Complex of Sultan al-Ashraf Qaytbay

The funerary complex of Sultan Qaytbay is an architectural complex built by Sultan al-Ashraf Qaytbay in Cairo's Northern Cemetery, completed in 1474. It is often considered one of the most beautiful and accomplished monuments of late Egyptian Mamluk architecture, and is pictured on the Egyptian one pound note.Williams, Caroline. 2008 (6th ed.). ''Islamic Monuments in Cairo: The Practical Guide''. Cairo: American University in Cairo Press.Behrens-Abouseif, Doris. 2007. ''Cairo of the Mamluks: A History of Architecture and its Culture''. Cairo: The American University in Cairo Press.AlSayyad, Nezar. 2011. ''Cairo: Histories of a City''. The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press.

Historical background

Sultan Qaytbay and his reign

Al-Ashraf Qaytbay was a mamluk purchased by Sultan al-Ashraf Barsbay (ruled 1422–1438) and served under several Mamluk sultans, the last of whom – Sultan al-Zahir Timurbugha (ruled 1467-1468) – appointed him ''amir al-kabir'', the commander-in-chief or highest position for an amir under the sultan. Qaytbay succeeded Timurbugha as sultan at the age of 54, and ruled for nearly 29 years from 1468 to 1496, the second-longest reign of any Egyptian Mamluk sultan (after al-Nasir Muhammad). His period was marked by external threats and internal rebellions, notably from the rising Ottomans, which required costly military expeditions, as well as by financial problems. Nonetheless, he is also known as an effective ruler who brought long-term stability while he remained in power, and he is especially notable as one of the greatest patrons of architecture in the Mamluk period, and particularly of the Burji Mamluk period which was otherwise marked by Egypt's relative decline.Raymond, André. 1993. ''Le Caire''. Fayard. He is known for at least 85 structures which he built or restored in Egypt, Syria, Palestine, and Mecca, including 17 in Cairo, and this period is characterized by a refinement of the Mamluk architectural style which included greater decorative detail.

Construction and context

Qaytbay's funerary complex was one of his earliest architectural commissions; construction work for the complex began in 1470 and the mausoleum was completed in 1474. The construction period was long by Mamluk standards; however, Qaytbay's complex was on a large scale and constituted an entire royal quarter or walled suburb in the then-lightly urbanized desert cemetery area east of Cairo – now known as the Northern Cemetery. This desert area was developed by the Burji Mamluks in the 15th century as the main southern Qarafa necropolis, not to mention the main city itself, became too full for major new monuments. Major construction projects like Qaytbay's may have been aimed in part at urbanizing this spacious area at the time, though eventually it became mostly an extension of the city's vast cemeteries. Its religious and commercial establishments took advantage of a caravan route which ran through it from Cairo to Mecca in the east and to Syria in the north. Qaytbay's large complex, like others built by Mamluk amirs and sultans, combined various charitable and commercial functions, which might have contributed to his family's financial future after his death.

Qaytbay's mausoleum and complex was also built close to the shrine of the Muslim mystic 'Abd Allah al-Manafi, over whose tomb Qaytbay built a new dome in 1474. This may have influenced his decision to appoint a shaykh of the Maliki madhhab to his mosque, which was unusual for Mamluk institutions.

Description

Overview

Qaytbay's complex contained numerous buildings over a relatively vast area, enclosed by the same wall, of which one gate, Bab al-Gindi, still remains to the south of the mausoleum. Many of the original structures which once faced each other on both sides of the existing street have vanished. What remains today is the mosque, which is attached to the mausoleum of Qaytbay himself, as well as a ''maq'ad'' (loggia), a smaller mosque and mausoleum for Qaytbay's sons, a ''hod'' (drinking trough for animals), and a ''rab (an apartment complex where tenants paid rent). At one point it was also described to have had large gardens.

The mosque/madrasa

The mosque (originally a madrasa), along with the mausoleum of the sultan, forms the main building of the complex and is considered exceptional for its refined proportions and the subdued yet exquisite decorations. The mosque's entrance faces north and diverts the main road slightly eastwards around the walls of the mausoleum, possibly to enhance its visual effect. The façade features ''ablaq'' stonework (alternating dark and light stone) and the entrance portal is enhanced by a high elaborate groin-vaulted recess with ''muqarnas'' squinches. The minaret stands above the entrance on the western side and is exquisitely carved in stone, divided into three stories with elaborately carved balconies. The eastern corner of the façade is occupied by a sabil (from which water could be dispensed to passers-by) on the ground floor and by a kuttab (school) on the top floor. The former is marked by large windows with iron grilles, while the later is marked by a loggia with open arches on two sides.

Inside, the vestibule features another ornate groin-vault ceiling and leads to the main sanctuary hall which follows a modified layout of the classic madrasa, with two large iwans on the qibla axis and two shallow or reduced iwans to the sides. The hall is richly decorated in stone-carving, painted wooden ceilings and coloured windows. The mihrab is relatively modest but the wooden minbar is richly carved with geometric patterns and inlaid with ivory and mother-of-pearl.Discover Islamic Art (entry on "Madrasa and Mosque of Sultan Qaytbay"), retrieved on January 25, 2014, http://www.discoverislamicart.org/database_item.php?id=monument;ISL;eg;Mon01;12;en The wooden lantern ceiling above the central space is notable for its carving and painted pattern but is a restoration work by the " Comité" and not the original. The central floor also features elaborate polychrome patterned marble but is usually covered by carpets.

File:Qaitbey5 (2133771422).jpg, View of the entrance façade of the mosque/madrasa, with the sabil on the lower left and the kuttab on the upper left above it
File:Cairo (1547649908).jpg, The entrance portal
File:Qaitbey2 (2132987471).jpg, Details of the minaret
File:Qaytbay interior.jpg, View of the prayer hall of the mosque, with the mihrab on the right; the arches feature ablaq masonry
File:Sultan Al-Ashraf Qaytbay Mosque and Mausoleum.jpg, The western iwan
File:Qaytbay lantern ceiling.jpg, The wooden lantern ceiling over the prayer hall of the mosque

The mausoleum and dome

Qaytbay's mausoleum projects from the eastern side of the building, which makes the dome more visible from the street and allows for more light to reach the interior through the northern-facing windows. The outer dome of the mausoleum demonstrates an evolution from the stone domes built earlier and nearby by Sultan Barsbay and others: it is often cited as the apogee of Mamluk dome design in Cairo due to its complex stone-carved decorative pattern.O'Neill, Zora et al. 2012 (11th edition). ''Lonely Planet: Egypt''. Lonely Planet Publications. This pattern features a central geometric star radiating from the apex of the dome and an arabesque floral design which are superimposed and enhanced by natural shadows.

On the inside, the mausoleum chamber is reached from a door next to the qibla wall. It is decorated with a carved and ''ablaq'' mihrab, polychrome marble paneling, and a high dome with ''muqarnas'' pendentives. It contains the sultan's tomb as well as an alleged footprint of the Prophet Muhammad brought from Mecca.

File:Qaytbay mausoleum dome (R Prazeres 2019) DSCF0095.jpg, alt=, The dome of the mausoleum
File:Qaytbay dome closeup.jpg, Closeup of the dome's stone-carved relief patterns
File:Qaitbey12 (2133767392).jpg, The mausoleum chamber of Sultan Qaytbay, with mihrab visible (photo from 2006, before recent restorations)
File:Qaitbey3 (2133737622).jpg, Interior of the mausoleum dome

Auxiliary structures

To the west of Qaytbay's main mosque is a smaller domed tomb which may have been built earlier when Qaytbay was only an amir, but was later dedicated to his sons. It was later used by a Turkish Sufi named Gulshani during the Ottoman period. The small dome is decorated on the outside in a stone-carved pattern similar to that of the sultan's mausoleum but slightly simpler. The tomb is attached to a building which seems to have been part of the royal residential complex which Qaytbay built. Just west of this is a ''maq'ad'', which usually denotes a loggia overlooking a courtyard but in this case is an enclosed hall with many windows, located over storage rooms.

Just to the north of the mosque, on the main street, is a ''hod'' or drinking trough for animals, with shallow decorative niches along its wall. Further north are the semi-ruined remains of a ''rab or apartment complex on the west side of the main street. It is partially buried below street level but its high vaulted entrance portal is still visible.

File:Gate of Qaytbay complex.jpg, The remains of the old gate of Qaytbay's complex, Bab al-Gindi
File:Qaytbay minor mausoleum.jpg, The smaller attached mausoleum, dedicated to Qaytbay's son and, later, to Gulshani
File:Qaytbay complex maqad 2019.jpg, The (recently restored) ''maq'ad'' of Qaytbay's complex, a part of the residential compound he built
File:Hod of Qaytbay complex.jpg, The ''hod'' of Qaytbay complex, a drinking trough for animals (pictured in 2012, before recent restoration)
File:Hod details of Qaytbay complex.jpg, Stone-carved details of the ''hod''
File:Qaytbay rab.jpg, The remains of the ''rab or apartment bloc of Qaytbay's complex, north of the mosque
File:Qaytbay rab portal.jpg, Portal of the ''rab of Qaytbay's complex

Modern-day use and restoration

For the past few years, the Cairo-based ARCHiNOS Architecture has been conserving monuments within the funerary complex of Sultan al-Ashraf Qaitbey. The work is primarily financed by the European Union and done under the auspices of the Historic Cairo Project within the Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities. ARCHiNOS has increasingly included social development and cultural components in its work, and has adapted the reception hall in the Sultan's onetime residence (maq‘ad) for a hub of art and culture in the neighbourhood. ARCHiNOS also upgraded the small urban square in front of the building to make it a fitting setting for various cultural events organised in and around the maq‘ad of Sultan Qaitbey. In 2016, the not-for-profit Sultan Foundation has been established to provide access to culture in the underprivileged neighbourhood and to promote links between preservation of cultural heritage and social and economic development.The European Union Delegation to Egypt, Culture Heritage for the Living in the ''City of the Dead'', retrieved December 2018, https://eeas.europa.eu/delegations/egypt/42730/culture-heritage-living-city-dead_en

See also

* Khanqah-Mausoleum of Sultan Barsbay
* Mosque of Qaytbay (Qal'at al-Kabsh)
* Lists of mosques
* List of mosques in Africa
* List of mosques in Egypt

References

External links

3D Virtual Tours - spherical view of the interior of Qaytbay's mosque.


* ttp://www.discoverislamicart.org/database_item.php?id=monument;ISL;eg;Mon01;12;en Discover Islamic Art - information and pictures on Qaytbay's mosque/madrasa, including floor plan.
Dobrowolska Agnieszka/Dobrowolski, Jaroslaw: More than Stones: Heritage for the Living in Cairo's 'City of the Dead', 2018

{{Islamic Cairo

Qaitbay
Mamluk architecture in Egypt
Mosque buildings with domes
Mosques in Cairo
Mausoleums in Egypt
Mosques completed in 1474
15th-century establishments in the Mamluk Sultanate