Sultan Hasan Mosque, Cairo is the best embodiment of the Mamluk architecture and till date it is the largest mosque in the whole world. The soft morning sunlight lights up the mosque. Like the other mosques in Cairo this too is a complex. It is popularly called the Madrassa of Sultan Hussan and also enjoys the status of a congregational mosque for Friday sermons. Besides serving as a school the Sultan Hasan Mosque, Cairo has a mausoleum and an iiwan.
Sultan Hassan, the son of the great Mamluk Sultan, Al Nasser Mohamed Ibn Qalawoun was the founder of this Madrassa Mosque. It is believed that the sultan hired important engineers from across the world to construct the mosque. Built in 1363, the Sultan Hasan Mosque, Cairo is located near the Citadel. Specifically speaking the mosque is situated in the Salah El Din Square also known as the Qala's Square. The monument is colossal measuring 150 meters long and 36 meters high.
The Sultan Hasan Mosque, Cairo still has two surviving minarets. The tallest minaret rises to a height of 84 meters. The intention behind building this was to house some four hundred students. The second minaret is as tall as 68 meters. The original minaret is octagonal throughout which is the characteristic of the minarets in most of the mosques at Cairo. There are three façades of the mosque. The western side of the mosque opens towards a large commercial complex.
The horizontal mass one of the facades is given extra emphasis. This is done by dividing the wall into a honeycomb like structure. There is a black basalt stone embedded in the façade. This is a characteristic that is reflected in most of the buildings in the area. Perhaps the black stone symbolizes the Ka'ba in Mecca. The corners of the facades are connected with finely carved columns and stalactite capitals. The motif which appears as a twisted engraving echoes the Byzantine tradition.
The mosque also has a conspicuous dome. However, the original dome does not survive. The original dome was bulbous, built of wood and covered with lead as also in the dome of Imam Shafi'i. At present the dome that adorns the mosque is beautiful but quite different from the original version. There is in the Sultan Hasan Mosque, Cairo a projecting stalactite cornice in carved stone that runs along the façade something that is rarity indeed.
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