Al Rifai Mosque
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Overview about Al-Rifai Mosque
One of Egypt’s most majestic buildings is the Al-Rifai Mosque. It is situated in Cairo’s “Midan al-Qal’a” neighbourhood across from the Sultan Hassan Mosque and Cairo Citadel. The mosque was built in 1869 A.D. on an order from Queen Khushyar Hanim, the mother of Khedive Isma’il Pasha, to replace the zawiya of al-Rifai (small mosque) with a substantial mosque resembling the mosque of Sultan Hassan in magnitude and height. This mosque is known in English as the Royal Mosque. The “Descents of Mohammad Ali” royal family’s mausoleum and prayer house were intended to be built there.
History of Al Rifai Mosque
When Khedive Abbas Hilmi II restarted construction on the 6,500 square metres Al-Rifai Mosque in 1905, it had been stopped between 1880 and 1905. He then entrusted Max Herz Bey, the Hungarian architect in charge of the Committee for the Conservation of Arab Monuments in Cairo, to finish the mosque’s construction.
Herz received assistance from Italian architect Carlo Virgilio Silvagni and advice from Ali Pasha Mubarak, Khedive Isma’il’s Minister of Public Works. Al-Rifai Mosque, one of the best mosques in Egypt, was finished in 1912 as a result of this outstanding partnership, and it should not be missed as part of any Egypt vacation package.
The Constructions of Al Rifai Mosque
The Al-Rifai Mosque is divided into two sections. The first section is the house of worship, which includes the Quibla iwan, which was built in the basilican style and contains three Riwaqs, as well as four marble piers that support pointed arches. The ceiling was decorated with golden-coloured woodwork. The Minbar was made of wood and ornamented with ebony and ivory, and it was situated on the right side of the Mihrab. The Minbar was once cased with colourful marble and golden stalactites and is situated in the centre of the Qibla wall.
As the mosque contains three domes, the tombs of Khedive Ismail, his mother, his wives, and his sons and daughters are located in the second part. The mosque also features two mausoleums for Sheik Yehia Al-Ansary and Ali Abu-Shebak. The mosque also houses the remains of Ismail, King Fouad, Farouk, “The Last King of Egypt,” and the last Shah of Iran, who was married to one of Farouk’s sisters. On either side of the main entrance, two lovely minarets adorn the outside of the mosque.
