Police Museum

Cairo

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The quirky but flyblown Police Museum is located within the Citadel's old prison building. Inside are displays of famous political assassinations, complete in some cases with the murder weapon. It's worth a quick peek, though the main interest here is the neighbouring grand terrace with superb views all the way to the Pyramids at Giza.

Immediately below, in the Citadel’s Lower Enclosure (closed to the public), is the narrow passageway leading from Bab Al Azab, which was the site of the infamous massacre of the Mamluks.

Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

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Nearby Cairo attractions

1. Site of the Massacre of the Mamluks

0.04 MILES

From the terrace near the Police Museum you can look down into the narrow entrance where 470 Mamluk beys (governors) were killed by Mohammed Ali's troops…

2. Citadel

0.11 MILES

Sprawling over a limestone spur on the city's eastern edge, the Citadel, started by Saladin in 1176 as a fortification against the Crusaders, was home to…

3. Mosque of An Nasir Mohammed

0.12 MILES

Dwarfed by Mohammed Ali’s mosque, this beautiful 1318 mosque is the only Mamluk work that Mohammed Ali didn’t demolish – instead, he used it as a stable…

4. Mosque of Mohammed Ali

0.14 MILES

Modelled on classic Ottoman lines, with domes upon domes upon domes, this alabaster-white mosque within the Citadel took 18 years to build (1830–48) and…

5. National Military Museum

0.15 MILES

Mohammed Ali’s one-time Harem Palace is now the lavish National Military Museum. It was closed for restoration on our last visit though unlike the other…

6. Gawhara Palace & Museum

0.19 MILES

South of Mohammed Ali’s mosque is the Gawhara Palace & Museum, a lame attempt to evoke 19th-century court life, but it’s most often closed. There are…

7. Carriage Museum

0.23 MILES

Houses a collection of carriages used by Egypt's royalty from Khedive Ismail to King Farouk. Like many of the Citadel museums though, it's often shut.

8. Mosque of Ar Rifai

0.24 MILES

Opposite the grand Mosque-Madrassa of Sultan Hassan, the Mosque of Ar Rifai is constructed on a similarly imposing scale, begun in 1869 and not finished…

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