The Ayyubid Period

Cairo saw a return to traditional Sunni Islam. The time period was the Ayyubid. One result of it was that each urban area could only host one Friday chapel. During this time, orthodox law and religion were spread. The basements of madrasas and khanqas were used to carry it out. Imam Shafci’s madrasa was among the first ones. Salah al-Din created the organization. Sadly, the madrasa could not be saved. However, Imam Shafi’s tomb is still standing today. It is enormous and broad. Greater in size than any tomb built by the Fatimids. Underneath the main dome, it has a square footprint of about 15 meters. The mausoleum of Imam is decorated with geometric designs.

Fatimids built a number of memorials in order to celebrate saints of the Prophet’s family. The rulers of this period damaged the palaces of the Fatimid Caliphs. But they didn’t manage to destroy the temples, because they were sacred to all Muslims. They wanted to strengthen Sunnism and used madrasas to do it. They built their shrine for Imam Shafi’i. He was the author of one of the four rights of Islamic law. His mausoleum was one of the largest of its period. It could be used as a symbol of reinstatement of Sunni Islam in Egypt. The mausoleum of Imam Shafi’i is one of the masterpieces of Cairo woodworks.

The mausoleum

For several centuries, the mausoleum of Imam al-Shafi{i (d. AD 820) has been the most beloved and popular of Cairene temples. Pious visitors gather at this place to pray. Tourists believe that the mausoleum is one of the most important historical places. Crowds of beggars still press against its iron grille each Friday to deposit small requests and letters; to sit and read in the cool darkness of the tomb under its high dome; and to visit with friends and family, pray, and receive the saint’s blessing.

The mausoleum is a sober and touching area. It is an admired place for the religious life of the city. At this place there are two basements. The first one was built by the Ayyubid Sultan Salah al-Din in 1180. It is interesting to know that he was known as Saladin in the West. The second building was established by his follower, al-Malik al-Kamil, in 1211.

Saladin’s construction is not survived nowadays. Only three physical elements remain. They are a marble column at the head of the grave,1 the teak cenotaph mentioned above, and the foundation inscription.

Al-Shafi’I’s mausoleum was one of the largest domes in the Islamic world. The question is what a reason to build such a big dome was. What was it about the city of Cairo, or the grave of this scholar, that required monumentalization to such a degree? It is also a question if it was due to the authority of Imam Shafi’i or it meant something elese, more complicated. The evidence submits that al-Kamil’s monumental reconstruction was aimed to provide a dynastic mausoleum for himself and his family. If so, it was probably concerned only secondarily, if at all, with doctrinal matters. Its architecture and decoration imply to express not much in the way of ideology. Al-Kamil’s building is first and foremost a demonstration to the strength and tenacity of local style in Ayyubid Cairo.

Actually, the understanding of the meaning of the mausoleum’s aim is personal. Someone can see it as a symbol of Sunni revival in Egypt. And someone can see only historical monument. It depends on our perception, our understanding of its history, its historiography and our knowledge of religious conflict of its period.

Fig. 1. The mausoleum of Imam Shafi’i. The exterior. From: Behrens-Abouseif, Doris. 1989. Islamic Architecture in Cairo: An Introduction. Leiden; New York: E.J. Brill, 86.

The Interior

The interior of the mausoleum of Imam Shafi’i is complicated. It represents a lot of styles. The lower part of the walls, marble panels and prayer are considered to be attributed to Sultan Qaytbay’s late-fifteens-century restorations. Amir Ali Bey al-Kabir is sure to attain the painting and transitional zone of the dome in the second half of the eighteenth century. Decorations and beams are wooden.

The figure of the dome resembles that of al-Salih, also Ayyubid. There weren’t any similar constructions in the late Mamluk period. Speaking about Ayyubid period, it looks more extraordinary than usual. In the Fatimid period shapes were developed into more complicated.

Sultan al-Ghuri is mentioned in an inscription. He is supposed to renovate the dome. He may have covered it with green tiles. The present doorway is not original. It must have been on the arbor of the prayer alcoves. There is a great example of a coffered ceiling in the mausoleum of Imam Shafi’i.

The cenotaph is known to be one of the greatest masterpieces in Cairo. It has a signature of a person who made it. The marble column is original. The name and date of death of Imam Shafi’i are mentioned there. There is a second wooden cenotaph in the dome. It’s made for the mother of Sultan al-Kamil, who was a builder of mausoleum. Unfortunately, it is less well preserved. Salah al’Din’s wife and son are also buried in the mausoleum. But the places are not marked by cenotaphs. He himself is buried in Damascus.

Conclusion

The mausoleum of Imam Shafi’i is one of the masterpieces of Cairo. It was built in Ayyubid period. Though it has features of that period, the construction is quite unusual. The exterior is less complex than the interior.

A lot of discussions concerning the mausoleum are provoking even now. People can’t find a common reason of foundation such a large and impressive building. Some researchers think that it was built in order to strengthen Sunnism. Some of them believe that it had some other symbolical meanings.

In general, several outstanding historical personalities are buried in the mausoleum of Imam Shafi’i.

Bibliography

Behrens-Abouseif, Doris. 1989. Islamic Architecture in Cairo: An Introduction. Leiden; New York: E.J. Brill.

Petersen, Andrew. Dictionary of Islamic architecture. London; New York: Routledge, 1996.

Mulder, Stephennie. 2006. The Mausoleum of Imam al-Shafi’i. In Muqarnas: An Annual on the Visual Culture of the Islamic World, XXIII, 15-46.