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Ibn Tulun

This place is modelled after the great mosque of samarra in Iraq.Ibn tulun built this mosque being inspired by his homeland Samarra, Iraq. Ahmad ibn tulun built this mosque to establish his wealth and power and founded the Tulunid dynasty.

Since Ibn Tulun is an open space, it brings in a lot of sun and shadows. It is built around an open square courtyard which allows natural light to travel through. Ibn tulun mosque features Samarra style- its decorations being created from carved stucco and wood.The floral representations and geometric designs on the arches reflects abbasid art.This mosque is a popular tourist attraction.

History

In 868 Ibn Tulun was sent to Egypt as governor. With four years, he established himself as an independent ruler and rose to great power. There are many stories that have took place here at this site before Ibn Tulun started his construction. One story includes Abraham almost sacrificing his son Ismail to God. The mosque has been used for several purposes. One such purpose is it was used as a shelter for pilgrims from North Africa to the Hijaz in the 12th century.

Minaret

The minaret is modeled after the minarets of Samarra, with a spiral staircase around the outside.

Main mihrab of Ibn Tulun mosque in the centre of qibla wall. Made of marble, stucco, brick, and different colored mosaics. The muslim profession of faith is inscripted in Kufic calligraphy. The columns are made of gray marble.

It is built entirely of well-fired red brick, plaster, and carved stucco. Stucco is cement-based plaster that is mixed on-site and applied wet which hardens to a very dense solid.The mosque is also built from this material.The staircase extends up to the tower 170 feet in height.

It is modeled after the minarets of Samarra, with a spiral staircase around the outside.

Prayer Niche

Inside the mosque, the main prayer niche (mihrab) indicates the qibla which the profession of faith inscripted in Kufic calligraphy and quranic verses in glass mosaics with gold and marble columns.

Interior

The interior ceiling of Ibn Tulun mosque is composed of sycamore wood.

The interior arched windows provides natural light against the hollow dome. Each pointed arch has a window and is designed with plain geometric design.

Landscape

This mosque is built on a high hill. The ziyada or empty space between the walls is approximately 26,318 sq m Outside the mosque you can see several houses were built up against the outside walls of the mosque. The topography of the mosque is surrounded by a very busy city.

The architectural elements inside of the mosque contains a prayer niche (mihrab) and a wooden minbar. The hood of the mihrab has the date of the completed construction inscripted in Kufic script.

Built in a busy area, the topography of this place consists of several houses built against the outside walls of the mosque.