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Concept
Qalawun complex
Summary
The Qalawun complex (مجمع قلاون) is a massive pious complex in Cairo, Egypt, built by Sultan al-Mansur Qalawun from 1284 to 1285. It is located at Bayn al-Qasrayn on al-Mu'izz street and like many other pious complexes includes a hospital (bimaristan), a madrasa and mausoleum. Despite controversy surrounding its construction, this building is widely regarded as one of the major monuments of Islamic Cairo and of Mamluk architecture, notable for the size and scope of its contributions to legal scholarship and charitable operations as well as for the richness of its architecture.
The Qalawun Complex was built over the ruins of the Fatimid Western Palace, with several halls in the Palace. It took Qalawun half a decade to construct his monument after he consolidated his rule and fought off the Mongols in Syria. The structure is situated in the heart of Cairo, on the prestigious Bayn al-Qasrayn street, and has been a center for important Islamic religious and court ceremonies and rituals for centuries, stretching from the Mamluk dynasty through the Ottoman Empire.
This complex is one of many Mamluk buildings that made Cairo a flourishing metropolis in the 13th through 16th centuries. It is one of many pious complexes (fully-integrated multifunctional complexes often centered around the tomb of religious figures or patrons that included turbas or funerary complexes, khanqahs, and other buildings) that served many purposes including exalting the patron through displays of their wealth, piety, and legitimacy.
The funerary complex of Sultan al-Mansur Sayf al-Din Qalawun, including both madrasa and mausoleum reportedly took 13 months to build, and was under construction from 1284 to August 1285. This fact is remarkable considering the size and scope of the complex. The hospital took less than six months to complete, the mausoleum and madrasa each taking about four months.
Official source
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