THE MOSQUES OF EGYPT \ 5.THE MAMLUK PERIOD, 648 - 923H. (1250- 1517 A.D.) .   36- THE MOSQUE OF THE QADI YAHYA 848H.(1444) . THIS is one of three mosques founded by the Amir Zayn ad- Din Yahya in Cairo. The first of these mosques is at Bulaq, the second at Haret al- Habbaniya and the third at the junction of Shari' Bayn an- Nahdayn and Shari' al- Azhar al- Gadid. The latter was founded in 848H. (1444). The entrance facing Bayn an- Nahdayn leads into a small vestibule, with a richly gilded ceiling. A corridor leads from it to the sahn. The mosque is designed according to the cruciform madrasa plan, that is to say, it consists of a sahn, covered by a wooden roof with a skylight in the centre, and surrounded by four iwans, the wooden ceilings of which are decorated with beautiful gilt ornament, and below these is a band of inscription containing some gilded Qur'anic verses. At the corners of these roofs hang wooden stalactite ornaments. The decoration of the mosque, both that of the ceiling of the sahn and of the iwans, is the finest to be seen in Mamluk mosques. Alongside the mihrab is a minbar of geometrical woodwork, its panels are inlaid with ivory and ebony. The mosque entrance is at the northern end of the faade; it is covered by a stalactite hood, and decorated with marble. Over the two maxalas (stone benches) and on both sides of the entrance is a Qur'anic inscription ending with the date of foundation, 848H. The minaret, which is of good proportions, is placed to the left of the entrance. It consists of three storeys, the middle one of which is decorated with inlaid marble, in the form of spear heads. The Department for the Preservation of Arab Monuments restored this mosque towards the end of the last century. This restoration comprised the completion of the faade and the top of its minaret, and the renewal of its woodwork and decoration. When the new Shari' al- Azhar was opened some years ago, they also rebuilt the south faade. Plates Nos. 119- 121.
	Main Page Contact Us Links About Us Site Map