Author
It is likely that the engineer and construction team who built the Ashrafieh Madrasa were the ones who built this sabil. They were sent by Sultan Qaytbay from Egypt to Jerusalem to carry out the construction.
Author Original
يرجَّح أن يكون مهندس وفريق البناء الذين بنوا المدرسة الأشرفية هم الذين قاموا ببناء هذا السبيل وكان هؤلاء قد أرسلوا من قِبَل السلطان قايتباي من مصر إلى القدس لتنفيذ البناء
Publication Date
Built in 887 / 1482, and restored in 1300 / 1882 - 1883.
Type
Other
Language
Undetermined
Digital
Yes
Manuscript
No
Library
Museum With No Frontiers
Record ID
monument;ISL;pa;Mon01;18;ar
Library Location
It is located inside the Holy Mosque, 15 meters to the northeast of the Ashrafieh School, Jerusalem
Date
Built in 887 / 1482, and restored in 1300 / 1882 - 1883.
Notes
The sabil building, which is about 13 m high, consists of three sections. The first section consists of a square base with high windows opened on three sides in its walls, and a door leading into the path on the fourth, eastern side. In each corner of the building, there is a column resting on a base and ending with a horned capital with carved decorations. The second section of the sabil building, which is the middle, is the neck of the dome, or the transition area between the base and the dome. In the corners of the neck there are small pyramid-shaped supports that facilitate the transition from the upper square of the base to an octagon, and then to a twelve-sided polygon. The upper third section of the Sabil building has a high stone dome decorated with distinctive arabesque decorations. This dome is the only example of this Mamluk Egyptian art outside Cairo. The courses of the sabil were built of alternating red and yellow stones according to the architectural style called Ablaq. At the top of the building there is an inscribed inscription band that includes Qur’anic verses and a founding text written in prominent Mamluk Naskh script. The architectural and decorative building elements of this avenue are mainly inspired by the Egyptian building traditions that prevailed in the Mamluk era. Sabil Qaytbay is considered one of the most famous and most magnificent avenues of the Holy Mosque, and one of the most beautiful small domed buildings in the Holy Mosque area. This path is the best example of late Mamluk architecture in general and Cairene architecture in particular. The path is still long, providing visitors to the Holy Mosque with fresh water.
Sample Text
Yusuf al-Natsheh “Sabil of Sultan Qaytbay” in Discover Islamic Art. Museum Without Borders, 2026. 2026. https://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=monument;ISL;pa;Mon01;18;ar
