Mamluks by the "Nile" .... The buildings of this town are Mamluks made of iwad or clay like the walls of the gardens Term applied to the architecture of Greater and of . This consists of building two thirds Egypt between 1250 and 1516. During this period the of a cubit (approximately 30 cm) in clay, then area was ruled by the Mamluk sultans based in leaving it to dry, then building above it in the Cairo. same way ... and so on until it is complete. The roofs are of wood and reeds and are generally The word 'mamluk' is an term for slave and domed or conical, in the form of cupolas of camel­ was applied to soldiers who, although non-Muslim backs, similar to the arch-shaped openings of vaults.' by birth, had been captured as children, converted Ibn Battuta's description of 1353 is not so full to Islam and trained to fight on behalf of their although he does indicate that he reached the city owners. The Mamluk sultanate had its origins in by boat and that it had a separate quarter for such slave soldiers, usually of Turkic or Mongol white merchants. He then describes the king's origin, who were used as guards by the Ayyubid palace in some detail, in particular the audience sultans and princes. Gradually the Mamluks in­ hall which may be the same as that built by Abu creased their power and by 1250 their position Ishaq al-Saheli a decade or two earlier. The audi­ was so strong that they were able to depose and ence hall is contained within the palace and consists appoint sultans. In 1260 one of these soldiers, of a square domed chamber with triple-arched Baybars, became the first Mamluk sultan starting windows in each side. The windows are filled with a tradition that was to endure for the next 250 wooden lattice work or grilles covered in silver years. and gold leaf (mashrabiyya?). lbn Khaldun probably The Mamluk sultanate can be divided into two describing the same building notes that it was periods; the first lasted from 1250 to 1382 and is 'solidly built and faced with plaster; because such known as the Bahri (sea-based) Mamluk period buildings are unknown in his [the sultan's) country'. because the dominant Mamluks were based on Obvious parallels for this building can be found in Roda island in the Nile delta. The second period the architecture of fourteenth-century North Africa from 1382 to 1517 is known as the Burji Mamluk and Spain (compare for example the Salon de! period because those in power came from the Trone in the Alhambra). Next to the palace was a Citadel in Cairo (burj is Arabic for tower). This large open area used as a or place of period· is sometimes also called the Circassian prayer. period, as most of the sultans were of Circassian The location of Mali's capital is unknown al­ origin. though it may be the site of Niani-en-Sankrani in The Mamluks were able to seize and retain Guinea occupied between the sixth and seven­ power primarily through their superior military teenth centuries. Archaeological work at the site organization and training. This was demonstrated has revealed a large complex with a fortified royal in 1260 when Sultan Baybars was able to halt compound, several residential areas, a metal-work­ the westward advance of the Mongols at the ing centre and many cemeteries. A possible mosque battle of 'Ayn Jalut in Palestine. Similarly the site and Muslim cemetery have been identified Mamluks continued to fight the Crusaders who by near the royal complex which consists of a large this time were confined to the coast of Syria. The square courtyard (20 m per side) and a smaller main battles against the Crusaders took place under circular structure. The residential structures at the Sultan Qalaoun and his son Khalil, who in 1291 site consist of roundhouses built of mud with captured the cities of Acre, Tyre, Sidon, Beirut and stone foundations. Tripoli ending the Crusader presence in the See also: Djenne, Manding, West Africa Levant. reflects the confidence de­ Further reading: rived from its military successes and is one of the H. Haselberger, 'Architekturskizzen aus der Republic Mali most distinctive Islamic styles of building. The Ergebnisse der DIAFE 190709 des Frobenius Institut', main source for Mamluk architecture was the build­ International Archives of Ethnography 50(1): 244-80, ings of the Ayyubids and in some senses the 1966. ). Hunwick, The mid-fourteenth-century capital of Mali', Mamluk style is simply a development of that of Journal of African History 14(2): 195-206, 1973. the Ayyubids. However, the Mamluks were also

172 Mamluks influenced by other styles, in particular Italian and (alternating layers of different colours, or shades of Andalusian architecture. masonry); this was used in Syria in Ayyubid times As with Ayyubid architecture there is a signifi­ but is not found in Egypt until 1300 (it is possible cant difference between Syrian and Egyptian that this idea may have Italian origins). Mashrabi ~ Mamluk architecture, which can be explained by yya screens of turned wood were also used for the availability of materials and differing traditions interiors. of building. In Egypt brick remained an important material of construction up until the fifteenth cen­ Structural Elements tury, whereas in Syria it was seldom used. Other differences can be detected in decorative details In addition to surface decoration many structural such as the type of arch used in mould­ elements were developed into decorative features. ings (in Egypt they are angular points whereas in Openings, in particular doorways, became subjects Syria they have a rounded profile). Another factor for elaboration and frequently consisted of a monu­ which created different styles was Cairo's position mental frame or panel and a recessed niche for the as capital city which meant that its buildings tended door covered with a muqarnas vault. Another to be grander and more highly decorated than example of such elaboration is the joggled those of Syria. is interesting in this where the stones of an arch were cut so as to respect as its position midway between Damascus interlock and provide increased strength to the and Cairo made it susceptible to influences from arch. Usually the effect is enhanced by using ablaq both Syria and Egypt. techniques. Sometimes this becomes purely surface There are, however, several features which are decoration when the actual are not inter­ characteristic of buildings throughout the area cut and there is simply an interlocking fa~ade. under Mamluk control. These can be considered Another decorative effect created with openings under three headings: surface decoration, layout was the horsehoe arch which was introduced and planning, and structural elements. during this period. Buildings were generally roofed with cross vaults although sometimes plain barrel vaults were Surface Decoration used. In Jerusalem an elaborate form of vault called The most characteristic feature of Mamluk architec­ the folded cross vault was developed from Ayyu­ ture (and art in general) is the use of heraldic bid military architecture. This is basically a cross blazons. These are usually round discs divided into vault with a large circular hole in the roof over three fields with various emblems (e.g. cup, horn, which a wooden clerestory or other feature could disc, etc.) set into the middle. Each sultan and be added. were common in buildings of group of Mamluks had their own blazon which this period and could be made from a variety of would be applied to any objects belonging to the materials including baked brick, wood and stone. group including buildings. As well as providing Wooden domes were often used in houses and dating evidence these blazons give a useful insight palaces because they were lighter and easier to into how the Mamluk regime operated. Another build, although mausoleums tended to be covered related decoration employed on buildings was with brick or stone domes. In fourteenth-century monumental calligraphy in Naskhi script, this Cairo, masonry domes carved with de­ would usually state the name and rank of a build­ signs became a fashionable method of covering ing's founder. tombs. The usual surface for both blazons and calligra­ phy is ashlar masonry, although plaster and wood Layout and Planning are also sometimes used. Other decorative motifs employed are geometric and floral patterns which The growth of cities during the Mamluk period are often interlaced. Ceramic tile decoration is rare, meant that most types of building, even palaces, although coloured glass mosaics and inlaid marble were located within the fabric of a city. The re­ are occasionally used for and other places sult of this was that buildings were often built of special importance. One decorative feature to on an irregular-shaped plot because of the short­ spread from Syria to Egypt is the use of ablaq age of space. Many Mamluk buildings which

173 Mamluks

Doorway of Serai al-Takiyya. Mamluk period, Jerusalem (after Burgoyne)

seem to be square and symmetrical are built on fai;:ade. This was overcome by use of recessed irregular ground plans. The architects were able to entrances, domes, and projecting corners which make the buildings appear square by a variety of have a cumulative effect of a staggered fai;:ade techniques such as horizontal lines (ablaq) and which can be viewed from the side. controlled access (passageways) which distort per­ The military nature of Mamluk rule affected spective. A related problem was that narrow streets society in many ways although it did not have tend to detract from the visual impact of a building much effect on architecture. The main reason for

174 Manda this was that so many fortresses had been built by was built on the orders of Sultan al-Nasir Muham­ the Ayyubids and Crusaders that there was gener­ mad in 1336 as a huge complex with over fifty ally no need to build new castles when existing shop units, two bath houses and a khan. Each shop fo rtifications could be repaired. Also with the adv­ is a small cross-vaulted room opening onto the ance of the Mongols the nature of warfare changed covered street with another room (for storage or so that speed and communications became more accommodation) located above with a separate important than the defence and capture of strong­ access. Although the highest concentration of suqs holds. As a consequence of this the Mamluks inves­ and khans was in the cities there was also an ted instead in an efficient system of communication extensive network of roadside khans and caravan­ based on small forts, fire beacons and pigeon lofts. serais. Some of these buildings were quite large as This system was kept separate from the usual trade they were not restricted by the competition for network of khans and and was re­ space evident in city buildings. Khan Yunis in garded as part of the Mamluks' military organization. Ghaza is a huge complex built in 1387 on the main road between Egypt and Syria. The plan comprises a huge central courtyard (perhaps with a building Building Types in the centre) with accommodation and storage Some of the most distinctive buildings of the units around the sides and a domed mosque with a Mamluk period are the many religious foundations. next to the gateway. Most cities already had Friday so that See also: ablaq, joggled voussoirs, these were seldom built during this period. The mashrabiyya Great Mosque in Tripoli is one exception to this and was built soon after the city was taken from Further reading: the Crusaders, it has a traditional plan based around There are several books devoted to Mamluk cities; the a central courtyard with single arcades on three most useful of these are: M. H. Burgoyne and D. Richards, Mamluk Jerusalem: An sides and a double arcade on the side. More Architectural Study, Essex 1987. typical of the period are the many religious institu­ ). C. Garlin, ). Revault, B. Maury and M. Zakariya, Palais tions such as madrassas, zawiyas and khanqas built et maisons du Caire: Epoque mamelouke, Paris 1982. to counter the spread of Shi'ism. In Cairo these H. Salam-Liebech, The Architecture of Mamluk Tripoli, Harvard 1983. were often built to a cruciform plan which devel­ Other useful works are: oped from the four- madrassa where each M. Abu Khalaf, 'Khan Yunnus and the khans of Palestine', iwan represents one of the schools of law. Many Levant 15: 178-86, 1983. of these buildings also had some political pur­ ). C. Kessler, The Carved Masonry Domes of Cairo, London pose, thus they were often built as memorials to a 1976. J. Sauvaget, La Paste aux Chevaux dans /'empire des particular Sultan or were used as centres for train­ Mam/auks, Paris 1941. ing officials. During this period it was common for the tomb of the founder to be incorporated into Manda the building, this applied to mosques, madrassas and even hospitals. Island trading port on the north Kenya coast in East Madrassas became a common feature in most Africa. cities and were used to train administrators. Jeru­ This is the largest early Islamic complex in the Lamu salem in particular seems to have been developed archipelago and one of the largest on the coast. as a training ground for Mamluk clergy and offi­ The earliest occupation seems to have been in the cials and the area around the Haram was exten­ mid-eighth century and to have continued until sively developed ( was too far from Cairo the sixteenth when it was noted by the Portuguese. to be developed in this way and in any case was The earliest structures at the site were made not directly under Mamluk control). with timber posts and walls of wattle and daub. The stability provided by the Mamluk regime During the tenth century the settlement expanded was a stimulus to trade and numerous suqs, khans on to an area of land reclaimed from the sea by sea and caravanserais can be dated to this period. The walls built from huge coral blocks. Sometime in Suq al-Qattanin (Cotton Market) in Jerusalem is the tenth century the wooden structures were one of the best preserved Mamluk city markets. It replaced with stone buildings made out of reef

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