amount structures - mausoleums, hospitals and mosques.
True, I was not allowed into the main mosque because of prayer, I had to limit myself to photographing the outer door, it was worth it.
The mausoleums of the “river” Bahri Mamluks are from an earlier era.
Mausoleum of Um Anuk of Princess Tughay (1348) - the beloved wife of Sultan An-Nasir Muhammad, who became famous for his extensive construction in Cairo - the construction of a mosque in the Citadel and the construction of the Great Aqueduct.
Mausoleum of Al-Saab Banat (15th century) Burji Mamluks
Al-Rifai Mausoleum (16th century), Burji Mamluks
Yunus Al-Dawadar (1382) - one of the earliest “Circassian” mausoleums, Al-Dawadar was the manager of Sultan Barquq, he died in a battle in Syria, and was not buried in his mausoleum.
Starting from the Citadel and further south, the age of the monuments increases, which once again proves that historical Center The city is shifted to the south, towards Fustat and ancient Babylon, where the Coptic quarter is now located. The southern cemetery is dominated by mausoleums of the “river” Bahri Mamluks, and there are even buildings from the Fatimid era.
Southern Cemetery (David Roberts - early 19th century painting)
Southern Cemetery late 19th early 20th century.
The small mausoleum of Rajab Al-Shirazi (1379), sandwiched between houses, is located at the foot of the Citadel. Perhaps this is the last representative of the “river” Mamluks.
Southern Cemetery
Mausoleum, minaret and khanqah of the Al-Sultaniya complex (1350-1360), Mamluks “Bahri” - in the Southern Cemetery. It is made in the Persian style, and may belong to the mother of Sultan Hassan, who built the largest mosque in the city.
P.S. Of course, I wanted to create a positive image of cemeteries and Cairo in general, although, of course, I must admit, I still had a lot of photos that I did not post so as not to disturb the “harmony”. About mountains of garbage, flocks stray dogs, the ubiquitous dirt and dust are already known to everyone. I just want to emphasize the constant presence of Cairo dust, this substance makes photography very difficult; there is much more of it in cemeteries than in city neighborhoods, and it is much finer than sand in the desert. By the end of the day, my camera stopped working there, I decided that it had come to its senses, I even thought about all sorts of superstitions associated with the “city of the dead” - after all, millions of the dead are buried here, and I was very actively climbing over their graves... But after 30 minutes she shook and came to life, Allah is merciful... In short, take care of your equipment, and yourself too...
Cairo - fairytale city"One Thousand and One Nights", to which I always want to return...
In Egypt, under Mount Muqattam, north of the Citadel, is the Cairo Necropolis - the City of the Dead. Cairo is the capital of the state, consisting of many districts, one of which is this extensive cemetery. The age of the burial ground exceeds two thousand years, and the territory is constantly expanding. Now its length is more than 6 kilometers.
City of the Dead (Cairo)
Egypt is considered a Muslim country, only 15% of the inhabitants profess Christianity, so the City of the Dead is an Islamic necropolis. Hearing this name, many people think that we are talking about the Great Pyramids located in Giza, near Cairo. But in fact, this is the name of the largest cemetery located in the capital of Egypt. By the way, it is an object world heritage UNESCO. But, despite this status, the necropolis is not popular among tourists and local residents.
City of the Dead (Cairo), whose name al Qarafa, translated from Arabic means “cemetery”. It consists of five main cemeteries - North, South, Bab el-Nasr, Bab el-Wazir and Great.
In memory of the departed
In the northern part of al-Karafa, there are mausoleums and mosques of the sultans of Inal and Qaitbey, Faraj Barkuk, and the Barsbey complex. In the southern part, Mameluke mazars and ancient buildings from the Fatimid times were built.
Some tombs are already crumbling, while others remain intact, as they are built of marble. As in life, they are buried in large tombs, and mere mortals have modest tombstones.
The City of the Dead (Cairo) is one of the oldest mass burial sites due to its age. On its territory, people from different walks of life found peace - both ordinary citizens and representatives of blue blood. Many tourists are impressed by the majestic tombs of the rulers of the world who lived several centuries ago, as well as the way their relatives honored the memory of their departed family members.
Initially, this cemetery was erected as a burial place for the Arab conquerors of Egypt, the Abbasids, the Fatimids, the Mamelukes, and the Ottomans, and now it has turned into one of the slums of Cairo, where the living and the dead coexist side by side.
Living and dead
Today, this unusual metropolitan area is not only the final refuge for those who have passed on to another world, but also home to tens of thousands of the poorest Cairo residents who have no other roof over their heads. The reason for this was the Egyptian crisis, the lack of affordable housing for the rapidly growing population. Therefore, many poor Egyptians chose the city of the dead as their home.
Some of them, in agreement with the relatives of the deceased, live directly in the crypts. As a rule, in return they undertake to look after the graves and restore order in the surrounding area. Thanks to this arrangement, the City of the Dead (Cairo) is much cleaner than some of the main streets of the capital.
Here you can often find boys playing football and women hanging laundry between the tombstones. For many of them, the City of the Dead became a real home for a long time. Life here is different from that in other areas of Cairo. The streets here are quiet, narrow, not paved. It seems that behind the high walls with decorative gates there is a completely different world: all around are domes, minarets and no politics.
al Qarafa: kings and poor
“I’ve lived here for 80 years, and my family has lived on this site for 350 years. King Farouk is buried next to my house,” said a local resident of the City of the Dead in 2011. Despite this strange proximity, he believed that “living with the dead is a good thing for an old man.” Indeed, it is much more frightening to be around the living, from whom you do not know what to expect.
Nevertheless, starting from the 60s of the last century, a certain semblance of infrastructure appeared here: shops were opened where you can buy food, clothing and souvenirs, and even houses were built. Transport goes here, people work here.
No one can accurately answer the question of how many people live in this gloomy quarter among millions of graves. Today, the population of the City of the Dead region (Cairo) continues to grow due to rural migration, natural disasters and the housing crisis. Presumably, we are talking about a settlement of half a million.
City of the Dead (Cairo): reviews from tourists
Tourists who visit the City of the Dead tend to be discouraged. For many of them, it is strange to see a city with houses where the mummified bodies of relatives of the homeowners are kept. According to them, this spectacle is not for the faint of heart. Although the area is home to low-income people, most tourists find it difficult to understand how they can stay in a house with a tomb in another room to save on costs.
Others, on the contrary, find a walk through the City of the Dead very exciting. It is unusual for them that living people are constantly among the tombs, and they gladly respond to the offer of local residents to enter their homes.
And yet he is beautiful
But not all guests of the capital pay attention to such moments. Many of them visit the City of the Dead (Cairo) to admire the beautiful tombs of Arab rulers, for example, the mausoleum of Muhammad Ali. The wonderful creations of the masters of the past, who created majestic structures by hand, do not leave true connoisseurs of architecture indifferent.
For some it is unusual place It remains in memory as a cemetery stretching over 4 miles, on the territory of which the poorest residents of Cairo live. They do not advise visiting the labyrinth of tombs, houses and the famous necropolis, as it is easy to get lost there without a guide and you can become a victim of robbers and other criminals.
However, when you come to Egypt on vacation, visit the City of the Dead (Cairo), the photo of which does not give a full idea of the true beauty of this area. Once you find yourself on its streets, you will feel like a character from One Thousand and One Nights.
During my independent trip in Cairo in the fall of 2008, I had the opportunity to visit the “City of the Dead,” a giant Muslim cemetery in the center of Cairo, or rather a small part of it, located not far from the walls of the Citadel. 
However, this comparatively small area between the communities of the Southern and Northern Cemeteries gives a complete picture of the originality of the ancient Cairo cemeteries. 
Here, among the tombs of ordinary Egyptians, you can also see many Mamluk mausoleums. 
This is a huge necropolis, perhaps the largest in the world. Cemeteries have existed here since the 12th century. and began to expand from the 15th century; the oldest tombs date back to this period. 
And despite this, the city of the dead is rarely visited by tourists. There are many fears and phobias of “white people” associated with this place, including the ubiquitous beggars and homeless people living in graves and, in general, the fear of any necropolis. 
The author of all photographs in this post is Alexander Emelyanov 
Cairo's cemeteries are inhabited - more than 10,000 refugees from Palestine and those who cannot afford housing among the living live here. Often homeless people live in crypts with the consent of relatives of the deceased, at the same time keeping order. Some tombs are equipped with electricity, garages and shops. Thus, it is a whole city within a city. 
The shapes of the tombs are very different: some are simple stone tombstones, others are real mausoleums, erected to shelter the remains of emirs and sultans. But these are exceptions. The majority are small one- or two-room houses with gardens - a relic of the funerary traditions of the Pharaonic era, which are preserved today in the Coptic community. Such squares and such pleasant “dwellings” quickly began to attract beggars, who gradually occupied these places. The situation worsened further when refugees from the Suez Canal area entered the area in 1967. The unauthorized settlement of homeless people was, in principle, nothing new, but this unexpected invasion of at least 300 thousand people created enormous problems and threatened to lead to the most dire consequences. However, very soon the situation was corrected. The government was able to provide housing for some of these people. Egypt managed to resolve this problem, and cemeteries did not turn into horrific ghettos. Most of the City of the Dead is well maintained. 
Once here, it’s like finding yourself in the depths of centuries. 
For example, in this particular place, it seems like nothing has changed for 500 years
The full version of the report on my visit to Cairo cemeteries can be seen
During my independent trip to Cairo in the fall of 2008, I had the opportunity to visit the “City of the Dead,” a gigantic Muslim cemetery in the center of Cairo, or rather a small part of it, located not far from the walls of the Citadel.
However, this relatively small area between the communities of the Southern and Northern Cemeteries gives a complete picture of the originality of the ancient Cairo cemeteries.
Here, among the tombs of ordinary Egyptians, you can also see many Mamluk mausoleums.
This is a huge necropolis, perhaps the largest in the world. Cemeteries have existed here since the 12th century. and began to expand from the 15th century; the oldest tombs date back to this period.
And despite this, the city of the dead is rarely visited by tourists. There are many fears and phobias of “white people” associated with this place, including the ubiquitous beggars and homeless people living in graves and, in general, the fear of any necropolis.
Cairo's cemeteries are inhabited - more than 10,000 refugees from Palestine and those who cannot afford housing among the living live here. Often homeless people live in crypts with the consent of relatives of the deceased, at the same time keeping order. Some tombs are equipped with electricity, garages and shops. Thus, it is a whole city within a city.
The shapes of the tombs are very different: some are simple stone tombstones, others are real mausoleums, erected to shelter the remains of emirs and sultans. But these are exceptions. The majority are small one- or two-room houses with gardens - a relic of the funerary traditions of the Pharaonic era, which are preserved today in the Coptic community. Such squares and such pleasant “dwellings” quickly began to attract beggars, who gradually occupied these places. The situation worsened further when refugees from the Suez Canal area entered the area in 1967. The unauthorized settlement of homeless people was, in principle, nothing new, but this unexpected invasion of at least 300 thousand people created enormous problems and threatened to lead to the most dire consequences. However, very soon the situation was corrected. The government was able to provide housing for some of these people. Egypt managed to resolve this problem, and cemeteries did not turn into horrific ghettos. Most of the City of the Dead is well maintained.
Once here, it’s like finding yourself in the depths of centuries.
For example, in this particular place, it seems like nothing has changed for 500 years
The streets are completely deserted in most cases. There is a completely unusual silence here for Cairo.
It should be noted that the cemetery is really quite well maintained. There is less garbage here than on many of the central streets of Cairo
In the photo below - Yunus Al-Dawadar (1382) - one of the earliest “Circassian” mausoleums, Al-Dawadar was the manager of Sultan Barquq, he died in a battle in Syria and was not buried in his mausoleum.
The city of the dead smoothly flows into the city of the living
The usual Cairo street life is in full swing here.