Amazing Manial Palace Museum 

Do you want to see designs and decorations from several cultures, times, and countries?

Enjoy Islamic decorations from different Islamic times such as Fatmi, Mamluk, Ottoman, and Andalusian, and different designs from Arab and European countries such as Turkey, Morocco, Turkey, and Andalusia (Spain).

See all of that in one place. In Manial Palace Museum. The palace of Prince Mohamed Ali dates back to Mohamed Ali Pasha’s family.

When was the Palace of Prince Muhammad Ali Tawfik established?

Prince Muhammad Ali Tawfik’s palace was built between 1319 and 1348 AH/ 1900 and 1929 AD, and it has an outer wall that surrounds the palace’s entrance. Inside the walls are the reception area, the clock tower, the Sabil, the mosque, the hunting museum, the living quarters, the throne hall, the private museum, and the golden hall, as well as the magnificent garden that surrounds the palace.

The Museum of Prince Muhammad Ali’s Palace in Manial is one of Egypt’s most beautiful and important historical museums. The museum depicts a significant period in modern Egyptian history and is distinguished by its architectural design. Its modern Islamic style incorporates Persian and Mamluk elements. It was also inspired by Syrian, Moroccan and Andalusian motifs, as well as Ottoman style. As a result, the structure combines elements from various Islamic architectural styles.

Who is Prince Mohamed Ali?

He is Prince Mohamed Ali Tawfiq, the second son of Khedive Tawfiq.  He was the crown prince many times during his life so he built this palace to be his rule seat when he would become the Khedive (the ruler).

He was famous for his passion to collect antiquities and was willing to turn his palace to be a museum after his death. 

What is the classification of Prince Mohamed Ali Palace?

Prince Mohamed Ali put the design this palace (the building and decorations) himself, and this is documented on the slab placed at the entrance of the palace. 

• The palace is surrounded by walls that resemble the walls of the fortress. 

– Reception Building:

It is dedicated to welcoming visitors to ceremonies. This building consists of two floors and has different decorations from different styles, but what special in this building are the Levantine hall and the Moroccan hall.

– Mosque and Clock Tower:

This mosque is built in 1933. It is divided into two parts and characterized by unparalleled decorations and design. 

– The Residential Building:

This building consists of two floors.  The first floor was for housing and holding personal meetings.

There are stairs for the second floor containing the bedrooms, but this floor is not allowed to be visited. 

You can see that there is a giant portrait of Mohamed Ali Pasha the founder of the royal family beside the stairs. 

– Throne Hall:

• This room has the ruling throne that prince Mohamed Ali was supposed to rule from it.  It is characterized by the decorations on the ceiling that presents the sun disk with its golden rays.  This hall contains a lot of oil paintings of Pashas and Khedives of Mohamed Ali’s family.

– The Garden:

It is a wonderful garden surrounding the palace buildings and contains unique trees and plants. 

– Hunting Museum:

This building is added in 1963 after Mohamed Ali’s death.  It displays mummified animals, birds, and reptiles that have been hunted by Khedive Tawfiq and Prince Yusef Kamal.

You enter the grounds through the Reception Palace, which has grand halls for receiving guests that are lavishly decorated with tiles, chandeliers, and carved ceilings. In the Residential Palace, visit the Blue Salon, where battered leather sofas sit against walls adorned with glorious blue faience tiles and Orientalist oil paintings. Then, visit the Throne Palace to see the gaudy gold-styling of the Throne Hall and the eye-popping rococo and baroque overload of the Aubusson Room. Even Manial Palace’s mosque (with rococo-inspired ceiling) and clock tower (based on Moroccan Almohad-era minaret design) are a marvellous fusion of styles.

If you want to spend a unique time in a unique place, Explore Egypt Tours recommends this day tour for this magnificent palace that is located in Manial – Al-Rawda Island.

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