Bibliotheca Alexandrina

Country: Egypt Collection Type: Library Public/ National Archive Website: http://www.bibalex.org/Home/Default_EN.aspx Photograph collections at Bibliotheca Alexandrina (BibAlex) are spread among a number of independent departments, the main ones being the Memory of Modern Egypt section and the Restoration Laboratory. BibAlex/ Memory of Modern Egypt’s collection is primarily digital repository documenting the last 200 years of Egypt’s modern history through tens of thousands of varying items, categorized into 14 different material types, including documents, pictures, audios, videos, maps, articles, stamps, and coins. The Memory of Modern Egypt unit also holds 100 photographic albums dating from the 1920s-1970s, under the section “Special Projects”, that were donated in 2011 by the Ministry of Tourism, the Ministry of media, and the Council on Archeological Affairs in Egypt. The photographic collection amounts to over 60,000 photographs, many of them reprints or digital copies, depicting famous figures and important events in Egyptian history, and dating from the 1900s-1960s. More specifically, it documents the Royal Family, such as King Farouk’s official visits, as well as Sadat. The collection consists of film-based negatives, positives, B&W and colour images, and digital files. It is still expanding and accessible to researchers. A growing number of images, mainly from the photographic albums, are scanned and available online in the frame of Bibalex’s project “History of Modern Egypt”. The Restoration Laboratory undertakes the restoration of manuscripts, rare books and maps. The unit is also expanding its efforts to photograph and microfilm preservation and restoration, having more recently acquired around 500 items including photogravures, photographs and postcards, ranging from the 1920s-1950s. Contact Details: Ahmed Moussa, Head of Conservation Laboratory [email protected] Heba El Menshawy, Head of Restoration Training Unit, Restoration Section, Manuscript Museum [email protected] Mahmoud Ezzat, Head of Cultural Relations and Information, Memory of Modern Egypt [email protected] Sherine Nabil, Restoration Specialist for Rare Books & Manuscripts [email protected]