 Herz published the museum's catalogue in French in two editions; both were translated into English and the second edition also appeared in Arabic translation.In addition to descriptions of the objects, they contain a concise account of the history of Arab-Islamic art according to the fields represented in the museum's collections and thus they still possess eminent scholarly value on a general level.According to the current narrative the Coptic Museum in Old Cairo was founded by Marcus Simayka Pasha (1864–1944), an outstanding public figure in the Coptic community, a passionate lover of Coptic art, who subsequently held the post of director until the end of his life.