Behind a tree and a glass gate with advertisements dating back to the 1940s, a sign holding the name of Stephenson’s Pharmacy appears in a corner in Abdel Khaleq Tharwat street downtown Cairo.
Inside, the high shelves are lined with empty chemical formula bottles having labels on them with distinguished drawings and names from old times.
The current owner of the pharmacy, Zuhair Samaan, 58, sits in the right-hand corner in an old wooden chair, telling the story of how his father bought the place.
In 1950, Ihsan Samaan, his father, bought the pharmacy from pharmacist George Stephenson who established the place in 1889.
“We have not changed a thing about this unique pharmacy,” Zuhair, told The Egyptian Mail.
“Our family has always loved anything old. My father fell in love with the place when he saw it back in the 1950s and this love was passed on to me and my children,” he added.
Advertisements for old products are still present on the glass of the store and the formulas are the most important characteristic of the pharmacy.
The pharmacy’s lab was like a factory in the 1950s because it contained old formulas of various types of drugs — gastrointestinal, psychological, urinary and many more.
In a large notebook, all names of the patients who visited the pharmacy are written with their prescriptions, the quantities of each medicine and the name of the doctor who prescribed the medicine.
“The job of the pharmacist was one of great importance. We made medicine here and we built strong relationships with patients,” Samaan said.
“Now pharmacists only sell the medicine at pharmacies while the drugs are manufactured in factories,” he added.
Just like home
Samaan has been in the pharmacy since he was six. “When I was young, the atmosphere was very different from now. I watched pharmacists preparing the medicine themselves.”
It is not only the old nature of the place that makes him feel its uniqueness, but for him it is like home as well.
“Our house was a few kilometres from the pharmacy and I used to come here when I was young and play with the medicine.
“I prepared some medicine myself when I was young. Although it was not used, I felt happy and proud to try,” he said.
Kids can visit
Samaan hopes that this place one day will welcome school pupils to do laboratory tests to understand science lessons.
“We also have a 250-metre basement where pharmacists used to work,” he said.
“This basement can be turned into a large laboratory to which schools and universities can organize visits.
“At the same time, they see how pharmacies worked in the past and get to know the differences between today’s and yesterday’s drug manufacturing,” the veteran pharmacist said.
“This will give them fun and knowledge at the same time.”
