Northern Necropolis of Old Cairo
In the nothern part of Old Cairo lies one of the most atmospheric and little-known corners of the city - the Northern Necropolis, or the local cemetery of the Coptic Quarter. This place is not featured in standard guidebooks, yet it represents an incredibly picturesque and historically multi-layered "city of the dead," adjacent to the ancient Roman wall of the Babylon Fortress.
You can reach it by walking past the walls and towers of the Greek Orthodox Monastery of Saint George (Deir Mar Girgis), creating a striking contrast: beyond the walls where tourist life buzzes, a quiet, sun-drenched world of memory opens up.
History of the Southern Necropolis` Emergence
The necropolis`s establishment in this location is deeply logical and linked to ancient topography:
Historical Boundary: This territory was historically located outside the southern wall of the Roman Babylon Fortress. In antiquity and the early Middle Ages, it was common practice to bury the dead outside fortifications—a standard "extramural" location for cemeteries.
Christian Tradition: For the Coptic community, this place became a natural extension of the sacred space of the Coptic Quarter. Burying the dead near holy sites (monasteries and churches) was considered a blessing.
Who is Buried Here: The Elite of Christian Cairo
High Clergy: Besides ordinary priests, the tombs of Coptic archbishops, metropolitans, patriarchal vicars, and abbots of the Monastery of St. George are located here. Their graves are the most elaborate and richly adorned.
Merchants and Financiers (19th – early 20th centuries): During Cairo`s economic boom, especially under Khedive Ismail (1863–1879), Coptic and Greek traders, bankers, and company owners formed the country`s economic elite. They could afford expensive sculptures, imported marble, and the construction of family chapels (mausoleums), which served as symbols of status in the afterlife as well.
High Officials and Intelligentsia: During the Ottoman and colonial periods, many Christians held key positions in the state apparatus, judicial system, medicine, and education. Their tombstones are often in European styles (Neoclassicism, Art Nouveau), with busts, angels, and Latin epitaphs, emphasizing their modernity and cosmopolitanism.
Noble Families (e.g., Al-Shama, Al-Zayat, etc.): Some vaults belong to well-known Coptic clans whose names appear throughout Egyptian history for centuries. These family mausoleums ("hawsh" or "turaba") with wrought-iron doors, domes, and interior chambers are genuine small architectural monuments.
Evolution of Styles: From Modesty to Opulence
• Early Burials (18th – early 19th centuries): More modest, with Coptic crosses and Arabic inscriptions.
• Period of Prosperity (late 19th – first half of the 20th centuries): It was during this period that magnificent sculptures (angels, mourners, busts of the deceased), architectural chapels in Neo-Gothic or Neoclassical style, wrought-iron fences, and colored marble appeared. This was an era of conspicuous consumption and cultural dialogue with Europe.
• Modern Burials: More restrained, often returning to the traditional stele form.
The Northern Necropolis in Old Cairo is not an ordinary cemetery. Here, one can see the history of Egypt`s affluent Christian elite. The magnificent marble sculptures, entire chapels, and elegant tombstones show that it was not ordinary townspeople buried here, but wealthy merchants, high officials, archbishops, and representatives of famous families from the late 19th to the mid-20th century.
