I'm taking an art history course for the first time. As I'm sure you gathered from the title, the course is about Cairo's art and architecture. Most weekends, which are Friday and Saturday here, the class goes to various mosques and monuments in order to see what we're studying.
Last weekend I went to the Nilometer (861) and the Mosque of Ibn Tulun (876-879). The Nilometer is a monument on Roda (Rawdah) Island, and it's the oldest original structure in Egypt after the Arab conquest. A pit was dug into the rock, and a column was placed in it. (For the record, I realize that I'm using the passive voice--sorry.) The pit had three openings to the Nile at different levels, and when the Nile flooded, water would rush into the pit. The column in the center showed how high the water was. If the water was too high, there would be devastating floods or too low--drought, and of course, there was a happy middle ground that signalled a prosperous harvest. The Nilometer was practical because taxes were based on the harvest, and thus, the flood.
I also visited the Mosque of Ibn Tulun last weekend. Like the Nilometer, Ibn Tulun was built when the Abbassids controlled Egypt. (Ibn means son, bint means girl or daughter.) Anyway, this is the oldest mosque in Egypt in its original form. The Mosque of Amr is the oldest, but it was demolished and rebuilt several times. Ibn Tulun is a massive mosque! These are its noteworthy features.
Last weekend I went to the Nilometer (861) and the Mosque of Ibn Tulun (876-879). The Nilometer is a monument on Roda (Rawdah) Island, and it's the oldest original structure in Egypt after the Arab conquest. A pit was dug into the rock, and a column was placed in it. (For the record, I realize that I'm using the passive voice--sorry.) The pit had three openings to the Nile at different levels, and when the Nile flooded, water would rush into the pit. The column in the center showed how high the water was. If the water was too high, there would be devastating floods or too low--drought, and of course, there was a happy middle ground that signalled a prosperous harvest. The Nilometer was practical because taxes were based on the harvest, and thus, the flood.
I also visited the Mosque of Ibn Tulun last weekend. Like the Nilometer, Ibn Tulun was built when the Abbassids controlled Egypt. (Ibn means son, bint means girl or daughter.) Anyway, this is the oldest mosque in Egypt in its original form. The Mosque of Amr is the oldest, but it was demolished and rebuilt several times. Ibn Tulun is a massive mosque! These are its noteworthy features. - It is an imitation of the Great Mosque of Samarra (modern-day Iraq)
- It has a ziyada, a corridor, around it on three sides
- Its cresting, upper decoration on the walls, resembles paper dolls
- The stone minaret has its staircase outside.
- Its pillars are engaged; in other words, the pillars' corners are rounded.
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