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The
Boom of Old Canons, Cairo
By every dawn and every sunset, the Egyptian citizens hear the boom of an old canon, declaring the time for breaking the fast (Iftar) and the time for stopping eating (Imsaak).
The canon known as "Hajjah Fatimah" is an inheritance from the old day of Muhammad Ali Pasha or, according to some traditions, goes back to the days of an Ottoman governor called Khosh Qadam.
Though the canon itself has been changed and replaced with a new one, the name remained unchanged. Now the canon is placed on the plateau of Moqattam near to the Citadel. Four men are there to take care of the canon and use it to alarm people that it is time for Iftar or Imsaak.
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