The Old Mosque of Shali is the oldest monument in the old city, and the oldest mosque in the world built from artichoke, a unique earthy substance produced naturally through soil drying, where clay merges with the salts resulting from calcification of the soil. This mosque was a symbol of the history and culture of the Siwa community, but unfortunately the devastating floods in the early and late twentieth century and the bombings in World War II destroyed a large part of the mosque, but the Ministry of Antiquities in Egypt is currently working on restoring it.