ALEXANDRIA, Egypt, Sept. 8 (Xinhua) — The Alexandria National Museum in Egypt is marking its 20th anniversary with a variety of cultural activities, including a photography gallery, cultural and artistic symposiums, workshops, and lectures.
The museum, which is located in the heart of the Mediterranean city of Alexandria, houses a collection of nearly 1,400 artifacts from the Pharaonic, Ptolemaic, Roman, Byzantine, and Islamic periods.
The photography gallery, which is one of the main events of the anniversary celebrations, features photos of Alexandria landmarks taken by professional photographers from the city’s Adasa Photography Club.
One of the exhibited photos shows Alexandria’s historic Fouad Street mixed with an image of a statue of Alexander the Great, the Macedonian king who ruled ancient Egypt and after whom Alexandria was named.
“I believe that Fouad Street is the best reflection of cosmopolitan Alexandria, for it was built in the Ptolemaic times and it still exists with its old buildings and architecture that are considered a living museum,” said Amina Hassan, an architect and photographer from Alexandria.
The museum is housed in a former palace that was built in the late 1920s in the Italian style. It was bought by the U.S. consulate in 1954 and then purchased by Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities in 1996. The museum was opened to the public in 2003.
The museum’s director, Ashraf El-Kady, said that the anniversary activities are aimed at highlighting the museum’s role in promoting the cultural heritage of Alexandria.
“We are celebrating the 20th anniversary of the museum by organizing these activities under the slogan of ‘Cosmopolitan Alexandria,'” the director said.
The other activities that are being held as part of the anniversary celebrations include a symposium on the history of Alexandria, a workshop on traditional Alexandrian crafts, and a lecture on the city’s role in the development of science and medicine, etc.
The activities will continue for two months.
