Mosque of Ibn Tulun in Cairo, Egypt
Islamic Egypt History to establish the Tulunid Mosque and historical facts about the most important Historical mosques heritage mosques in the Sayyida Zeinab district, why not pray in the Ahmed Ibn Tulun Mosque, how many windows are in the mosque and more about the most famous Islamic Egyptian Antiquities and monuments.
One of the ancient mosques and the most famous Islamic Egypt Archaeological Sites. The mosque was built by Ahmed Ibn Tulun, and this mosque is considered one of the famous mosques. Learn about a group of information about Ibn Tulun Mosque below..
Mosque of Ibn Tulun Facts
Where is Ibn Tulun Mosque located?
The mosque is located in Ahmed Ibn Tulun Square in the Sayeda Zeinab district, one of the most famous districts of Old Cairo neighborhoods..
When did the construction of Ibn Tulun Mosque begin?
Construction of the mosque began in 877 AD and continued until 879 AD..
How big is the Tulunid Mosque?
The area of Ibn Tulun Mosque is approximately 6 and a half acres..
How many minarets and domes are there in the Tulunid Mosque?
Ibn Tulun Mosque has one minaret, while there are two domes, one large and the other small..
What is the design style of Ibn Tulun Mosque?
Ibn Tulun Mosque comes in the Abbasid architectural style..
History of the construction of the Tulunid Mosque, one of the most famous historical mosques in Sayyida Zeinab, Cairo, Egypt. Specifications and design of the Ahmed Ibn Tulun Mosque, the architectural decoration from the inside, what are the visiting hours, ticket prices, and more.
One of the engineering buildings that represented a huge shift in the history of Islamic architecture is the Mosque of Ahmad Ibn Tulun, whose influence on the development of many architectural features was acknowledged by the Europeans themselves.
The mosque is characterised by the presence of geometric elements that appear for the first time, such as the pointed arch, the pavement, and the wall walls, which formed the basic components of the birth of architecture, which led Europe to the Renaissance..
The Mosque of Ahmad Ibn Tulun, the ruler of Egypt and founder of the Tulunid dynasty, was built in the ninth century AD, between 263 AH and 265 AH. It is located on a strong rocky hill on Mount Yashkur..
The mosque is one of the largest ancient mosques in Cairo Governorate, in addition to one of the most beautiful mosques decorated with Islamic decorations. When you enter the mosque, you will see its corridor from the southeastern side, a huge hall, in addition to geometric drawings and engravings that fill the spaces on the wall and columns..
Specifications and design of the Mosque of Ahmed Ibn Tulun:
You will see a large courtyard surrounded by several arcades on its four sides. The mosque was built of burnt bricks..
The mosque contains 300 columns, in addition to a wooden pulpit decorated with Islamic art and above it the foundation plaque of La Jin 696..
The area of the Mosque of Ahmed Ibn Tulun is 6 and a half acres. The mosque contains 129 windows on 4 sides of the courtyard. All the windows have been renovated and developed except for 4 windows from the era of the mosque’s construction..
In the other corridor, you will see engravings of arabesque art elements, similar to the Mashrabiya Architecture art, where each of the mosque’s arches is based on 4 pointed columns and rests on strong supports..
You will find 6 niches facing the Qiblah at the left wall of the entrance gate to the mosque, which is considered the Qiblah of the Mosque of Ahmed Ibn Tulun. The niches were made of the finest types of wood and date back to the Tulunid, Fatimid and Mamluk eras, which ruled Egypt..
You will see Kufic inscription on the fourth pillar with the name of Al-Afdal Shahinshah bin Badr Al-Jamali, dating back to the year 487 AH, which is from the era of Al-Mustansir, the Fatimid warrior of Tulunid origins..
In the middle of the mosque is a large hall that was used for religious ceremonies and celebrations to read the Holy Quran in the thirteenth century..
The Mosque of Ahmed Ibn Tulun is distinguished by its conical minaret, 40 meters high, with a polygonal cap in the shape of an incense burner. It is said that Ahmed Ibn Tulun climbed the top of the minaret while riding a horse. The minaret of the Mosque of Ahmed Ibn Tulun is the only one in Egypt in terms of design and ancient Islamic style..
One of the funny things that happened while building the mosque was that the architect who was supervising its construction made a strange move, which was “rolling a piece of paper in his hands” to explain to the workers the shape of the minaret he wanted, and in the end he got its current shape..
History of Ibn Tulun Mosque
Ibn Tulun Mosque is the oldest and best mosque in Egypt. The mosque got its name from the Mamluk prince Ahmad ibn Tulun, a soldier of the Samarra forces who was promoted to rule Egypt between 868 and 883 AD..
The construction of a mosque was a fundamental tradition of the Muslim caliphs, as their first act was always to build a mosque. However, Ibn Tulun’s first act was to establish a new capital known as Qatiya (869 AD) between Cairo and Fustat, in the middle of which he built a complex that included (a palace, a racetrack, and a large mosque that came to be known by his name), according to an inscription discovered in the mosque, it was completed in May 879 AD..
What is interesting about the history of Ibn Tulun Mosque is that Western sources, quoting Al-Maqrizi, claim that the architect of the mosque was an Egyptian Christian who suggested using alternative piers for the large number of columns needed to support the roof of the mosque. However, some Egyptian historians rejected this idea..
However, in any case, the mosque in its final form is similar to the Al-Mutawakkil Mosque in Samarra, where Ibn Tulun lived most of his life..
This can be seen in the general features of the two mosques; first, the use of brick pavements, instead of columns, to support the arcades and the roof, and also the use of the same building materials such as brick and plaster, and finally the spiral shape of the minaret which is located outside the perimeter of the mosque..
Although the Ibn Tulun Mosque was subjected to many attempts at demolition and burning, it was also restored more than once. The most prominent caliph who carried out the restoration work was Al-Mustansir Billah, who added four mihrabs made of gypsum to the mosque..
What to see during a visit to Ibn Tulun Mosque
When visiting the mosque, you will be able to tour the 162-meter-long mosque and see its main halls, such as the prayer hall, the mosque’s corridors and the main qibla mihrab, which is an arched mihrab with two adjacent columns on either side..
You can also see the “Shahan” square, which is a square extending south of the prayer hall, surrounded by covered arcades, and beautifully decorated, in addition to seeing the huge number of doors surrounding the mosque, which amount to 42 doors, half of which belong to the original mosque, and you can also see the famous spiral minaret, which is in the shape of a chandelier in the Samarra Mosque..
Visiting hours: The mosque can be visited from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm for tourism, and it can be opened during prayer times in accordance with security measures..
Ticket prices at Ibn Tulun Mosque in Cairo: Free admission
About Ahmed Ibn Tulun
Ahmad ibn Tulun is the founder of the Tulunid dynasty that existed in ancient Egypt and the Levant..
Ahmad ibn Tulun’s origins go back to the Taghzaghz tribe in Türkiye..
Ibn Tulun’s family lived in Bukhara, and his father was a slave of Noah ibn Asad, a worker in Bukhara..
His father sent a gift to Caliph Al-Ma’mun in 816 AD..
The name Toulon means full moon..
Tulun had sons, including Ahmad, whose nickname was Abu al-Abbas. Ahmad was born in 835 AD in Baghdad, Iraq..
The mother of Ahmad ibn Tulun was a slave girl called Qasim..
Ahmed was a hard worker who did not like to play and joke. He was strong and powerful, so the minister sent him to the port of Tarsus, where he spent years studying and learning..
After Tulun died, Ahmad ibn Tulun was entrusted with his father’s military duties. Due to Ahmad’s good mind and wisdom, Ahmad was appointed deputy of al-Mu’tazz and governor of Baykbak..
History of Ibn Tulun Mosque
Al-Qata’i city was founded in 870 by Ibn Tulun to be the city of Ibn Tulun and the location of his soldiers and entourage..
Since the mosque of the congregation was the center of the Islamic capitals, Ahmad Ibn Tulun wanted to build a huge mosque to replace the mosque of the city of Al-Askar because it was narrow..
Construction of the mosque began in 877 AD and was completed two years later..
The cost of the mosque was initially one hundred thousand dinars, but the cost increased to twenty thousand dinars when the mosque was completed..
Ahmad Ibn Tulun transferred scholars and reciters to the mosque.
The mosque was of great importance, so much so that Judge Bakkar bin Qutaybah prayed in it, and Al-Rabi’ bin Sulayman also studied in it..
Ahmad Ibn Tulun was one of the righteous people, as he was keen to feed the poor and needy and give large sums of money in charity, and he was even keen to pray in the mosque..
The mosque was known in the past as the Upper Mosque..
Ibn Tulun Mosque Design
The mosque comes in a suspended form, and comes with internal doors with circular steps to ascend the mosque..
The mosque is considered one of the largest mosques in Egypt..
The mosque was built using red bricks..
The mosque is square in shape and the length of the side is approximately 162 meters by 161 meters..
The mosque has an open courtyard, and the length of the side of the courtyard is 92 x 91 meters..
The mosque is surrounded by western, maritime and tribal sides..
The mosque contains iwans and there is a large courtyard in the middle. The eastern iwan is the qibla iwan and is considered one of the largest iwans in the mosque. It has 5 arcades..
The other iwans contain only two porticoes, and the mosque contains a foundation plaque for the mosque..
The materials used in the mosque are wood and mosaics, and the types of wood used include teak, Indian wood, and ebony..
The mosque used to have a pulpit, but it no longer exists today..
The mosque used to have a dome, but it burned down and the second one collapsed. The dome that exists today is a dome that was made by Sultan Lajin..
Mosque restoration operations
Restoration operations did not stop at the Ibn Tulun Mosque, and among the rulers who carried out such operations was Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah..
Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah placed copies of the Qur’an in the mosque, and replaced a dome that had been damaged by a fire..
During the Caliphate of Al-Mustansir Billah, there was a period of famine due to the spread of an epidemic in the country, and the walls of the mosque were destroyed..
In 1077 AD, Minister Badr al-Din al-Jamali came to repair what had happened to the walls of the mosque..
In 1311 AD, Caliph Al-Hafiz li-Din Allah carried out some reforms, as did Salah Al-Din Al-Ayyubi.
Among the other rulers are Sultan Al-Zahir Baybars and Hussam Al-Din Lajin..
Visiting time of Ibn Tulun Mosque
Daily from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm, admission is free
Note: Facts and secrets of the history will be added soon…
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