Tahrir Square Development Project
Tahrir
Square Development Project
Tahrir Square (Midan Al-Tahrir) is
one of Cairo's largest squares located at the heart of the city. In the past,
Tahrir Square was known as Khedive Ismail Square. Then after the July 23rd
revolution in 1952, the square's name changed to Tahrir or liberation after the
end of monarchy and the establishment of an independent republic.
Currently, the Egyptian Government is
working on a major project to turn the 150-year-old square into an open-air
museum to fit its history as one of Cairo's oldest squares and to be a symbol
of modern Egypt.
After the revolutions of January 25
and June 30, the government started cultivating palm and olive trees in the
area surrounding the square, in addition to removing signs that undermine the
beauty of the buildings.
The development project aims at
preparing the square to receive the Egyptian obelisk. This is in addition to
painting the façades of shops and buildings to match the artistic value of the
historical area. The square will also include a new fountain, water works and
lights.
Moreover, four statues from the first
courtyard at the Karnak Temples, located behind the first edifice of the temple
in Luxor city, will be transferred to Cairo to be eventually placed in Tahrir
Square
The rams that are currently being
transferred do not belong to the Rams Road (Avenue of the Sphinxes) that
connects the Luxor Temple to Karnak or the rams of the Karnak temple façade.
They come from the rams of the first courtyard located behind the temple and
built of mud bricks.
Four very special rams were chosen to
be moved from Karnak Temple to Cairo to decorate Tahrir Square. Each of the
four statues weighs approximately 5.5 tons. The rams will be placed around the
obelisk that has been moved from San el-Hagar in Sharkia Governorate. These
rams have the body of a lion and a ram's head. It is a sacred symbol of the
famous god Amun Ra. Two of the statues have already been transferred from the
courtyard to the temple. The two remaining statues are being transferred to the
same site, in preparation for taking new preservation measures before the
transfer to the capital.
The square’s redesign will feature
date, olive, fig, and carob trees, all characteristic of the Pharaonic era,
along with the famous ancient Egyptian papyrus. A new lighting system has been
installed in the square and at the Egyptian Museum to highlight their
distinguished architecture at night.
