From the tramway-terminus in the poor little town of Old Cairo (Masr el-Kadîmeh, p. [443]) we follow the street to the Gîzeh steam-ferry (p. [461]), turn to the left past the police-station, and in the Shâria es-Saghîr to the left again. This brings us to St. Georges, a station on the Helwân railway (see p. [439]). On the E. side of the railway is the site of—
Babylon (p. [443]), a Roman castle, of which the only remains are parts of the outer walls and a Gateway, on the S.W. side, with two projecting towers.
Within the precincts of the ancient fortress now lies Kasr esh-Shama, a village inhabited chiefly by Copts, with a synagogue, five mediæval Coptic churches (El-Moallaka, Abu Sergeh, etc.), and the Greek Convent of St. George (W. side). One of the entrances is between the convent and an old tower.
From the N.E. angle of the fortress, skirting the rubbish-mounds of Fostât (p. [443]), we reach (10 min.) the Amru Mosque, surrounded by cemeteries and potteries, where the porous kullehs are made, and conspicuous by its red and white striped façade.
The Gâmia Amr ibn el-Âsî, commonly called the Amru Mosque by Europeans, is named after the general of caliph Omar (p. [443]). It was originally a small edifice built in 642, probably of crude bricks, but it was repeatedly rebuilt or restored, as in 698 and 827, and notably by Saladin in 1172, after the invasion of king Amalarich of Jerusalem and the burning of Fostât in 1168. Other restorations took place in the three following centuries. The two minarets are modern.
The Interior, a slightly irregular rectangle, 132 by 108 yds., though sadly ruinous, is of impressive dimensions. The six-aisled sanctuary contains 21 series of arcades (with pointed arches) running towards the kibla (prayer niche facing Mecca). The three outer rows of columns on each side are continued by those of the N.E. and the S.W. lîwâns, of which, however, the bases alone remain. The lîwân on the side of the quadrangle next the entrance has a single arcade only. The Roman and Byzantine columns from Memphis (p. [464]), once 366 in number it is said, have been utilized without regard to symmetry or congruity.
In the centre of the court, now planted with trees, is a hanefîyeh (18th cent.). In the N. angle of the sanctuary is an uninteresting monument over the supposed tomb of Sheikh Abdallah, son of Amr, erected by Abbâs I. (1849–54). On the almost intact S.W. wall of the sanctuary are curious wood-carvings, still purely Byzantine (9th cent.).
4. The Pyramids of Gîzeh should be visited on a calm and clear day, as the sand-drift is most trying in windy weather. (Umbrella or dark-coloured spectacles advisable to protect the eyes from the glare.) The excursion takes at least 4 hrs., or, including Sakkâra, a whole day. Those who are pressed for time visit the Great Pyramid, the Sphinx, and the Granite Temple only. (Tramway No. 1, see p. [440]; carr. in 1–1¼ hr., p. [441].)
The tramway diverges at Old Cairo (p. [460]), about 770 yds. to the S. of the Water Tower, to the right from line No. 4, and crosses a branch of the Nile to the island of Rôda (Gezîret Rôda), at the S. end of which is the old Nilometer (Arabic Mikyâs), dating from the time of the Omaiyade caliph Suleimân (716), but often restored since.
We next cross the main channel of the Nile by the Pont Abbâs II. (opened 10–11 a.m. and 3.30 to 4.30 p.m. for the passage of vessels) to the village of Gîzeh (Tues. market), at the N. end of which, about 550 yds. below the steam-ferry (p. [460]), our tramway joins the branch from Gezîreh (p. [457]).