Qa’it Bay Sabil in Cairo
The splendor of Cairo’s sabils probably reached its height with that of the illustrious Sultan Ashraf Sayf al-Din Qa’it Bay, who ruled from 1468 to 1496. Very large for a sabil, Qa’it Bay’s…
Elegant Solutions
It was during a dinner party in 1972 that I heard my host announce the completion of a film on “the greatest architect of the century, Hassan Fathy.” All I could think was,…
Qalawun complex in Cairo, Egypt
The Qalawun complex (Arabic: مجمع قلاون) in Cairo, Egypt includes a madrasa, a hospital and a mausoleum. It was built by the Sultan Al-Nasir Muhammad Ibn Qalawun in the 1280s; some thirty surviving mosques were built during his time. The Qalawun Complex was built over the…
The Islamic Dyansties
This schematic chart provides a simplified picture of the political complexities of certain periods. (Large parts of Central Asia, China, South-east Asia and Africa have been omitted.) www patternsinislamicart com Spain…
The Enamelled Glass, Mosque Lamps
Mosque lamps of glass, enamelled and often with gilding, survive in considerable numbers from the Islamic art of the Middle Ages, especially the 13th and 14th centuries, with Cairo in Egypt and Aleppo and Damascus in Syria as the most important centres of production. These are oil…
The Magic of Science
Science in Islam was at its high peak between the ninth and 13th centuries. Charlotte Schriwer of the Nasser D Khalili Collection of Islamic art examines the achievements of the early Islamic scientists;…
The Farjam Collection of Islamic Art
The Farjam Collection is one of the most impressive privately-owned collections in the world today. Featuring Islamic and pre-Islamic art, Contemporary Middle-Eastern art and International Modern and Contemporary Art, the Collection is born…
Architecture of the Fatimid
The long period of Fatimid rule, lasting almost three centuries, and the dynasty’s political and ideological principles brought with them a major architectural revival. Clear evidence of change is provided by the monuments…
Cairo’s Islamic Architecture – 7th to 18th Centuries
Mosque of Ali mad ibn Tulun, interior of the maqsura, 9th century. Gypsum and ash pillars accentuate the domed mihrab. The mosque, inspired by the great mosque of Samarra in the patron’s…
Cairo – A City Adorned
From the late ninth century well into the 15th, mosques built as prestige projects were the most spectacular buildings in Cairo. Locals, pilgrims on their way to Makkah and even Christian pilgrims were…
Prisse d’Avennes – A Portrait
Prisse d’Avennes: British by blood, French by birth, Muslim by choice, scholar by avocation. Emile Prisse d’Avennes (1807–1879), a French Orientalist, author and artist, was one of the greatest pre-20th century Egyptologists. An…
Darb al-Ahmar, Cairo
This masterly drawing represents a view looking north along part of the Darb al-Ahmar (now Sharia Bab al-Wazir). On the right is a corner of the Palace of Alin Aq (now almost destroyed);…
