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Mosque of Ahmed Ibn Tulun:
The founder
Ahmed Ibn
Tulun ( 263-265 A.H ), born about 835 A.D, he is one of the Turkish
commanders in Samarra in Iraqu. He receives his military and theological
training in Samarra and Tarsus .His intelligence and courage attracted
the attention of the Khalif and in 868 A.D he made proxy for his
step-father Bakabak’s governorship of Egypt.
He
established himself as an independent ruler for the Province. An
abortive attempt to remove him encouraged Ahmed to attach Syria .
Ahmed
Ibn Tulun founded a new Capital called Alqatai around the hill of Gabal
Yashkur, to the NE of Al Fustat, razing the Christian and the Jewish
cemetery that was located in that area.
The Mosque
The site
chosen for his mosque was an outcrop of rock called Gabal Yashkur. Is
It situated in sharia Al Saliba.
1-It is the
oldest intact functioning Islamic monument in Cairo. It is considered
the 3rd mosque which was constructed for the whole community or the
congregation joined together for the Friday noon prayer.
2- It is also
rare preserved example of the art and the architecture of the classical
period of Islam.
It is one of
the biggest mosques in Egypt. The mosque together with the ziyada
occupies an area of 6.5 acres.
The plan of the Mosque
It is nearly
square in shape, measures 162 m. in length and 161 m. in width. The area
which is dedicated for the prayer is rectangular in shape measures about
137 m. x 118 m.
It was
designed as open court or central square Sahn (about 92 m) Surrounded by
four riwaqs. The riwaq of the quibla contains 5 arcades . while each of
the other riwaqs consists of 2 arcades.
The mosque
surrounded by Ziyadas ( extension) on 3 sides, the Ziyada is an enclosed
space or precinct to separate the mosque from the markets and in order
to protect the mosque and the prayers from the noise of the street.
Outside the
mosque on the quibla wall there was a palace or Dar El Imarah (house of
the government, or the ruler residence ), now destroyed, with its own
entrance near to the Mihrab from which Ahmed Ibn Tulun used to enter to
the mosque before leading the prayer.
The Entrance of the Mosque
This mosque
has19 doors on 3 sides, each door corresponding To another door in the
ziyadas, and there are another 3 doors cut in the wall of the quibla.
The lintels are composed of palm-trunks, boxed with wood and above a
releasing arch, some of these doors still retain their original carving.
The Foundation Slate
On the right
hand central Pier of the 3rd arcade from the sahn is the Foundation
Slate ; it includes the Foundation Inscription, it is a rectangular slab
of marble ( 1,6 m X 97 cm) written in Kufic inscription and it contains
The verse of El Kursi ( Ayat Al Kursi) from the Koran and the date of
265 A.H
The Crenulations
Both the
walls of the mosque and the Ziyada are crowned with crenulations which
are similar to the paper cut-outs of human figures with linked arms.
The Sahn ( the courtyard )
It is square
in shape, each of its sides measures about 92 m.
The original
courtyard was not paved and filled with pebbles as it is today, because
this space was intended for prayer.
The Fawarah
in the middle of the Sahn is the 3rd one, the first one was the original
built by Ahmed Ibn Tulun. It was gilded and stood on 10 columns of
marble. The 2nd one was Al Aziz but was destroyed .The actual one is the
third built by The sultan Lagin Al Mansoury among some other works he
did for the mosque. ( 14 X 12 m ) and it is 20 m in height. This Fawarah
was built by the architect Ibn Al Roumyyah. It has a Mameluk design; it
is stood on 4 pointed arches , the zone of transition has stepped
corners with a window in the uppermost step and 3 windows of 3 lights on
each side. The dome is plain without a drum and raised on squinch.
Above, a continuos stalactite frieze runs around the base of the dome
and above that a band of Naskhi inscription from the Koran dealing with
the ablution.
The Arcades
The arcades
around the courtyard or the Sahn which are deeper on the quibla Riwaq or
the sanctuary side are formed by pointed Arches on brick Piers .Rosettes
and windows form a continuous and simple decoration. These arcades are
supported by piers.
Unlike
columns.These Piers are rectangular and decorated with four
masonry-engaged columns. Their capitals have the same bell shape as the
bases, and both plastered and carved. Originally would seem that all of
the arcades had soffits of curved stucco similar to those which have
been restored in the Southern arcade.
The arches
The Arches of
the arcades are pointed, They are outlined with an edge of carved
stucco, and spring from oblong supports rounded at the corners by
pilasters or engaged columns.
The Quibla Riwaq ( The Sanctuary )
It includes 5
aisles deeper than the others and they are parallel to the Prayer niche
( the Mihrab), while each of the other riwaq includes just 2 aisles .
This Riwaq actually has 6 prayer niches or mihrabs
The
main Mihrab is in the middle of the quibla wall, it is the tallest and
the only concave one The others are flat .It consists of a double
pointed arched recess flanked by a pair
Byzantine style marble columns with basket work capitals. Its stucco
moluding and the 2 stucco bosses on each side of the arch are original.
The interior is decorated in Mameluk style made by the sultan Lajin, the
upper decoration of painted wood, and strips of polychrome marble ,
above which is a band of Naskhi inscription in black mosaic on a gold
background containing the shahada. The Dikka of the Mouballegh ( the
bench of the Mouballegh) is situated in Riwaq. Al Quibla near the
courtyard. It is a wide bench of marble columns used for communicating
the words of the Imam during the prayer.
The Ceiling
The ceiling
is composed of Palm logs boxed in wooden panels. Below the ceiling there
are a long band of inscription on sycamore wood which runs around the
whole mosque contains verses from the Koran. This frieze is 2 Km. In
length, and it is calculate one fifteenth of the whole holly book .There
is a legend that the boards used for this inscription are left over from
the Noah’s Ark.
The Windows
The upper
part of the mosque wall is pierced with pointed arch windows flanked
with colonnades .The windows alternate on the outside wall within blind
niches with a shell conch .
There are 128
windows and their arrangements on the walls are independent of the
arches so that not every arch has a centred window. The functions of
these arched windows of the arched windows are providing light and
reduce the weight carried by the arches.
Creswell
attributes only 4 of the windows stucco grills to the Tulunide Period,
those of the plain geometrical design, while the rest displaying a large
variety of more complicated geometrical patterns date back to the
Fatimide and the Mameluk Periods.
The Minaret
It stands on
the North side of the Ziyada, where a door leads to it is an unusual
stone structure with an outer staircase, and a Mameluk top of the type
named Mabkhara. This minaret caused controversy among the Cairo’s
Architectural historians. We don't have enough sources to clear this
point or determine its date.
Ibn
Tulun governed Egypt in the 9th century during the Abbassids period.
Upon his arrival he founded his own capital and built his mosque on a
hill called Gabal Yashkur. The mosque was built to supplement the Amr
Ibn Al As mosque which could no longer accommodate the growing Muslim
population. Ibn Tulun's mosque is built around a courtyard with four
arcaded halls (called riwaq).
Excluding the
qibla wall (the wall marking the direction of Mecca), the other three
sides are surrounded by an enclosed space (called a ziyada) separating
and protecting the mosque from the noise of the streets. On the north
side of the ziyada stands the minaret which is a unique stone structure
with an outer staircase. Although restorations have been made to the
mosque since its initial construction, it remains the oldest mosque in
Egypt in its original form, Location: Sharia el Salibah, 0.5 km west of
the Citadel. 3 km southeast of Midan el Tahrir.
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