Al-Gawhara Palace Museum

About Al-Gawhara Palace Museum

Building in Africa

Al-Gawhara Palace, also known as the Bijou Palace, is one of the palaces inside the Citadel of Salah al-Din, just south of the Mosque of Muhammad Ali. Muhammad Ali Pasha commissioned it in 1814 as a residence for his wife and a setting for audiences and receptions, and he wanted it to be as splendid as possible: artisans were brought from Greece, Turkey, Bulgaria and Albania, and the French architect Pascal Coste added quarters for servants and officials. The palace was built as a two-storey pavilion in the style of a Turkish kushk, with Western-style windows, and from one side it looked out towards the pyramids and the Nile. A fire in 1822 burned for two days and destroyed its wooden structure; Muhammad Ali rebuilt and expanded it, adding a large marble fountain, columned stone terraces, flower beds and orange groves. Gunpowder explosions damaged it again in 1824, after which large slabs of Italian marble were imported for a new vestibule, staircase and corridors. Its best-known rooms are the reception hall and the Clock Hall, decorated with fine Ottoman woodwork, stucco panels and painted ornament. The palace later became a museum of Islamic heritage displaying objects from the era of the Muhammad Ali dynasty. According to Wikivoyage it was closed for renovation as of 2026, so check its status before you visit.

Where:

Cairo, Egypt