V&A London - Cairo Streets

[HEPZIBAH]

I've not been to the V&A for some while, nor have I checked out their website to see what special exhibitions they have on, or coming up. I was looking just now for more information about a Japanese Kimono exhibition I knew was going to take place, when I noticed that there is an Egypt related one on too.
It looks like I need to put a V&A day in my diary for the near future.

Cairo Streets is on until 25th April 2020
This display brings visitors face to face with everyday life in Cairo in the 19th century, through historic photographs of local people going about their daily lives. It also features examples of turned wood window screens, called mashrabiyyah, which gave a characteristic visual flavour to Cairo’s streets.

For more information see:
https://www.vam.ac.uk/event/APKKlqPJ/cairo-streets

[A-Four]

I was at the V&A today to attend the new re-vamped Religion and Faith permanent exhibition, so called into to the Islamic Section where the above stated temporary exhibition is on show. Unfortunately there is little to see, that is unless you know Cairo really well. One photograph shows an old Ottoman house near Khan el Kalilili, but unfortunately this along with so many in that area were destroyed in the 1992 earthquake, though this is not mentioned

I suppose I half expected to see a few photographs of such fine examples of Ottoman architecture elsewhere in the Nile Valley, and more importantly in Luxor, where up on the left hand side of Station Street towards the station were once up until fifteen years ago such exquisite examples of the Ottoman era could be found, unfortunately like other fine examples of Luxor's past two hundred years has long gone,..........in the name of progress.

While I visited the main reason for attending there today, I came across a remarkable piece of parchment dating from the 4th Century (though I suspect earlier) it depicts how the Ankh sign became the symbol of the Christian cross of the early Coptic Church, while at the same time the symbol attributed to the Western Church at Rome was 'the fish'.

I have always found it rather funny how the Christian Faith eventually developed.