Al-Rifai Mosque
Al-Rifai Mosque is one of the most majestic constructions in Egypt. It’s located in “Midan al-Qal’a” in Cairo, next to the Cairo Citadel and opposite the Mosque of Sultan Hassan. It’s known in English as the Royal Mosque. was constructed by an order from Queen Khushyar Hanim, the mother of Khedive Isma’il Pasha, in 1869 A.D. to replace the zawiya of al-Rifai (small mosque) with a massive mosque resembling the mosque of Sultan Hassan in magnitude and height. It was designed to become a prayer house and a mausoleum for the royal family “The Descents of Mohammad Ali“.
History of Al-Rifai Mosque
Al-Rifai Mosque was built on 6,500 square meters and began construction in 1868, but it stopped from 1880 to 1905 until Khedive Abbas Hilmi II resumed the work once again in 1905, So he entrusted Max Herz Bey, the Hungarian architect in charge of the Committee for the Conservation of Arab Monuments
Al-Rifai Mosque
in Cairo, to complete the construction of the mosque. Herz, aided by the Italian architect Carlo Virgilio Silvagni and advised by ‘Ali Pasha Mubarak, the Minister of Public Works under Khedive Isma’il, as a result of this impressive collaboration, completed in 1912 and considered one of the best mosques of Egypt, can’t miss during your Egypt tour packages.
The Construction of Al-Rifai Mosque
It consists of two sections, The first section is the house of worship, which consists of the Quibla Iwan,A Qibla Iwan is a grand, vaulted hall in Islamic architecture that opens onto a courtyard and faces Mecca, serving as the primary prayer space within a mosque or madrasa. It houses the mihrab (prayer niche) and is often the largest, most ornately decorated area, acting as the spiritual focal point of the building.
which is designed based on a basilican style and contains three Riwaqs circled by four marble piers supporting the pointed arches, while the ceiling is made from golden-colored wood decorations. The Mihrab used to be covered with colored marble and golden stalactites and was located in the center of the Qibla wall.
Al-Rifai Mosque
The minbar is made of wood and decorated with ebony and ivory. and is located on the right side of the mihrab. In the second section, the tombs of the royal family, as the mosque holds three domes, are the tombs of Khedive Ismail, mothers, wives, sons, and daughters. The mosque also holds the remains of Ismail, King Fouad, Farouk “The Last King of Egypt“, and the last Shah of Iran, who married one of Farouk’s sisters, The mosque also contains two mausoleums for Sheik Yehia Al-Ansary and Ali Abu-Shabak. The outer side of the Mosque is decorated with two beautiful minarets on both sides of the main entrance.
