The Muhandiskhanah, established in Cairo in 1816, was the first modern school of construction in the Arab context. This paper explores how this school was established and developed within the nineteenth century's social, political, intellectual, and cultural milieu. It also examines the transfer of knowledge from Paris to Cairo between 1816 and 1854. The research divides this period into two main stages. The first stage (1816 to 1834) witnessed several reforms but was primarily associated with training in construction sites. Notably, the French architect and Beaux-Art-graduate Pascal Coste (1787-1879) played a pivotal role as a teacher during this period and served as Muhammad Ali’s architect. During his stay in Egypt, Coste drew and documented many Cairene buildings, culminating in the publication of a book titled Arab Architecture, monuments of Cairo. The second stage of the Muhandiskhanah saw a different French influence led by Saint Simonians who arrived in Cairo with ambitions to construct the Suez Canal. Even though this project was initially rejected, Saint Simonians, including French engineers Charles Lambert (1804-1864) and Barthelemy-Prosper Enfantain (1796-1864), had a significant influence in shaping the education of architects and engineers of this period, emphasizing a scientific and industrial approach to training. In addition, French-trained Egyptians began to be involved in the evolution of education during this stage. One example this paper explores is Ali Mubarak (1823-1893), who studied in Paris and taught at the Muhandiskhanah and was the first Egyptian director of this school and later served as the minister of Public Works. This paper explores some of Mubarak’s books and argues that many of his “modern” writings on geometry and engineering re-introduced knowledge that previously existed in Arabic writings but was lost and unavailable to scholars of that period. Through a close reading of primary sources, this paper aims to bridge existing gaps between "pre-modern" and "modern" construction knowledge in Arabic sciences. It also explores the transfer of knowledge from Paris to Cairo during an early stage of modernization to examine the appropriation of modern scientific knowledge of architecture, construction, and engineering between these two different contexts.