Zuweila minarets
Above the Fatimid gate.
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A large Mamluk mosque at Bab Zuweila, built by Sultan al-Muayyad Shaykh between 1415 and 1421 on the site of a prison where he had been held before becoming sultan; he vowed that if he survived he would turn it into a mosque, and he kept his word. Its most striking feature is the pair of slender minarets built on top of the towers of the Fatimid Bab Zuweila, now among the most famous sights on old Cairo's skyline. At its entrance is a huge decorated bronze door brought from the madrasa of Sultan Hassan. Inside, arcades surround a courtyard, the finest being the prayer hall with its painted and gilded wooden ceiling and marble mihrab, alongside the sultan's mausoleum with its decorated dome. From the roof and the tops of the minarets there is a superb view over the domes and minarets of historic Cairo. Entry to the mosque is free outside prayer times, while climbing the minarets is usually done on the Bab Zuweila ticket. It stands at the southern end of al-Muizz Street, a fitting end to a walk along it.
Above the Fatimid gate.
From Sultan Hassan's madrasa.
Cairo's domes and minarets.
Al-Muizz Street, beside Bab Zuweila, Darb al-Ahmar
Bab ZuweilaOne of three surviving gates of the Fatimid city wall, standing at the southern 1 minute walk4.6
Wikala of al-GhuriA Mamluk merchants' inn built by Sultan Qansuh al-Ghuri in 1504 and 1505, counte5 minutes walk
Al-Ghuri ComplexA Mamluk complex built by Sultan Qansuh al-Ghuri, the second-to-last Mamluk sult5 minutes walk
Museum of Islamic ArtThe most important museum of Islamic art in the world by collection, and yet mos6 minutes walk4.5
Al-Azhar MosqueThe oldest working university in the world and one of the oldest mosques in Egyp7 minutes walk4.7Al-Muayyad Shaykh was jailed on this spot before he took power and vowed to build a mosque there if freed; as sultan he tore down the prison and built it.