these disturbances. Though the economy of Egypt flourished during the third reign of an-Nasir, there were financial problems and a rise in prices caused by the circulation of underweight and alloyed coins. An-Nasir minted a few thousands new coins to replace the spurious coins. Under an-Nasir the position of Egypt as a political power grew. Foreign delegations and kings' envoys with gifts visited Cairo frequently seeking the help and the friendship of an-Nasir. Among these visits were envoys from Pope John XXII and King Philip VI of France. The Papal envoys arrived in Cairo in June 1327 with a gift and a letter from the Pope who appealed to an-Nasir to treat the Christians well and to protect the Christian holy places and to stop his attacks against Sis. Those were the first envoys of a Pope to go to Egypt since the time of Sultan as-Salih Ayyub. In February 1330, King Philip VI sent a delegation of 120 men who appealed to an-Nasir to grant Philip the city of Jerusalem and surrounding areas along the Levantine Coast. An-Nasir reacted by insulting the French envoys and their King and ordered them to leave Egypt. Public works An-Nasir Muhammad's long reign marked the apogee of Mamluk power and the high-water mark of culture in Egypt since Ptolemaic Alexandria. Extraordinary public works were set in motion. He redug once again the canal connecting Alexandria with the Nile: it was opened to traffic in 1311 and required workforces on a Pharaonic scale. Some of his major works in Cairo were the huge square that was called al-Midan al-Nasiri. He also carried out significant constructions and expansions in the Citadel, including the Qasr al-Ablaq (Striped Palace), the Great Iwan, a new Friday mosque, and the Citadel's aqueduct system. In addition, he built madrasas, including his funerary madrasa at Bayn al-Qasrayn, built public baths, and renovated more than thirty mosques, which added to Cairo's rich fabric of Islamic architecture. His own Mosque in the Citadel which stands until today was decorated with stone brought in triumph from the ruined cathedral of Acre. He also added to his father's complex of structures Cairo's first sabil, a fountain for the use of all, especially welcome to the poor who might not have access to a well. Account of Al-Malik An-Nasir in Ibn Battuta's book The famous traveller Ibn Battuta visited Cairo while al-Malik an-Nasir was the sultan.