Mohammed Ali and the World Conference at the BA
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Alexandria, 14 November 2005— Dr. Ismail Serageldin, Director of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina (BA), will inaugurate the Mohammed Ali and the World conference, 15-17 November 2005. The conference is organized by the BA in collaboration with the French Consulate in Alexandria, the Egyptian Society for Historical Studies and the Higher Council for Culture.
The three-day conference will go into the life of Mohamed Ali Pasha and his ruling of Egypt. Some of the topics that will be explored on the first day are “Napoleon Bonaparte and Mohamed Ali”; “Mohamed Ali and the Greeks”; the “French and the medical services during the reign of Mohamed Ali”; and “popular opinions on Mohamed Ali in Istanbul”.
The second day looks at the accomplishments that Mohamed Ali made in Egypt and other countries. Discussions will include topics about printing during the reign of Mohamed Ali, the Waqf document of his properties, the military during his era, and the development of Alexandri in addition to Mohamed Ali’s relations with Al-Jabarti and Rifa’a Al-Tahtawi.
The last day, speakers will shed light on education, infrastructure, politics, and art and architecture during the reign of Mohamed Ali. The sessions explore topics about the Egyptian school in Paris, the impact of the French culture on education in Egypt, institutions and councils responsible for buildings, religious buildings in Alexandria, the politics of Mohamed Ali and his policy towards Jerusalem, bartering and coins in Sudan, and art and architecture.
Participants from Egypt and France will attend the conference, amongst which are Dr. Gaber Asfour, Egyptian writer and former president of the Supreme Council of Culture; Professor Raouf Abbas, professor of History, Faculty of Arts, Cairo University; Dr. Mohamed Awad, Director of AlexMed Center at the BA; the historian, Dr. Mostafa El-Abbadi; as well as Dr. Yehia Halim Zaki, Head of the BA Academic and Cultural Sector.
An exhibition will be accompanying the conference displaying photos of people, documents, Bulaq Press and Egypt during the reign of Mohamed Ali.