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Image ID
B05.015
Image Format
Article
Description
The entrance portal to the Mosque of Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad, "the greatest builder of the Bahri Mamluk period" (Williams, 227). "The mosque forms a free-standing, rectangular block, the austere exterior of which might be accounted for by the military nature of its setting. It follows the hypostyle scheme with the standard pattern of a rectangular courtyard, with a sanctuary on the qibla side and arcades surrounding its other three sides. The arcades of the sanctuary and around the courtyard are formed by marble columns with pre-Islamic capitals carrying pointed arches with ablaq voussoirs. Above each arch is a pair of pointed-arched windows. These windows form the lower part of the crenellated wall which was probably added above the arcades in 1335" (archnet). (Sources: "Masjid al-Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad ibn Qalawun." Archnet. Accessed September 07, 2017. https://archnet.org/sites/2737/media_contents/5989; Williams, Caroline. Islamic Monuments in Cairo: The Practical Guide. The American University in Cairo, 2002.) -MA
Keywords
Cairo, Egypt
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