The painted ceilings of Qaitbay's madrassa is one of the Egypt's great monuments and among the
oldest in the Islamic civilization, dating back to the Garkssy Mamluk period (879 AH/1474 AD). It
represents an exceptional example of the quality and extent of medieval woodworking in Egypt. The
wooden ceiling of Qaitbay's madrassa had been affected by an extensive deterioration due to many
factors, such as loss of colors, cracking, soot deposition, and losses of materials/units, insects' holes,
and fungi growth, in addition to formation of corrosion products of its metallic parts. The main aim of
the present paper is the characterization and investigation of the different components employed in
the decorated ceiling of Madrassa of Qaytbay as wood units, painting ground, pigments, gilding,
binding media and products of deterioration. Scanning Electron Microscope coupled with EDX
analysis, Optical Light Microscope, X-ray diffraction and Infrared analysis were applied for
investigation. Biological study was done. We present the results of identifying the wood species and
insects of the ceiling of the Qaitbay's madrassa, which the aim of the providing information not only
of the benefit to restoration but also to the historical- artistic background of the artifacts. Also this
paper includes the present of its state of conservation for preservation the study will include the
documentation, investigation, and analysis before the intervention process. The treatment steps were
documented before, during and after the restoration. Preservation of the wood ceiling was carried out
including the following: cleaning (mechanical and chemical cleaning), treatment of fungi infection,
consolidation and restoration.