All You Need to Know about Egyptian Railway Museum

The Egyptian Railway Museum is a remarkable representation of Egypt's long-standing transportation institution. It has a unique architectural style that sets it apart as the first of its kind in Africa and the Middle East, and the second globally after the British railway system.

The museum was built in 1854 during the reign of Khedive Saeed and designed by the renowned British architect Edwin Patsy, becoming one of the most prominent landmarks of Khedival Cairo to this day.

The Egyptian Railway Museum was inaugurated on October 26, 1932, during the reign of King Fouad I, and opened its doors to visitors on January 15, 1933.

It was built to celebrate the International Railway Conference held in Cairo that year and is considered one of the most prominent scientific institutes that promote research and studies on the history of means of transportation from the past to the present.

It houses a rare collection of articles displaying the history of railways in Egypt from the early beginning of train operation to the present time. Additionally, it contains more than 700 train models, along with a unique collection of statistical documents and maps that trace the development stages of transportation and railways.

In addition to its extensive library of more than 500 volumes of official records, books, and documents, the museum provides visitors with information about the kinetics used by ancient Egyptians in building and construction. Technical sections include maps, bridges, rare documents, and models of both old and modern signal devices that show the evolution of trains since they were manually piloted.

The museum also has a special section for souvenirs and another one for stations and bridges that contains old and modern models of stations, as well as various kinds of railway bridges that illustrate the accuracy of construction. It displays the ticket printing machine and train schedules.

The museum features rare collections of exhibits and genuine articles that document the history of transportation in Egypt, as well as the comprehensive modernization and urbanization shifts that have taken place throughout the history of the Egyptian railways. It contains valuable models, replicas, and statistical maps that display the evolution of means of transportation and railways, as well as important research papers and technical data. The museum also contains different models of primitive trains that run on steam, charcoal, and diesel.