The Attarine district is considered to be one of the most interesting areas
in Alexandria. It is a sprawling
antiques district. There are antique shops piled high with European furniture
and trinkets that date back to
Napoleonic times. Here, also, the intriguing belongings of many Europeans
who fled the 1952
revolution are up for sale.
The Attarine Mosque is located in the middle of
this unique area, on Attarine Mosque Street. This
mosque was
originally a church dedicated to Saint Athanasius in 370 AD. When
Islam came to
Egypt, the church was
converted into a small mosque, which was built up and eventually became known as
the Mosque of a Thousand Columns. As time passed, this mosque started to get old
and some of its ceilings were damaged at the beginning of the
Fatimid period.
Badr El Gamaly, the general of the army, came to Alexandria to put down the
revolution started by his older son, Muzafar El Dawla, who was trying to create an
independent state apart from
the
Fatimid rule in Alexandria in
1055 AD (447 H). Badr placed the city under siege for an entire month before he was able to enter
Alexandria, after which he took his son Muzafar prisoner. Badr punished the people of
Alexandria, because they helped his son in his revolution, by ordering high
taxes to be collected from everyone,
Christians and Muslims alike.
Badr took some of this money and restored the mosque of Al Attarine in 1057 AD (449 H),
after which it became a congregational mosque for Friday prayers. At the time that the Attarine Mosque
was rebuilt, Alexandria had two
mosques. One
was the western mosque, or old mosque, built by Amr Ibn El Aas when he
conquered Egypt. He named it
the "Mosque of the Thousand Columns. The second was the eastern, or new
mosque of Attarine, so named because of its location in the Attarine area in
Alexandria. The word Attarine
means 'the spice dealers'. It had, at the time, not been a congregational mosque
for some time. It was only practiced in the western mosque of Amr
Ibn El Aas before the period of Al Nassir Ibn Qalawun, who ordered the practice
of Friday prayer in the Attarine mosque continued once again.
The mosque has
suffered much damage and renovation throughout its history. In 1370
AD (772 H), one of
the columns of the mosque was broken, although this didn’t cause any major
damage. In 773 H, the mosque was renovated and there was a small garden placed
beside it, which was a custom in mosques in North African countries and Spain.
However, in the Mamluk and
Ottoman periods the mosque
was neglected. Therefore, the ceiling and the
walls of the mosque were
damaged. When Abbas II became the ruler of
Egypt in 1901, he ordered his
men to plan a whole renovation process for the mosque. What we see today
is the result of that renovation.
The mosque was designed in a rectangular shape that appears triangular from outside, with the minaret in the corner of the triangle in the southeastern part of the mosque. The mosque actually has two facades. The first one is in the northeast portion of the mosque where the main entrance door is located. The other entrance door of the mosque is located on the eastern side of the mosque, and it leads to the mausoleum of the mosque. The southern part of the mosque consists of eight commercial stores. The profit from these stores is used to pay for the expenses of the mosque.
However, perhaps the most alluring element of this mosque is its minarets,
which many believe to be one of the most beautiful in
Egypt.
It consists of four levels. The first level or base of the minaret is square
in shape. The second level is an octagon shape. The third level, where the
Imam stands and call for prayer, is circular shaped and has accurate,
marvelous decorations all around it. The fourth level is a wonderful small
circular dome with astonishing decorations.
The interior of the
mosque
consists of two floors. The first floor hosts the prayers of men while the
second floor is only for women. The first floor of the mosque is a rectangular
shaped area with four huge stone double columns that in tern support arches that
support the ceiling.
The ceiling of the middle part of the
mosque was
covered with an open square dome, or a shokhsheikha. This is actually more of a
skylight than a dome, with four decorated windows on each side. Under these windows, there is a line of Islamic
inscriptions from the Quran. Overall, the ceiling of the mosque is the most appealing
element within the mosque.
It is covered with amazing paintings of geometric flowers.
The lighting of the
mosque is
appealing as well. There are two kinds of lanterns in the mosque. The first type
are gold plated lanterns with many arms, each holding a lamp at the end. The
second type are huge brass lanterns, such as one that hangs from the shokhsheikha. These brass lanterns have Islamic decorations all around them.
The qibla wall, which is always on the side of the mosque facing Mecca to
indicate the direction in which Muslims should pray, lies in the northeast part of the
mosque. It is
where the mihrab of the mosque
is located. The mihrab of the mosque is wider than most mihrabs in mosques in
Egypt. It
is decorated with
green and brown paint and has two gold plated columns on its sides.
At the top of the mihrab there is a verse from the Quran which says that the angels
asked the Muslims to pray in the direction of the mihrab.
The minbar (basically the Islamic equivalent to the pulpit always located to the
right of the mihrab) of the
mosque lies to
the side of the mihrab and it's design is very simple. However, it is made of
one of the finest kinds of wood. The door of the minbar has gold plated
designs all around it and there is a small triangle shaped dome at the top.
A visit to the Attarine Mosque is very interesting for various reasons, one
being to see how this historic
mosque has
transformed through time. The only remaining original item is the stone stating
that the mosque was built by Badr El Gamaly. Another reason for visiting the
mosque is to see the wonderful architecture, including one of the most beautiful
minarets in Egypt. Enjoying the variety of shops while walking through the
Attarine district is also always appealing.
The double columns supporting arches surrounding
the shokhsheikha
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Last Updated: 08/29/2006