The Antiquities Ministry has announced that an Egyptian mission will be conducting excavations inside Bir Youssef (Youssef’s Well) in Cairo’s 12th century Citadel of Salah al-Din, also known as Saladin. Mustafa Waziri, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities said the excavations should reveal any possible mysteries about the palce. He said the well would be restored and opened for the public for the first time.
The well was dug in the citadel under the order of Saladin (1137 – 1193), the first sultan and Egypt and Syria, to store water that would be needed during possible military sieges. It is located at the southern side of Qalawoun Mosque inside the citadel, and can be reached through a passage that leads to a domed hall with a rock-hewn spiral staircase. The well was built over three levels, and holds two water wheels.
Watani International
3 December 2017