The Art And Architecture of Islamic Cairo

(1468–96). Here the inlaid luxury of metalwork finds its correspondence
with inlays of ivory, bone, ebony, cedar and redwoods. Two of
the finest minbars of the period belong to Sultan Qa’it Bay. One is
in his funerary complex in the Eastern Cemetery and the other is
in the Victoria and Albert Museum. The form of the these minbars
assumed a broadly uniform design: triangular in shape, with
canopies adorned with projecting tiers of muqarnas crowned with
bulbous finials like those on contemporary minarets. The origin of
the Victoria and Albert minbar is uncertain. Creswell attributed it to
Qa’it Bay’s madrasa at Qalat al-Kabsh, which has a modern wooden
minbar. The Victoria and Albert minbar (c. 1470) is remarkable for
its richness of design and colour, with its dark wooden inlay picked
out with finely carved ivory arabesques. Its sides are made up of
patterns of grooved strapwork radiating from sixteen-pointed stars
with small ivory panels filling the various polygonal interstices. Of
the same period is a well-preserved minbar in the mosque of Amir
Qijmas al-Ishaqi (1494–5), one of Qa’it Bay’s amirs. The design here
is very similar to that of the Victoria and Albert minbar, but the
bosses at the centre of the radial patterns give the surface more
relief, and bone is used as a substitute for ivory.
A third notable minbar of Qa’it Bay is in the khanqah of Sultan
Faraj ibn Barquq in the Eastern Cemetery. Unlike the others, this is
made of stone and expresses the virtuosity of stone carving that
reached its peak during the Qa’it Bay era. It is an elegant structure
leaning against the qibla wall with remarkable patterns radiating from
sixteen-sided rosettes on the triangular side panels. Reverberating
from the centre of these rosettes is an immensely complex network
of lines that terminate at the edge, forming half rosettes. A fine
arabesque is carved between these lines but it is the geometrical forms
that dominate the field. The balustrade panels are decorated with
alternating stellar patterns and arabesques, and the square side panels
under the seat of the minbar are carved with Naskhi script. There is an
open space, normally filled by rectangular panels, under the seat
between the triangular side sections and the qibla wall. This adds
lightness to the structure and contributes to its leaning aspect. Four
columns carved with chevrons carry three elegant arches, each
shaped like a fleur-de-lis, and supporting a canopy crowned with a
beautifully carved bulbous finial.
The geometric ingenuity of Cairene design is also demonstrated
in the mashrabiyya lattice-work that characterizes so much of Egypt’s
domestic architecture. In the mosque its use was limited, but this
form of turned woodwork was employed in the screens of the Salih
above: Minbar of Sultan Qa’it Bay, in the Victoria
and Albert Museum.
The Decorative Arts of the Ayyubids and Mamluks 181