| Bayt al-Sinnari | |
|---|---|
بيت السنارى | |
 Bayt al-Sinnari today, courtyard façade | |
 | |
| General information | |
| Type | Mansion |
| Architectural style | Ottoman style |
| Address | Monge passage |
| Town or city | Cairo |
| Country | Egypt |
| Completed | 1794 |
| Renovated | 2002 |
| Technical details | |
| Material | Stone and wood |
| Website | |
| Official website | |
Bayt al-Sinnari, built in 1794, is one of the remaining bourgeois mansions in medievalCairo,Egypt. Managed by theBibliotheca Alexandrina, the house has become an important cultural center after its restoration.
Located in the neighborhood of theAl-Sayeda Zainab Mosque, Bayt Al Sinnari is reached through the dead-endMonge passage, named afterGaspard Monge,[1] who accompanied theFrench campaign to Egypt.
Bayt Al Sinnari was built in 1794 byIbrahim Katkhuda al-Sinnari, whose surname refers to the city ofSennar. In 1798, the house was confiscated by the French to house the members of theCommittee of Sciences and Arts, that accompaniedNapoleon Bonaparte to Egypt. Its mission was to conduct a systematic study of Egypt, published in the famousDescription de l'Égypte.[2] Gaspard Monge, eponym of the passage, in which the house is located, was president, Napoleon Bonaparte deputy, andJoseph Fourier secretary. However, with the departure of the French expedition in 1801, the institute closed down.
From 1917 to 1933 Bayt Al Sinnari housed a private Napoleon museum. In the aftermath of the1992 Cairo earthquake the house underwent an elaborate restoration process.[3] France, Egypt and the UNESCO cooperated in the salvage of the house.[4] Today, the house is an important cultural center.
Bayt al-Sinnari is composed of two distinct sections: the ground-floor with all the reception areas on the western side. On the second floor the private apartments with amashrabiyya of magnificent woodwork and a smallhammam.[5] The house has an interior court centered by a marble fountain.[6]
