The Art And Architecture of Islamic Cairo

hint of the extensive accommodation that lies behind. Each madrasa
forms a discrete unit with its own sahn, fountain and qibla iwan over-
looked by ranks of student rooms. Due to the irregular plan of the
building the madrasas are unequal in size, but the two largest,
situated on either side of the qibla iwan, were dedicated to the
Hanafi and Shafi’i madhahib followed by the Mamluk class and the
bulk of the Egyptian population.
The qibla iwan is a tour de force of Mamluk design. Its decoration
is concentrated on the qibla wall dado, consisting of polychrome
panels in antique green, grey, white, buff, pink and red marble. The
mihrab is flanked by pairs of Crusader Gothic columns with gilded
capitals, supporting two pointed arches radiating with the fretwork
patterns of the joggled voussoirs. Chevrons in marble marquetry fill
the hood, and the rest of the niche is decorated with arcades of
polychrome panels. The mihrab is framed at the top with a rectangu-
lar band of gilded Naskhi, and gilding is also used to pick out the
arabesque detail in the borders and spandrels of the mihrab arcades.
The composition of the white marble minbar is similar to that in the
mosque of Aqsunqur, but here it is set against its original background,
beautifully integrated in this rich polychrome ensemble. Above the
dado, and running around all three walls of the iwan, is a magnificent
band of Kufic carved in stucco. The elegant calligraphy is beautifully
integrated into an arabesque background depicting Chinese lotus
flowers, showing further evidence of Ilkhanid influence.
Two doors with iron grilles standing on either end of the qibla
wall lead into the mausoleum. The interior space measures 21 metres
by 30 metres, and the walls are pierced at ground level with six
rectangular iron-grilled windows looking out towards the Citadel and
above: Stucco Kufic inscription in the qibla iwan of the
Sultan Hasan mosque.
The Architecture of the Bahri Mamluks 161