Mosque of Amr Ibn Al-As
To view 3D Click here
|
Quick Facts
|
Mosque of Amr Ibn Al-As (Arabic: جامع عمرو بن العاص) is the first mosque built in Egypt and Africa and It was constructed by Amr Ibn Al-As in 642 AD as the center of the newly-founded capital of Egypt, Fustat.
The location for the mosque was the site of the tent of the commander of the conquering army, general Amr Ibn Al-As. One corner of the mosque contains the tomb of his son, Abdullah. Due to extensive reconstruction over the centuries, nothing of the original building remains, but the rebuilt Mosque is a prominent landmark, and can be seen in what today is known as "Old Cairo". It is an active mosque with a devout congregation, and when prayers are not taking place, it is also open to visitors and tourists.
Amr (ALLAH Bless With Him) was the Arab general who conquest Egypt to fight against the Roman and He was hailed by the Copts as a liberator. Then he was appointed governor by the Caliph Umer (ALLAH Bless With Him). Amr founded a new capital instead of Alexandria, and that was Al-Fustat.
The location for the mosque was the site of the tent of the commander of the conquering army, general Amr Ibn Al-As. One corner of the mosque contains the tomb of his son, Abdullah. Due to extensive reconstruction over the centuries, nothing of the original building remains, but the rebuilt Mosque is a prominent landmark, and can be seen in what today is known as "Old Cairo". It is an active mosque with a devout congregation, and when prayers are not taking place, it is also open to visitors and tourists.
Amr (ALLAH Bless With Him) was the Arab general who conquest Egypt to fight against the Roman and He was hailed by the Copts as a liberator. Then he was appointed governor by the Caliph Umer (ALLAH Bless With Him). Amr founded a new capital instead of Alexandria, and that was Al-Fustat.
History of Mosque
It was completely rebuilt in 673 by Muawiya, who added four minarets to each of the mosque's corners and doubled its area in size. The addition of these minarets allowed the call to prayer to be heard from every corner, and taken up by other nearby mosques. Abd Al-Aziz Ibn Marwan added an extension to the mosque in 698 and once again doubled the mosque's area. In 711 a concave prayer niche was added to replace the flat one. In 827, it had seven new aisles built, parallel to the wall of the Qibla, the direction that Muslims were to face during prayer. Each aisle had an arcade of columns, with the last column in each row attached to the wall by means of a wooden architrave carved with a frieze.
In 827, governor Abdullah Ibn Tahir during the reign of Caliph Al-Mamoun made more additions to the mosque. It was enlarged to its present size, and the southern wall of the present day mosque was built.
Fatimid period, the mosque was ruined as a result of Al-Fustat Fire which took place in 1175 A.D. When A-Fustat was burnt by Shawer, the Vizier of the Fatimid Caliph Al-Adid, to prevent the crusaders from invading Al-Fustat , and that fire continued 54 days.Therefore Saladin rebuilt it and renovated it in 1179 A.D. In the 14th, century Burhan Al-Din Ibrahim Al-Mahalli paid the costs of restoring the mosque. In 1303, Amir Salar restored the mosque after an earthquake. He also added a stucco prayer niche for the outer wall of the mosque, which is now gone.
In the 18th century one of the Mamluk leaders, Mourad Bey, destroyed the mosque because of dilapidation and rebuilt it in 1796, before the arrival of Napoleon's French Expedition to Egypt. Mourad decreased the number of rows of columns from seven to six, and changed the orientation of the aisles to make them perpendicular to the Qibla wall. It was also probably at this time that the current remaining minarets were added. In 1875, the mosque was again rebuilt by Muhammad Ali of Egypt. In the 20th century, during the reign of Abbas Helmi II, the mosque underwent another restoration. Parts of the entrance were reconstructed in the 1980s.
The only part of the mosque's older structure which can still be seen are some of the architraves, which can be viewed along the southern wall of the Mosque. These were probably added during reconstruction in 827.
The present structure consists of a large roughly square enclosure measuring approximately 120m on each side. The great variation in the thickness and design of the walls testifies to the building's long history of development and restoration.
In 827, governor Abdullah Ibn Tahir during the reign of Caliph Al-Mamoun made more additions to the mosque. It was enlarged to its present size, and the southern wall of the present day mosque was built.
Fatimid period, the mosque was ruined as a result of Al-Fustat Fire which took place in 1175 A.D. When A-Fustat was burnt by Shawer, the Vizier of the Fatimid Caliph Al-Adid, to prevent the crusaders from invading Al-Fustat , and that fire continued 54 days.Therefore Saladin rebuilt it and renovated it in 1179 A.D. In the 14th, century Burhan Al-Din Ibrahim Al-Mahalli paid the costs of restoring the mosque. In 1303, Amir Salar restored the mosque after an earthquake. He also added a stucco prayer niche for the outer wall of the mosque, which is now gone.
In the 18th century one of the Mamluk leaders, Mourad Bey, destroyed the mosque because of dilapidation and rebuilt it in 1796, before the arrival of Napoleon's French Expedition to Egypt. Mourad decreased the number of rows of columns from seven to six, and changed the orientation of the aisles to make them perpendicular to the Qibla wall. It was also probably at this time that the current remaining minarets were added. In 1875, the mosque was again rebuilt by Muhammad Ali of Egypt. In the 20th century, during the reign of Abbas Helmi II, the mosque underwent another restoration. Parts of the entrance were reconstructed in the 1980s.
The only part of the mosque's older structure which can still be seen are some of the architraves, which can be viewed along the southern wall of the Mosque. These were probably added during reconstruction in 827.
The present structure consists of a large roughly square enclosure measuring approximately 120m on each side. The great variation in the thickness and design of the walls testifies to the building's long history of development and restoration.
