Rashid National Museum

The Rashid National Museum tells the story of Rashid (Rosetta), the Nile-mouth port where the Rosetta Stone was found in 1799. It occupies the house of Arab Killy, an 18th-century Ottoman-era mansion that once belonged to a governor of the city. Its brick facade and timber screens are typical of the town’s merchant houses, and the building itself is as much a reason to visit as the displays inside.

History

President Gamal Abdel Nasser opened the house as a military museum in September 1959, recalling the town’s resistance to the British Fraser expedition of 1807. It was expanded and reopened in 1986 with a wider focus on Rashid’s history, and the displays now cover the Islamic and Ottoman town, its trade and daily life as well as its battles.

From the Ottoman period Rashid was one of Egypt’s busiest ports, trading rice and goods along the Nile and across the Mediterranean, and its merchants built the tall brick houses that still line its streets. Its fortunes declined after the Mahmudiya Canal linked Alexandria to the Nile in the early 19th century and trade moved west.

What to look for

• A replica of the Rosetta Stone by the entrance; the original, found by French soldiers at nearby Fort Julien, has been in the British Museum since 1802.
• Weapons and battle scenes from the defeat of the Fraser campaign, an event the city still celebrates.
• Manuscripts and documents, including papers linked to the French general Menou, who converted to Islam and married a woman from Rashid.
• Coins, pottery, marble vessels and gravestones from Islamic Rashid.
• Reconstructed rooms showing how a wealthy Rashid family lived, with mashrabiya windows and painted ceilings.

Visiting tips

The museum is small, and an hour is enough. Combine it with a walk through the old town’s restored Ottoman houses and mosques, a visit to the Citadel of Qaitbay at Rashid where the stone was found, and the waterfront on the Nile. Rashid is an easy day trip from Alexandria, about an hour away by road. The museum has been reported as closed for renovation in recent years, so check that it is open before you travel.

Last checked October 2026. Sources: en.wikipedia.org, babmsr.com, english.ahram.org.eg, en.amwalalghad.com.