Abstract

Documents relating to Italian university professors teaching at the Faculty of Law of the University of Cairo between 1927 and 1940, are held in Rome at the Archivio storico diplomatico of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. They provide an insight into a lively academic life on the banks of the River Nile, a life closely bound to university dynamics as well as French, British, and Italian cultural policy. This particular angle – not only from a geographical point of view – reflects, in perspective, the image of a scientific community dedicated to legal and economic studies, committed to defending national interests and visions, but also open to other views and international competition. The community of foreign teachers can provide a source for many lines of research: individual careers, contingent political events and international issues, all of which intertwine. In particular, this paper focuses on certain material relating to competitions for chairs in international, commercial, and Roman law organized by the Faculty of Law of the University of Cairo in 1929 and 1930.