A fire broke out in Cairo’s Institute d’Egypte on Saturday as a result of a mis-fired Molotov cocktail launched by a protester in Egypt’s latest round of violence. The Institute d’Egypte was a research center founded by Napoleon Bonaparte during the French invasion in the 18th century, and housed many of Egypt’s oldest and most important documents. The fire raged for 12 hours before subsiding, leaving little more than cinders behind for volunteers to salvage. Firefighters flooded the building with water in attempts to put the fire out, which added to the overall damage. The most devastating loss is … Continue reading Rare Books and Maps Burn