| Abstract | This article examines the relations between two separate but complementary processes – memory and heritage – in the construction of the past, using as an example an association dedicated to preserving the cultural heritage of the Egyptian Jewish community in France. An empirical study of this voluntary association enables us to identify some of the contents, objectives, methods, and actors involved in an endeavour to preserve and promote a cultural heritage which is characterised by a complex mesh of history and identity. The endeavour is based on a collective memory, constructed by means of social exchanges and communication and on material and documentary traces; it seeks to provide different generations with a link between the past, which it strives to revive, the present and the future. In this instance, heritage mobilises the resources of the generations which once lived in Egypt, and of a period that is still very recent, so that they can be transmitted to descendants who have no direct experience of Egypt.
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