Masr Station
“Masr Station” is the main railway station in Cairo. It is known formally as “Ramsis Station” The name is derived from the Ancient Egyptian pharaoh Ramses II whose statue was erected by Nasser on the square in 1955 and relocated to Memphis in Giza on 25 August 2006.
The Egyptian railway system is considered to be the first railway system built in Africa and the Middle East, and the second railway system to be built worldwide after the British railways.
Construction of the railways began during the 1850’s, stretching from north to south and crossing most Egyptian cities.
The 12th of July 1851 marks the beginning of the construction of the first railway line. It was opened right after the celebrations of opening the Suez Canal on 1854 (during the reign of the khedive Isma’il Pasha).
It is also worth mentioning that the supervisor of the project in that time was the English engineer Robert Stephenson. He is the son of George Stephenson, the engineer who built the first public railway line in the world to use steam locomotives.
“Masr Station” is the main railway station in Cairo. It is known formally as “Ramsis Station” The name is derived from the Ancient Egyptian pharaoh Ramses II whose statue was erected by Nasser on the square in 1955 and relocated to Memphis in Giza on 25 August 2006.
The original railway station was built as the terminal of the first railway line from Alexandria to Cairo in 1856. The current building was constructed in 1892 and upgraded in 1955.
This photography series represents thousands of Egyptians arriving every day from all over Egypt to the capital, leaving behind their homes and families in search for a better life in the city.
