THE jewellery items of the ex-royal family went on public display again in Alexandria on Saturday for the first time after five years. Egyptians and foreigners will be able to view one of the priceless jewellery collections in the world after Mrs. Suzanne Mubarak inaugurated the Royal Jewellry Museum, which has been fully renovated by the Ministry of Culture in this northern city. In 2005, the Ministry launched comprehensive renovation million for the museum, which is housed in the 19th century Princess Fatima Palace in the plush area of Zezinia, Minister Farouq Hosni said after the inauguration ceremony. The museum is ready now to receive visitors, who will see a collection of rare gold watches and jewellery items owned by Khedive Ismail, ex-king Farouq and his wives and sisters as well as members of the Mohamed Ali family, which ruled Egypt from 1805 to 1952. Later in the day, Mrs. Mubarak presided over a meeting of the board of trustees of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina and attended a special ceremony during which the library received more than 500,000 books from France as a gift. Mrs. Mubarak, who has thanked the French National Library for this valuable contribution, said that the Bibliotheca Alexandrina had become a beacon of cultural and civilisational ‘radiation' and reflects ideas that get all world peoples together.
