Ibn Tulun Mosque

The Importance of Ibn Tulun Mosque

Ibn Tulun Mosque is able to manifest the beautiful essence of Islamic culture in the most majestic manner. The mosque is highly significant as it is the best-preserved mosque in Egypt! Further, it’s one of Cairo's oldest intact functioning Islamic monuments and the home to an unbelievable amount of history and the purest examples of classical Islamic architecture.

Ibn Tulun Mosque had a profound influence on the development of European architecture beyond Islamic boundaries. It was the first-ever recorded instance in the architectural history of the systematic adoption of piers to carry the arcades and the roof as an alternative to columns.

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The History of Ibn Tulun Mosque

Ibn Tulun Mosque was constructed by Ahmed Ibn Tulun who ruled Egypt from 868 to 883 A.D. under the rule of the Abbasid Caliph. After taking control of Egypt, he created a new city called Al-Qata’i on a rocky outcrop said to be the landing location of Noah’s Ark. The construction of a palace complex, a hippodrome, large mosque named after him was completed In May 879 C.E.

The mosque was the first building that the pointed arch was used in a manner both constructively and systematically. Elements such as the pointed arch, the wall battlements, and the piers became essential ingredients of Gothic architecture.

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Ibn Tulun Mosque Location

Following the Ibn Toulon Mosque map, it’s located within Ahmed Ibn Toulon Sq, at Toulon, El Sayeda Zeinab, in Cairo Governorate!

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Ibn Tulun Mosque Unique Interiors and Sections

The first section is the praying hall, which holds the mesmerizing mihrab and minibar! The second section is the beautifully decorated courtyard. The internal decoration of the mosque is truly enchanting as some of the decoration patterns can be traced back to the Hellenic and Sassanian eras! On the windows and the arcades are a combination of floral and geometrical patterns.

Ibn Tulun Mosque has magical calligraphy on the high section of the walls, the internal frames of the windows, and the mihrab. The unique minaret is, also, modeled after the minarets of Samarra, with a spiral staircase around the outside. The mosque was restored and reconstructed several couples across history, notably between 1296 AD and 1299 A.D, and most recently in 1890 AD.

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Ibn Tulun Mosque Facades are of Iraqi Roots

Ibn Tulun Mosque was built on 26,318 SQM, which makes it the third-largest mosque in the world. Ibn Tulun drew inspiration from the construction and design of Samarra, an ancient mosque in Iraq! It was also built in a Samarian style common with Abbasid construction. The mosque has a square shape design of 162 meters in length and a total number of 42 doors in a way that feels the most fabulous!

Acting like beddings, keeping the mosque’s holy interiors secured from the lengths of the streets, the mosque’s facades consist of fascinating stucco! It’s a type of ornament delivered from Iraq or Iran! Stucco can be spotted soaking up the majority of the mosque’s construction; it’s mixed together with the mosque’s structure from arches and soffits, inside and out! The stucco comes in aligned or random shapes of what look like tree leaves! All and more mirror a hard-to-undo relationship between Egypt and the Iraqi country!

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About Ahmed Ibn Tulun, to Whom the Mosque Was Devoted

Took his first breath back in Bagdad, on September 835, and said his last goodbye to the world in Egypt, on March 884, this is the life record of Ahmed Ibn Tulun, whom the mosque commemorates! Ahmed Ibn Tulun is a gem figure in Ibn Tulun Mosque history; he was the one who built the infrastructure of the Ṭūlūnid Dynasty! However, young Ahmed Ibn Tulun was held captive and left at the mercy of the Abbāsid caliph!

Later on, he learned theology in Tarsus City to prove his power even more! In 868, he was upgraded to a lieutenant position in the Egypt Government’s service! When coming to Egypt, Ahmed Ibn Tulun was exposed to the official headquarters of authority that he struggled to lay within his firm grasp! Nonetheless, he was a vice governor and a successful role model!

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The Deal You Can Get Visiting Ibn Tulun Mosque

The mosque is really one of a kind, not only historically and spiritually but also in the way it’s toured! Touring the mosque does not come empty-handed! If anything, visiting the mosque will bring you a brand-new site to visit besides! Gayer-Anderson Museum is an artistic piece of construction you’ll be offered as an extra on your Ibn Tulun visit!

The museum comes with unique value and luxurious aesthetics that are worth being paired with the mosque and its glory! It has a largely distinctive location; close to the mosque’s walls! The Gayer-Anderson Museum, side by side with Ahmed Ibn Tulun Mosque, are two blissful sites that happened to participate in filming The Spy Who Loved Me, featuring James Bond, for the multiple ornamented decorations and pieces of antiques inside!

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The Ibn Tulun Mosque’s Unique Position Among Its Peers

More Information about Tulun Mosque is presented in being the most ancient and highly-protected mosque all over Egypt! It was put into construction at the hand of Ahmed Ibn Tulun, a once-used-to-be soldier belonging to the Samarra military and a prominent model in ruling Egypt over the period between 868 and 883AD!

Western studies show the mosque was established thanks to an Egyptian following the Christian Faith! The Egyptian architect came up with an idea; build a number of ports to replace the mosque’s column for more support to the magnitude of its roof span! However, Fikri turned a blind eye to its proposal as being a hint at mixing Christian and Islamic roots together!

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Conclusion

Our agency has been the one and only, since 2004, to offer tailored tours in Cairo to travelers, each of which was created with tons of wonders include in the background! Our agency will make you tour the endless alleys and corners of the Islamic world in a way that’ll bring peace to your body! A visit to Ibn Tulun Mosque is our perfect chance to show how can fun, entertainment, and grace be combined together! We, also, will show you facts about the Ahmed Ibn Tulun Mosque while left hypnotized under its pacifying atmosphere!