Madrasat wa-Qubbat wa-Bimaristan
al-Sultan Qalawun
Street Address Shari' al-Mu'izz li-Din Allah
Location Cairo, Egypt
Date 1284-85/683 AH
Style/Period Mamluk
Century 13th
Building Types educational, health care, religious
Building Usage madrasa, hospital, mosque
Part 4 Youtube tour of the Qalawun Hospital and Madrassa Complex
Part 4 Youtube tour of the Qalawun Hospital and Madrassa Complex
http://archnet.org/library/sites/one-site.jsp?site_id=2108
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| Madrasat wa-Qubbat wa-Bimaristan al-Sultan Qalawun (from Archnet) |
Plan of the hospital and madrasa complex
The complex of
Sultan Qalawun was built for the sultan by Amir 'Alam al-Din Sanjar al-Shuja'i
in 1284-5. It is includes a mausoleum,
madrasa, and a maristan (hospital). One of our best sources for the purpose and
function of the hospital complex, located on al-Mu`izz Street is given by the
historian Al-Maqrizi.
The hospital itself
is built around a central space that connected to the madrasa through a large
bay or iwan. The mausoleum's central,
domed plan is connected to the madrasa by a long entrance passage, and the plan
of both spaces is shifted to accommodate the qibla orientation.
The octagonal
structure of the mausoleum was roofed by
a dome which was destroyed in the 18th century. The current concrete dome,
which is a replica of that covering the Mausoleum of al-Ashraf Khalil ibn
Qalawun (1288), was built by Max Herz Bey in 1903. The octagonal base is
transformed into a circle by means of wooden muqarnas. The elaborate interior decoration includes
marble and painted and gilded wood, carved marble, and stucco.
Sources:
'Abd al-Wahhab,
Hasan. 1941. 'Asr al-Mamalik al-Bahriyya II. Majallat al-'Imara 3, 2:85-91.
Behrens-Abouseif,
Doris. 1989. Islamic Architecture in Cairo. Leiden: E. J. Brill.
