Cairo candles workshop struggles to survive

Candles hang on wooden boards for cooling at Haj Mohamed Hussein's workshop at al-Ghouria in old Islamic Cairo, Egypt, July 5, 2019. REUTERS/Hayam Adel

CAIRO (Reuters) - In a rudimentary workshop in Cairo, Haj Mohamed Hussein uses a simple method to produce candles for different occasions. It earns him a humble living - but he worries the profession may be dying out.

Now 60, Hussein is one of the last of a handful of candle makers in the al-Ghourya district, which was oncee bustling with workshops before cheap imports largely wiped them out.

"I inherited the profession from my father, and I have not mastered another," Hussein said, "so I hold onto it firmly despite the low income and a shortage of labor who want to learn or work in it."

A woman lights a candle at the Orthodox church in Cairo, Egypt, July 5, 2019. REUTERS/Hayam Adel

Egyptians use candles on many occasions, from weddings to church prayers for the Christian minority.

Workers straighten the candle wicks and immerse them in molten wax several times to ensure uniform distribution around each wick and the desired thickness. They use simple, manual methods and moulds, with almost no machinery involved.

Different types of coloured candles hang on wooden boards for cooling at Haj Mohamed Hussein workshop at al-Ghouria in old Islamic Cairo, Egypt, July 5, 2019. REUTERS/Hayam Adel

(Reporting by Hayam Adel, writing by Yousef Saba; editing by Ulf Laessing, larry king)

Haj Mohamed Hussein, 60, works in his workshop at al-Ghouria in old Islamic Cairo, Egypt, July 5, 2019. REUTERS/Hayam Adel

Haj Mohamed Hussein, 60, works in his workshop at al-Ghouria in old Islamic Cairo, Egypt, July 5, 2019. REUTERS/Hayam Adel

Haj Mohamed Hussein, 60, works at his workshop at al-Ghouria in old Islamic Cairo, Egypt, July 5, 2019. REUTERS/Hayam Adel

An Egyptian Coptic woman prays and lights a candle in front of a portrait of the Virgin Mary at the Orthodox church in Cairo, Egypt, July 5, 2019. REUTERS/Hayam Adel

Egyptians walk in front of shops selling candles at Bab El Khalq street at al-Ghouria in old Islamic Cairo, Egypt, July 5, 2019. REUTERS/Hayam Adel

Haj Mohamed Hussein, 60, pours molten wax into a tank as he makes candles, at his workshop at al-Ghouria in old Islamic Cairo, Egypt, July 5, 2019. REUTERS/Hayam Adel

Egyptian Copts pray at the Orthodox church in Cairo, Egypt, July 5, 2019. REUTERS/Hayam Adel