By Enas El Masry For as long as man has known how to build civilizations, he has erected walls across the world, with the oldest standing proof — the wall of the ancient Sumerian city Uruk — dating back to as far as the 21st century BC. Although those man-made structures have since then served various purposes, one common feature remains the same; a wall will always have two sides whereby a form of authority dictates who is privileged enough to cross to the other side. From defensive walls with territorial protective features to gated communities and their exclusive luxuries, it is fair to say that walls of all shapes and sizes are a worldwide phenomenon — one that my hometown Cairo has witnessed a clear evolution of over the course of time. Early Years of Cairo: The Rise and Fall of a City Wall For almost a thousand years, Egypt’s coastal city of Alexandria was the country’s center of administration, and it wasn’t until the Arab conquest of Egypt in 641 AD led by Amr Ibn al-’As that the administration moved to the vicinity of what is now known as Cairo. After decades of shifting sovereignty, the…
From Gated City to Gated Communities: Evolution of Cairo’s Walls
November 12, 2017
