Al-Hakim Mosque

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Mosque of al-Hakim Masjid al-Ḥākim bi Amr Allāh
مسجد الحاكم بأمر الله
Interior courtyard of the mosque
Religion
Affiliation	Islam
Region	Cairo
Year consecrated	1013 CE
Status	Active
Location
Location	Muizz Street
Country	Egypt
Location in Cairo
Geographic coordinates	30°03′16″N 31°15′49″E / 30.054571°N 31.263742°E / 30.054571; 31.263742Coordinates: 30°03′16″N 31°15′49″E / 30.054571°N 31.263742°E / 30.054571; 31.263742
Architecture
Type	mosque
Style	Fatimid
Founder	Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah
Completed	992 CE
Specifications
Dome(s)	1
Minaret(s)	2

The Mosque of al-Hakim (Arabic: مسجد الحاكم بأمر الله, romanized: Masjid al-Ḥākim bi Amr Allāh), nicknamed al-Anwar (Arabic: الانور, lit. 'the Illuminated'),^[1] is a major Islamic religious site in Cairo, Egypt. It is named after Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah (985–1021), the sixth Fatimid caliph and 16th Ismaili Imam. This mosque originally started being built by al-Aziz, the son of Mu'izz, and the father of al Hakim, in 990 A.D.^[2] It was named after Al Hakim because he had finished and established it.^[3]

This Fatimid style mosque was built over the span of twenty years with considerable communal effort. It is located in Islamic Cairo, on the east side of Muizz Street, just south of Bab Al-Futuh (the northern gate).

Construction[]

Al-Hakim Mosque is also known as Al-Jamiʿ al-Anwar. Its construction was initiated by Al-Aziz Billah in the year 990 and the following Friday prayers took place in it. Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah and his overseer Abu Muhammad al-Hafiz 'Abd al-Ghani ibn Sa'id al-Misri,^[4] resumed construction work in year 1003. Finally, its inauguration took place in Ramadan of year 1013.^[5][6] It measured 120 meters by 113 meters when it was finished and was more than double the size of the Azhar mosque.^[7] The Mosque was constructed at a cost of 40,000 dinars after which another 5,000 dinars were spent on furnishings. At the time of inauguration, Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah permitted a celebratory procession which made its way from al-Azhar to al-Anwar and from al-Anwar back to al-Azhar.

The facades and minarets of the mosque are made from stone, while the rest of the structure is made of brick.^[4] The interior of the mosque is an open courtyard with parallel columns, forming a rectangle shape all around. In late 1010, Al Hakim ordered for the minarets to be at an angle and that the columns of the masjid to be very tall to cover the inside of the mosque.^[8] The mosque's walls were symmetrically arranged within each other. The mosque had originally more than thirteen entrances^[9] hence the open space courtyard, one can enter from wherever. Masjid Al Hakim is very similar in architectural design with the Mosque of ibn Tulun: It consists of an irregular rectangle with four arcades supported by piers, surrounding the courtyard. An unusual feature is the monumental entrance with its projecting stone porch.^[2] The area that encases the mihrab is constructed to draw attention to the importance. It is both wider and taller, and is marked with a dome that is carried on squinches.^[4]

Architecture[]

The mosque itself is built with multiple arches and windows in the courtyard to allow lots of natural lighting in, however it also has lighting fixtures on the arches to help illuminate once it gets dark. Although, it does have so many windows and arches, it still has a lot of privacy because the outside of the structure is practically solid after many of the original entrances were walled up. It is located on a busy street so people are forced to pass by it which shows the use of routes. Moreover, being located on the city wall shows strength since such a fortified and massive structure was standing there. The structure also has so much ornament that just makes it that much more appealing. The building is covered in calligraphy--some of it in the same color of the building and the rest of it in gold. While the building may not have too much color, it still has several floral carvings scattered throughout that make it look more interesting. There are a bunch of chandeliers all throughout the inside, and it is lined with a carpet that has a white and green pattern on it. It also has several archways and columns that are all throughout the structure.

Map of the mosque

The minarets[]

The most spectacular feature of the mosque are the minarets on either side of the facade. The Northern minaret is 33.7 meters long topped by a cylindrical body and above it lies a "Mabkhra" style head, very famous design in the days of the Fatimids. The other minaret is 24.7 meters with an octagonal body above it and the "Mabkhra" head at the end. The original section of the northern minaret is the base and the cylindrical body. Alternatively, the southwestern minaret is composed of a square base that ends in an octagonal form.^[10]

Originally the two minarets stood independent of the brick walls at the corners. These are the earliest surviving minarets in the city and they have been restored at various times during their history. The massive salients were added in 1010 to strengthen their structure, and the northern minaret was incorporated into the city wall. At first, the mosque was independent from the northern city wall, however, it became part of it when the mosque expanded.^[11] Inside, these strange structures are hollow, for they have been built around the original minarets, which are connected with brackets and can still be seen from the minaret below. A picture of an old minaret from years ago from masjid Al Hakim is displayed below in black and white to the right. It is the mabkhara finial of northern minaret from this Masjid.^[6]

History of the minarets[]

Inscriptions on minarets

These minarets are important for Islamic Architecture because multiple minarets in the eleventh century were hard to come by unless the mosques were in Mecca, Medina, Damascus, or Jerusalem. Moreover, the shapes of the minarets were different and attention worthy because they were typically pencil shaped up until this point. The minarets are asymmetrical and the one on the northern wall was taller than the other one.There are many scholarly interpretations as to why this mosque had two minarets, but the most notable, would be that the mosque was intended to be a of a pilgrimage destination. There was once very noticeable inscriptions on the exterior of the minarets so that anyone passing by could easily read it. These inscriptions are done in floriated Kufic and matched the sand-like color of the mosque itself.^[12]

Creswell. The Muslims Architecture of Egypt.

One of the minarets

Al Hakim Mosque before renovations under taken by Mohammed Burhanuddin.

Kufic Inscriptions[]

One of the artistic elements of the Mosque are Quranic inscriptions done in floriated Kufic script – many of the inscriptions are preserved while many are lost. Of those lost, many have been replaced or restored. Due to various restorations made, the Kufic styles have differed from time to time. The mosque is said to have had twelve thousand feet of Kufic adornment. Kufic inscriptions feature on all four sides of each of the five bays of the bayt-al-salat (Home of Prayer) to the north and south of the Majāz. The square bases of the three domes and the Majāz wall underneath the windows also carry the Kufic gypsum band of Quranic inscriptions. At the top, colonnades of the arches of the mosque are embellished with a gypsum band of floriated Kufic inscriptions of the Quran which approximately averages to 52cms in width.^[5]

Name plate[]

Name plate Anwar mosque

There was name plate engraved on stone located at the top of entrance gate facing inside of Mosque. This plate got damaged with time and, one piece of it was found during renovation work. When enquired with archeological authorities few more pieces of the plate were recovered. With further research the details about missing piece of the name plates were collected, replica of missing part were made and, complete name plate was reinstalled at its original location by Dawoodi Bohra Spiritual Leader, Dr. Syedna Mohammad Burhanuddin.(as per photo placed). Few pieces in the name plate which looks old and having dark color are the original ones. Fourth line ending part and beginning of fifth line of the name plate mention the name of Imam "Haakim amar-i-llah" in Kufi Arabic scripts.

Another name plate of marble (photo placed) is installed just below the main name plate during renovation work, having details about the history of the Mosque and its renovation work done.

Post-Fatimid era[]

At various times, the mosque was used as a prison for captured Franks (i.e. Latin crusaders) during the Crusades, as a stable by Saladin, as a fortress by Napoleon, and as a local school. As a result of this the mosque had fallen out of use.^[8] The condition of the structure was as such that few portion of the mosque is left out as shown in the photo of ruins placed in gallery. In 1980 ACE/1401 AH, the mosque was extensively refurbished in white marble and gold trim by Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin the head of the Dawoodi Bohra, an international shia sect based in India. Remnants of the original decorations, including stucco carvings, timber tie-beams, and Quranic inscriptions were restored as part of the renovations. His intent to restore the ancient Al-Hakim Mosque as a place of worship in contemporary times necessitated a lighting solution that provided this important functionality to the mosque and did so in a manner that paid tribute to the Fatimid tradition of illumination and its aesthetics. The miraculous emergence of the mishkat or small lantern from the niche of the richly decorated façade of Al Jami al Aqmar provided that solution. The niche in which the lantern motif was found has also been compared to the mihrab niche of Al Azhar mosque, the same also now found in Al-Hakim mosque, which has a central motif that resembles a large lamp or lantern.^[9][2]

History[]

Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah was the third Fatimid caliph in Cairo, Egypt and was most known for his harsh persecution of his followers. He had also destroyed several churches throughout his rule. While all this remains true, it is indisputable that he did a lot architecturally for Cairo. Once Al-Hakim took over the mosque project upon his father's demise, it became uncertain who had patronized the interior of the mosque. The interior of the mosque was in ruins for many centuries until it was renovated.^[12]

Present[]

At present the mosque is a place of worship. Its unique minarets attracts local and foreign tourists.

Gallery[]

• 

  Courtyard fountain

• 

  Main mihrab

• 

  Entrance gate

• 

  encryption over entrance

• 

  courtyard an overall view

• 

  qibla

• 

  chandelier near qibla

• 

  Minaret de la Mosquée El-Hakem

• 

  Mosque of Al-Hakim in 1878

• 

  Window of Anwar showing Miskas (lantern just above hexagonal figure) design used in Fatemi mosque

• 

  Phanus (Fatimid lamp) original carvings in stone at left wing of the façade of Aqmar.

• 

  Outside of the mosque

See also[]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Al-Hakim Mosque.

• List of mosques in Cairo
• Lists of mosques
• List of mosques in Africa
• List of mosques in Egypt
• List of Historic Monuments in Cairo
• History of medieval Arabic and Western European domes

References[]