Information about who built the mosque:
Hassan bin Al-Nasir Qalawun built the mosque and the school, which are still standing. His father was Sultan Al-Nasir Muhammad bin Al-Mansur Qalawun. On the 14th of Ramadan, when he was only 13 years old, he took the throne. He was replaced by Muzaffar Haji, his older brother, who was born in 735 (1343 AD) (December 18, 1347). Although Sultan Hassan was the country’s official leader, matters were managed by Prince Shaikh al-Amri because the boy was young and did not know what to do.
When Nasri was in charge of everything, he proved to be a good leader. Everyone else had to pay him to achieve his goals and dreams. He wanted to be so successful that he bought the public property himself. But he wasn’t in charge for long. In the year 1351 AH, corresponding to 752 AD, his excellent brother got rid of him and took over the reins of government.
But Sultan Hassan returned to the throne in 755 and showed that he was a just, brave, and firm leader. His faith was strong, and he had a good reputation in the community. Six years ago, seven months ago, a few days ago, he was in charge. No one has been able to find his grave since his death in 762. Although he died young, he left behind ten sons and six daughters. Sultan Hassan was the best of Egypt’s Mamluk rulers (the slave dynasty) because he had strong religious beliefs. He was in power for seven years, six months, and a few days during his second reign. No one has been able to find his grave since his death in 762.
Although he died young, he had ten boys and six girls when he passed away. Sultan Hassan was the best of Egypt’s Mamluks (slaves dynasty) rulers with a bullet. He was in charge and strongly believed in God. 6 years ago, seven months and go, a few days ago. No one has been able to find his grave since his death in 762. Although he died young, he left behind ten sons and six daughters. Sultan Hassan was the best leader of the slave dynasty in Egypt, the Mamluks.
Why is Sultan Hassan Mosque important?
Sultan Hassan Mosque is the most exciting building near Salah El Din Square. From 1250 to 1517, Egypt was run by a group of slave soldiers called the Mamluks. During that time, they built one of the largest mosques in the world, called Abu Simbel Grand Mosque. The mosque in front of the castle was built between 1356 and 1362, and it is the largest building of its kind in the world.
The purpose of the mosque was to show how powerful Sultan Hassan was and how free the country had become. Medieval Cairo had never built anything else like this mosque, and its colossal size was the culmination of the Mamluk dynasty’s dedication to great architecture.
Historical information about the mosque:
Hassan’s father, Al-Nasr Muhammad, became so powerful that when he died in 1340, none of his princes could take the throne. Instead, 12 puppet sultans, all associated with victory, ran the kingdom for 42 years. Nissan was the seventh son of the Sultan. In 1347, when he was only 12 years old, the government condemned him (according to some sources, he was 13 years old). At first, the boy ruler did not care much about the affairs of the state, and most of the power was wielded by Taz, Shekhu, and Sargatamys, the three princes of the country. This group of three architects in Cairo was some of the city’s most famous architects.
Over the next 12 years, the three kings of Egypt fought with each other. This allowed Sheikh and Sargatamysh to get rid of Taz, and Hassan returned to his old job as Sultan. In 1357, Sultan Hasan al-Sheikh and Sargatamysh were killed so he would no longer be his guardian. At that point, he is king or queen on his own. Many of Hassan’s new civilian officials are the children of enslaved people whose parents were expelled from high positions in the state when his father was in power. Hassan’s absolute rule depended on getting rid of the power and authority of the princes in his father’s reign.
At the beginning of his second reign, Hassan wanted the Mamluks to build his great mosque to signify his independence and an ambitious architectural project. One thing that will always remind people of Sultan Hassan’s rule is this beautiful building.
The Sultan Hassan Mosque is much bigger than any of Cairo’s other mosques. There are beautiful designs on the 36-meter-high walls of the mosque (the height of a modern 11-story building). Saladin Square’s mosque doubles as the city’s most enormous royal mausoleum.
In the 17th century, when the mausoleum was last fixed up, the dome was shorter and not as impressive as it could have been. It might have looked like a wooden dome over a fountain in the middle of a big courtyard. There are two minarets around the crown, each with a view of the fortress. At first, they were thought identical twins who stood 82 meters tall and looked the same. But just before the mosque was finished, one of them fell. It had to be rebuilt at a much lower height in the 1600s.
The Sultan Hassan Mosque’s minaret was one of the tallest in Cairo for a long time. One of the world’s most elevated doors leads to the mosque, and it stands 37 meters tall and is decorated with many beautiful things.
The Sultan Hassan Mosque was never meant to be a place to pray; it was also supposed to be a place where people could study Islamic law at a university. At total capacity, the Sultan would need about a thousand teachers, accountants, chefs, security guards, and students to work at this mosque.
The mosque has everything a large group of people would need, like a well with a pressure tower, a market, housing for students, kitchens, toilets, and stables for horses. The same luxury was used to build everything to make the mosque. Even so, the mosque was a religious and educational center. In the 14th century, it was bigger than many villages.
The mosque cost a lot to build because it is so big, and only the best building and finishing materials were used. The wooden scaffolding that held up the vast dome over the prayer hall cost more than it would have cost to build a normal-sized mosque. Makris, a historian from the Middle Ages, thought it cost 1,000 dinars, about 4.15 kg of gold, per day to make the mosque. In the Middle Ages, this amount was the same as the wages of thirty skilled workers for a whole year.
Even though the Mamluks were among the wealthiest families in the Middle Ages, building the mosque cost more than a year’s worth of their income. The mosque was only made with those funds because the Sultan had “unexpected happiness” in his first year as ruler. The bubonic plague, also known as the “Black Death,” killed a third of Egypt’s people in 1347 and didn’t stop until the following year. Some stories say that on the worst epidemic day, 20,000 people died in Cairo. When whole towns and the areas around them were destroyed, only the Sultan was left to claim the things that the dead had owned. After the plague took all the money out of the bank, Sultan Hassan used the money to build his beautiful mosque.
The whole mosque was built in less than six years. One of the most exciting things about this mosque is how quickly it was made. But as time went on, it became clear that the quality was terrible. At first, the mosque was supposed to have four minarets: two facing Saladin Square and two on top of the main entrance.
When the mosque was almost done being built in 1361, the first minaret at the entrance fell because it was made too quickly. Some stories say that this killed 300 or 30 people. Since the attack happened near a school, most people who died were kids. In memory of the people who died in that tragedy, this street used to be called “Innocently Slain.” People thought that when the minaret fell, the Sultan would also die. After that, the same thing happened again.
Design for a Mosque
The university was built over three years, starting in 757 (1356 AD). You can find the college near the end of Shari Mohammed Ali Street, which is southeast of the Cairo district and northeast of the citadel. This mosque is one of the best in Egypt because of its elegance, beauty, and well-built.
The mosque is 150 meters long, 68 meters wide, and 37 meters high at its entrances. From the mosque, you can see the well in the park to the northwest and Salah ad-Din Street to the east. Since there are so many minor differences in how the mosque was built, it is hard to say its exact shape. The mosque looks like a building with eight sides, and its length runs from northeast to southeast.
As we walk through the central north gate, we see a beautiful square entryway in the shape of a cross. There are three levans and a courtyard near the front door. The building looks like a small mosque from the front. To the left of the main entrance, seven steps lead down to a rectangular passageway. A passageway that leads to the mosque’s inner courtyard is southwest of the mosque’s main hall. This courtyard is between 24 and 60 meters wide and 32 meters long.
A large pool in the courtyard is used to wash people before ceremonies. A dome made of 8 marble columns stands over the pool. There are lives on each corner of the mosque’s courtyard (seated in high places in the mosque). There is a door to a classroom in every part of Lebanon. In the past, this was a school for Islamic law. At 898 square meters, the Hanafites chamber is the biggest in terms of space.
The pointed stone vaults that cover the lives in the north, south, and east are all about the same size. The most significant part of Lebanon, where the most beautiful cultural sites are, is in the east. It has strips of marble and other colorful stones on its walls. In the plaster sets, Kufi words from Sura al-Fath are written around the stones. It is a beautiful piece of decorative art and architecture on its own, and no other building can compare to it.
The arch-shaped roof of this Lebanon is made of stones and bricks. This arch, built in Egypt, is the biggest of its kind to cross the Strait of Lebanon. A marble seat is held up by eight columns and three pilasters inside Lebanon. At each corner, there is a beautiful little column made of thin strips of different colored marble.
The prayer niche, or mihrab, is a rounded structure built into the eastern wall, and it has four marble columns on all sides. Most of the niche’s interior is made up of stripes of marble and gold. Marble and gold have always looked great together, which is why this spot is one of the most sought-after in monumental art.
To the right of the niche, you can find one. It is made of marble all the way through, but the door is made of copper-coated wood. Both sides of the niche have entrances that lead to the space under the big vault (dome). People thought the Sultan’s body was buried in a vault under a walled area where the marble tomb was put. Sultan Hasan died too soon, and his body was never found, so this mausoleum was never used. Inscription says
Two of the entrance doors to the tomb used to be made of gold- and silver-covered brass. The brass plating on the right door has worn away and turned green over time, but the brass decorations on the left are still in pretty good shape. The symmetrical leaf shapes on the ornate brass lid show how advanced the decorative arts were at the time.
The Sultan’s tomb is in a square part of the crypt. Inside the dome are 751 square meters of space, and each side is 21 meters long. The highest point of the arch’s walls is 30.2 meters, just at the start of the curve. When you add the height of the dome and the walls of the building together, you get 48 meters.
There are rectangular strips of marble in different colors inside the dome. The vault’s walls, which are 8 meters high, are made of different-sized strips of marble. On top of the walls is a wooden curb that is three meters wide. Around the edge, there are Nashkha writings that say, “This lucky vault (dome) was finished in the months of 764.” (1362-1363 AD). Four of the best stalactites of their kind are in each corner of the vault.
The Quran standing on the side of the vault is one of the most exciting parts of this mosque. People would read from this wooden book, the Holy Quran, under the eaves. It has pieces of ebony and ivory set into its wood sides. It is the world’s oldest roller coaster, which makes it a work of art on its own.
Behind Western Lebanon, on the first level, there is a large courtyard where people can wash their hands and feet before a ceremony. It has a total floor space of 412 square feet, and all the building water used to come from a well about 30 meters to the northwest. There are two huge minarets on the southeast corner of this mosque, and one is 81.6 meters high.
The Sultan Hasan Mosque has beautiful decorations and building features inside and out. There’s the big front door, the two minarets on the southeast side, the vast bas-relief frieze with stalactites, the towering height on the other sides, and the four-step window opening. The Sultan Hassan Mosque is so unique because of all of these things.
When Sultan Hasan died, the mosque was still being built. It was finished by Bashir Agha ad-Jamdar, who was an emir. The outside decorations of the mosque were never finished. Since a long time ago, the mosque hasn’t been in good shape. The Committee for the Protection and Preservation of Arab Monuments has done much to keep the mosque in excellent condition.
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