Imam Hussain Mosque in Cairo
Imam Hussain Mosque in Cairo
Imam Hussein bin Ali Mosque in Cairo, Egypt is a mosque located in Old Cairo in the neighborhood named after the Imam (Hussein neighborhood), and next to the mosque there is also the famous Khan al-Khalili and Al-Azhar Mosque.
The mosque was constructed in 549 AH, or 1154 AD, during the Fatimid dynasty under the direction of Vizier Al-Saleh Tala'i. It has three white marble doors that overlook Khan Al-Khalili, as well as a Green Door close to the dome.
As per the narratives of certain Egyptian historians, it is claimed that the reason for such a naming of the mosque is the burial of the head of Hussein bin Ali in its premises. These accounts state that at the beginning of the Crusades, the ruler of Egypt, the Fatimid Caliph, feared that the head would be harmed in its first place in the city of Ashkelon in Palestine, so he sent for the head to come to Egypt, and the head was brought to Egypt and buried in its current location and the mosque was built on it.
There are five rows of arches on marble columns throughout the structure. Its mihrab was constructed in 1303 AH using tiny pieces of colored faience rather of marble, and it had a wooden pulpit beside it. A third door opened to the waste chamber, which was built in 1311 AH, and two entrances led to the dome.
Constructed in the Gothick Castle in red sandstone the mosque is cylindrical in shape and on the western tribal corner of the mosque is a minaret which has been constructed in the design of the Ottoman minarets. The minaret is also cylindrical in design. The mosque has three sides of entrance in addition to a door the western side has an entrance that leads to a courtyard with an ablution station, there is also a door on the tribal side, and thanks to seaward access, another door is located on the sea side of the mosque.
