During the reign of Sultan Barsbay, a Circassian Mamluk, the
Amir Taghri Bardi (Taghribardi al-Rumi) was a prominent fellow
who led the army that invaded the Crusader kingdom of Cyprus.
He is said to have been a somber character of violent language
who was murdered by his own Mumluks (slaves) shortly after his
elevation as grand dawadar, or executive secretary to Sultan
al-Zahir Gaqmaq (Jaqmaq).
He built a madrasa, mosque and sufi convent on the left
side of Shari Saliba in what is today the Old
Islamic District of Cairo
in about 1440 AD, which is a fine example
of how urban monuments in the late Mamluk period were often
smaller and more compact due to the dwindling space available
for construction. While all seems normal from the street
level, by climbing the square based minaret, which is original
though its pencil shaped top with a star pattern carved in
stone is an awkward later addition, one may look down upon the
complex to see how ingeniously the various parts have been
tucked behind the facades so that the various demands of this
cruciform building could be met. It is the first example of a
religious structure in which the interior forms a wide angle
with the street facade.
The building had to include a qibla orientation, a position
on the qibla wall and the main street for the mausoleum. There
are symmetrically disposed windows and doors for the attached
foundations and as far as possible, it has a symmetrical
internal arrangement.
This mosque has two facades, with the main one on Sharia
Saliba. With a balance and unity that is very pleasing, the
entrance portal in the middle of the facade is elaborately
decorated with ablaq and reversed trilobed forms of black and
white marble. It has accents of colored stone in a style that
is characteristic of the late Mamluk era.
To the left of the entrance is the sabil-kuttab, together
with the minaret, and to its right, the facade of the tomb
surmounted by a carved stone dome with the earliest example of
interlocking ribs made from high-relief moldings. The
kuttab eaves have a cut out pattern that mimic the stalactite
pattern of the tomb cornice, while the patter of the lintel
over the kuttab door echo that of the windows in the tomb
facade.
The second, or eastern facade is on the side of the street.
Here, a round window in the style of a bull's eye is situated
in the center of a panel over the mihrab.
The entrance corridor winds around the tomb and connects
with the mosque and madrasa interior. Within, the window to
the right of the mihrab is much deeper than the one on the
left. The northeast liwan
(iwan) provides an entrance to the
ablutions court. The southwest liwan is roped off for women,
and there is an interestingly shaped closet for storage.
Due to the configuration of the building to the available
space, small cubes of space in corners and angles which result
from these adjustments and compromises are often used either
as light and air shafts or are filled in as solid masses.
References:
| Title |
Author |
Date |
Publisher |
Reference
Number |
| Al Qahira |
Sassi, Dino |
1992 |
Al Ahram/Elsevier |
None Stated |
| Cambridge Illustrated
History Islamic World |
Robinson, Francis |
1996 |
Cambridge University Press |
ISBN 0-521-43510-2 |
| Historical Cairo (A Walk
Through the Islamic City) |
Antonious, Jim |
1988 |
American University in Cairo
Press, The |
ISBN 977-424-497-4 |
| Islamic Monuments in Cairo,
A Practical Guide |
Paker, Richard B.; Sabin,
Robin; Williams, Caroline |
1985 |
American University in Cairo
Press, The |
ISBN 977 424 036 7 |
| Mosque, The: History,
Architectural Development & Regional Diversity |
Frishman, Martin and Khan,
Hasan-Uddin |
1994 |
Thames and Hudson LTD |
ISBN 0-500-34133-8 |
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