Bayt Al-Suhaymi is the most elegant remaining residence in Islamic Cairo.
Beit as-Suhaymi is really two houses, one built in 1648 and the other in 1796, joined to create a structure of almost palatial proportions. Its traditional design means the entry is gained through a right-angled passage (which ensured complete privacy) into a central courtyard. Originally this would have had been filled with copious greenery ranged around a central fountain.
The rooms on the ground floor comprise the salamlek, an area reserved for men; those on the upper floor form part of the haramlek, for women and the family. Here, the effect of the stained glass and wonderful painted ceilings combined with the dappled light from the mashrabiyya-covered windows is entrancing.
These large wooden screens overlook the courtyard, filtering sunlight and cool breezes into the rooms, as well as allowing the women to observe the goings-on below without themselves being seen.
Some of the newly restored decoration is sumptuous, particularly in the ground floor qaa or reception room, which features intricate paintwork and a polychrome marble fountain set into the floor.
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