Downtown DistrictAlexandria Governorate
العربية
Parks & gardensShallalat Gardens

Parks & gardensThe Islamic centuries

Shallalat Gardens

Green spaces, lakes and walking paths surround a surviving tower of Alexandria’s walls, bringing the city’s past into a garden setting.

The Islamic centuries
On the line of the 9th-century wall, under Ibn Tulun
Opening hours
Daily 9:00 until sunset
Tickets
Free entry
Administrative section
Bab Sharqi
Open in maps(External link)Its place in time

Image credits

What sets it apart

A medieval stone wall tower among mature trees, beside an artificial lake.

5 documented memories

Its place in time

The Islamic centuries · 7th century – 1805

The city contracted within a smaller wall built under Ibn Tulun, its gates later reinforced by the Fatimids and a forward wall added by the Ayyubids; one of its towers still stands inside Shallalat Gardens.

  1. Fouad Street — the Canopic Way331 BC — the Canopic Way
  2. Roman Theatre at Kom El DikkaRoman era, most likely 4th century — uncovered in 1964
  3. Shallalat GardensOn the line of the 9th-century wall, under Ibn Tulun
  4. Remains of the Alexandria City Wall9th century — under Ibn Tulun
  5. Misr Railway StationThe railway from the 1850s — present building 1927
  6. Mahatet El Raml & Saad Zaghloul SquareFrom 1863 — the Ramleh line’s terminus
  7. The Alexandria Tram1863
  8. Eliyahu Hanavi SynagogueRebuilt in the 19th century — foundation plaque dated 1881
  9. Graeco-Roman Museum1892
  10. The Statue of Nubar PashaUnveiled in 1904, according to a museum record
  11. The Windsor Palace Hotel1906, by the hotel’s own account
  12. Cavafy MuseumCavafy’s home from 1907 to 1933
  13. The Lycée Al-Horreya1909–1910 — the Shatby building from 1913
  14. Sayed Darwish Theatre — Alexandria Opera House1921 — the Mohamed Ali Theatre
  15. Alexandria National MuseumLate-1920s palace — museum since 2003
  16. The Cecil Hotel1929
  17. Museum of Fine Arts1954
  18. Bibliotheca Alexandrina2002
  • Ancient Alexandria331 BC – 7th century AD
  • The Islamic centuries7th century – 1805
  • The Mohamed Ali revival1805 – 1860
  • The cosmopolitan city1860 – 1950
  • Contemporary Alexandria1950 – today
The semicircular stone tiers of the Roman amphitheatre at Kom El Dikka
Before it in timeRoman Theatre at Kom El DikkaRoman era, most likely 4th century — uncovered in 1964
A standing section of Alexandria’s stone city wall, its coursing visible
After it in timeRemains of the Alexandria City Wall9th century — under Ibn Tulun

Highlights

  • 1The surviving wall tower
  • 2The artificial lake
  • 3Mature trees
  • 4Tabiyet Nahassin, the remnant of an 1845 bastion

The story

  1. The gardens follow the line of the old city wall, and a tower of the medieval wall — built under Ibn Tulun in the ninth century, with a forward wall later added by the Ayyubids — still stands inside, making this both an archaeological site and a public park.

  2. E. M. Forster described them in 1922 as the Municipal Gardens, laid out by M. Monfront: the fortifications had turned into picturesque hillocks, and the water of an old canal was kept in an artificial pool. Today the garden has an artificial lake and paths shaded by mature trees.

  3. A walk combines the garden landscape with surviving fortifications. The stonework and tower make the park a setting for exploring the walls’ history as well as spending time outdoors.

  • A statue in the Shallalat Gardens at night, beside a granite block from the city’s antiquities
    A statue in the Shallalat Gardens at night, beside a granite block from the city’s antiquities

Memories of the place

Every memory is taken from a published, documented source.

  1. 9th century AD

    The gardens lie on the line of the wall built under Ibn Tulun; their tall free-standing tower is one of the last two towers of the medieval wall.

  2. Early 20th century

    When the Municipality demolished the adjacent curtain walls, it chose to keep the tower as a feature of the gardens.

  3. 2007

    The Hellenic Research Institute of the Alexandrian Civilization began its project in the gardens with a geophysical survey; the excavator chose the site because ancient sources, especially Strabo, place it in the royal quarter.

  4. 4 May 2009

    A marble statue of a standing nude young man was found 8 m below ground; its excavator connects its features and style with portraits of Alexander the Great.

  5. 24 April 2026

    The exhibition ‘Twenty Years of Excavations in Shallalat Gardens’ opened at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina Antiquities Museum.

Around it

© OpenStreetMap

Nearby landmarks

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