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Al-Azhar Mosque
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No other mosque in Cairo surpasses Al-Azhar,” the
flowering “in tradition and importance. Soon after its
foundation in 970 A.D. it became the site of university
studies, which have continued there to the present day
and one which the fame of the al-Azhar mosque as a
center of Islamic scholarship is based. Instruction in
the classic subjects, such as theology and Islamic law,
was not extended to include modern sources, for instance
in medicine, economics and engineering until 1961.
The Fatimid nucleus of the building which is of the
courtyard mosque type, under-went many changes and
extensions in the centuries after it was first erected.
The main entrance, called the barbers gate leads to the
western portal of sultan Qait Bey with its minaret and
thus to the great central courtyard. It is surrounded by
an elegant colonnade of ogee arches, its facades
lavishly ornamented with alternating stucco rosettes and
blind niches.
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The Mortuary temple of
Chephren |
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Beyond the eastern side of the courtyard lies the great
prayer hall, measuring 4000 M. constructed as a pillared
hall with five aisles in the original Fatimid building.
The aisles run parallel to the qibla wall, facing Mecca.
In the 18th century the hall was enlarged by the
addition of the tour more aisles facing east and a
second prayer niche was also added to complement the
central mihrab of the original building.
Many of the marble columns were looted from buildings of
classical antiquity and re-used here. This great prayer
hall was not only the place where the faithful gathered
for Friday prayers , as they still do today , but also
served as the main lecture hall, although it is no
longer generally used for that purpose groups of
students being instructed by their teachers can still
seen there today
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