Du Nil à Alexandrie. Histoires d’Eaux

Thanks to the waters of the Nile which supplied the renowned city founded by the Greeks at the end of the 4th century BC via channels, Alexandria experienced extraordinary economic expansion and scientific and cultural diffusion unparalleled in the Mediterranean.

However, this metropolis was built in an area deprived of fresh water, without natural drinking water sources. How was it possible that this city witnessed such prosperity? How could it become one of the most influential cities in the Mediterranean? Jean-Yves Empereur, renowned French Egyptologist and director of the French Centre of Alexandrine Studies (CEA) has been passionate about this topic for a long time and has carried out research into this issue for many years.

The exhibition, created in cooperation with the Centre of Alexandrine Studies and first presented at the Laténium, was conceived by leading experts in water and its use in ancient Egypt. Several models were presented illustrating how the inhabitants of Alexandria and more generally the Egyptians have exploited the waters of the Nile from Pharaonic times up to the present day. Numerous objects loaned by Swiss museums illustrated the use of water in everyday life by the inhabitants of this famous Greek city founded over 2,000 years ago in Egypt.