Architecture of Egypt
There have been many architectural styles used in Egyptian buildings over the centuries, including
Ancient Egyptian architecture is best known for its monumental
Following the
In the early 19th century,
Ancient
Ancient Pharaonic period
Ancient Egypt's architecture included pyramids, temples, enclosed cities, canals, and dams. Most buildings were built of locally available materials by paid laborers and craftsmen.[3][4][5][6] Monumental temples and tombs, built in stone and typically on terrain beyond the reach of the annual Nile floods, are the main structures to have survived to the present day.[7][8] The most common type of stone used throughout the country was limestone, with sandstone also commonly used and quarried further south.[9][10][11] Where harder stone was needed, granite was widely employed,[9] with basalt also used for pavements.[11]
Monumental complexes were usually fronted by massive pylons, approached via processional avenues (also known as a dromos) flanked by sphinx statues, and contained courtyards and hypostyle halls.[12] Columns were typically adorned with capitals decorated to resemble plants important to Egyptian civilization, such as the papyrus plant, the lotus, or palm.[7][12] Obelisks were another characteristic feature. Walls were decorated with scenes and hieroglyphic texts either painted or incised in relief.[13][7]
The first great era of construction took place during the
The construction of great buildings was revived during the
Domestic architecture was typically built with mudbrick, wood, and reed mats, and the main towns were situated on the agriculturally rich floodplains of the Nile. As a result, little of this everyday architecture has survived.[7][8] Some idea of their form is known thanks to three-dimensional models that were left in tombs, which suggest that they resembled vernacular building types still found in the Nile valley and other parts of Africa today.[16]
Greco-Roman period
During the
The capital city of
Many well-preserved temples in Upper Egypt date from this era, such as the Temple of Edfu, the Temple of Kom Ombo, and the Philae temple complex.[7] While temple architecture remained more traditionally Egyptian, new Greco-Roman influences are evident, such as the appearance of Composite capitals.[7][18] Egyptian motifs also made their way into wider Greek and Roman architecture.[12]
Much of the period's funerary architecture has not survived,[7] though some of Alexandria's underground catacombs, shared by the city's inhabitants to bury their dead, have been preserved. They feature a hybrid architectural style in which both classical and Egyptian decoration are mixed together. The Catacombs of Kom El Shoqafa, begun in the 1st century AD and continuously enlarged until the 3rd century, are one notable example and can be visited today.[20]
Late Antiquity and Byzantine period
Coptic architecture, which dates from the Late Antique or Byzantine period, is continuous with classical traditions.[18] Egypt was also the site of the earliest Christian monasteries,[22] which became numerous by the end of the 4th century AD.[23] Almost no traces of Alexandria's ancient churches have been found,[18] but some exceptional examples of Early Christian architecture have been preserved in the Nile Valley, such as the Red Monastery (founded in the 4th century)[21]: 11 and the White Monastery (c. 440)[22] near Sohag. The continuity between earlier classical and later Coptic architecture can also be seen in the remains of major urban centres such as Hermopolis Magna, where the same craftsmanship appears in both pagan and Christian buildings from the 3rd or 4th centuries.[24] At the Kharga Oasis in the Western Desert, the El Bagawat necropolis contains tombs and small chapels from both the pre-Christian and early Christian periods, ranging roughly from the late 3rd to 8th centuries.[25] The Chapel of the Exodus is one of the oldest at this site,[26] built around the early 4th century,[25] while a nearby church, possibly dating to the 5th century, may be one of the oldest remains of a church in Egypt.[26]
Remains of churches from the 4th and early 5th centuries show that they were built as
Early Coptic buildings also demonstrate a continuing tradition of rich decoration, including Corinthian and Byzantine "basket" capitals[22] and wall paintings.[28] Extensive remains of painted decoration, some of it in early Byzantine style, can be found in the chapels of the Bagawat Necropolis – particularly in the Chapel of Peace from the 5th to 6th centuries and, in less sophisticated form, in the 4th-century Chapel of the Exodus[26] – and in the triconch of the Red Monastery – painted in various phases from the 5th to 13th centuries.[21] Many other examples of painted and sculptural decoration from ancient churches are preserved today at the Coptic Museum in Cairo.[29][30]
At
Medieval
After the
Early Islamic period
After the conquest of 640, the Arab conquerors established a new city called
After reaching its apogee, the Abbasid Caliphate, which ruled most of the Muslim world, became fragmented into regional states in the 9th century which were formally obedient to the caliphs but de facto independent.[43] In Egypt, Ahmad ibn Tulun established a short-lived dynasty, the Tulunids, and built himself a new capital, Al-Qata'i, near Fustat. Its principal surviving monument is a large congregational mosque, known as the Ibn Tulun Mosque, which was completed in 879. It was strongly influenced by Abbasid architecture in Samarra and remains one of the most notable and best-preserved examples of 9th-century architecture from the Abbasid Caliphate.[44] The structure consists of a large open courtyard surrounded on four sides by roofed aisles divided by rows of pointed arches supported by large rectangular pillars. The arches and windows are decorated with carved stucco featuring geometric and Samarran-style vegetal motifs.[45]
Fatimid period
In the early 10th century, the
The Fatimids made wide usage of the "keel" arch and also introduced muqarnas (stalactite-like niches) in the shapes of squinches (a technique for transitioning from a square space below to a circular dome above).[47] Floral, arabesque, and geometric motifs were the main motifs of surface decoration, carved in stucco, wood, and sometimes stone. Keel arch-shaped niches, with a centrally-radiating fluted motif, also appear and became a characteristic of later architectural decoration in Cairo.[48] Figural representations, generally taboo in Islamic religious architecture, were used in the architectural decoration of Fatimid palaces.[49]
Ayyubid period
Saladin dethroned the Fatimid caliphs in 1171 and inaugurated the
In 1176, the construction of the Cairo Citadel began under Saladin's orders.[53] It was to become the center of government in Egypt until the 19th century, with expansions and renovations.[40] The Citadel was completed under sultan Al-Kamil (r. 1218–1238).[54] All of al-Kamil's fortifications can be identified by their embossed, rusticated masonry, whereas Saladin's towers have smooth dressed stones. This heavier rustic style became a common feature in other Ayyubid fortifications.[55] After the domination of the Shi'a Fatimids, the Ayyubid rulers were also eager to promote the restoration of Sunni Islam by building Sunni madrasas.[51] The first Sunni madrasa in Egypt was commissioned by Saladin near the important Mausoleum of Imam al-Shafi'i in Cairo's Southern Cemetery.[56]
The end of the Ayyubid period and the start of the
Mamluk period
The
The cruciform or four-iwan floor plan was adopted for madrasas and became more common for new monumental complexes than the traditional hypostyle mosque, although the vaulted iwans of the early period were replaced with flat-roofed iwans in the later period.[64][65] The decoration of monuments also became more elaborate over time, with stone-carving and polychrome marble mosaic paneling (including ablaq stonework) replacing stucco as the most dominant architectural decoration. Monumental decorated entrance portals became common compared to earlier periods, often sculpted with muqarnas. Influences from Syria, Ilkhanid Iran, and possibly even Venice were evident in these trends.[66][67] Minarets, which were also elaborate, usually consisted of three tiers separated by balconies, with each tier having a different design than the others. Late Mamluk minarets, for example, most typically had an octagonal shaft for the first tier, a round shaft on the second, and a lantern structure with finial on the third level.[68][69] Domes evolved from wooden or brick structures, sometimes of bulbous shape, to pointed stone domes with complex geometric or arabesque motifs carved into their outer surfaces.[70] The peak of this stone dome architecture was achieved under the reign of Qaytbay in the late 15th century.[71]
Ottoman and early modern period
Ottoman period
After the Ottoman conquest of 1517, new Ottoman-style buildings were introduced; however, the Mamluk style continued to be repeated or combined with
In the 19th century, under the de facto independent rule of
Khedivate period and European influence
One of Muhammad Ali's grandsons,
These projects exemplified a trend of
In the late 19th century and early 20th century a "neo-Mamluk" style appeared, partly as a nationalist response against Ottoman and European styles, in an effort to promote local "Egyptian" styles (though the architects were sometimes Europeans).[75][80] Examples of this style are the Mausoleum of Tawfiq Pasha (1894),[80][86] the present Sayyida Nafisa Mosque (1895),[80] the Sayyida Aisha Mosque (1894–1896),[80] the Museum of Islamic Arts building (1903),[87] the Al-Rifa'i Mosque (1869–1911),[75][88] and the Abu al-Abbas al-Mursi Mosque in Alexandria (1929–1945).[88]
New suburbs and towns around Cairo were created in the early 20th century and experimented with different styles.
A "neo-Pharaonic" style also appeared in the early 20th century and was used by some architects. The Mausoleum of Saad Zaghloul (1928–1931), designed by Mustafa Fahmi (d. 1972), is one example.[84] Though Egyptian Revival architecture was popular in Europe and North America during the 19th century, its popularity as a national style in Egypt itself was ultimately limited.[93]
Modernism and present day
20th century modernism
From the 1930s, Modernism began to dominate Cairo's architecture, replacing the earlier revivalist styles.
Towards the mid-20th century, some Egyptian architects began challenging the dominance of Western styles and ideas.
There were repeated efforts in the 20th century to address the booming population through large-scale urban developments and housing projects in various locations. A number of new satellite cities were founded around Cairo with this intention.
21st century
Postmodernism did not take hold in Cairo in the last decade of the 20th century as it did elsewhere; at least not consciously.[104] At the turn of the millennium, historicist or pseudo-historicist trends began to reappear, as seen in the Supreme Court building (1999), which references ancient Egyptian architecture, and the Faisal Islamic Bank Tower (2000), which references historic Islamic architecture.[104]
In Alexandria, the idea of paying homage to its famous ancient library with a new building was floated as early as 1972. This was eventually realized as a massive new library, the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, which opened in 2002. It is shaped like an inclined cylinder or disk, with the outer walls made of granite carved with characters from all the world's alphabets.[105]
In the tourist center of Sharm El Sheikh, the Al Sahaba Mosque, completed in 2017, is a fusion of Ottoman, Mamluk, and Fatimid styles. It was designed pro bono by Egyptian architect Fouad Tawfik Hafez.[106][107][108]
Conservation challenges
Much of Egypt's 19th-century and 20th-century architecture has been vulnerable to demolition and redevelopment. Modernist architecture is often seen as having little cultural value and receives relatively little attention or documentation, despite the large volume of construction activity in cities like Cairo during the modern period.[109] Egyptian law also requires buildings to be at least a hundred years old before being eligible for heritage status, leaving much of the country's more recent heritage unprotected.[110]
In recent years, Alexandria's older urban heritage, much of it dating from the colonial period, has come under threat from poorly-regulated demolitions and development.[111][112][113] In Cairo, a large number of modern heritage buildings have disappeared, ranging from former villas to large-scale buildings and city blocs.[114] Parts of Cairo's historic Northern Cemetery (also known as the City of the Dead), which contains funerary architecture built across many centuries, are also under threat from government infrastructure projects. Parts of the necropolis, mainly dating from the early 20th century, were demolished in 2020. The plans have been criticized by some scholars, architects, and archeologists.[115][116] In Luxor, the historic Tawfiq Pasha Andraos Palace, built in 1897 near the ancient Luxor Temple, was demolished in 2021, sparking criticism and debate.[117][118][119]
References
Citations
- ^ Behrens-Abouseif 1989, pp. 58–62.
- ^ Wildung 2009, p. 26.
- ^ a b "Pyramids of Giza | National Geographic". History. 2017-01-21. Archived from the original on February 19, 2021. Retrieved 2023-02-02.
- ^ Associated Press in Cairo (2010-01-11). "Great Pyramid tombs unearth 'proof' workers were not slaves". the Guardian. Retrieved 2023-02-02.
- ISBN 978-1-5017-2761-0.
- ISBN 978-0-19-802851-2.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Ancient Egyptian architecture | Types, History, & Facts | Britannica". Encyclopedia Britannica. 21 October 2022. Retrieved 2023-01-10.
- ^ a b Wildung 2009, pp. 7–9.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-521-45257-1.
- ISBN 978-0-7148-4200-4.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-486-14494-8.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-19-105385-6.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-14-051323-3.
- ^ Wildung 2009, p. 149.
- ISBN 978-1-107-24502-0.
- ^ Wildung 2009, pp. 8–9.
- ^ Wildung 2009, p. 198.
- ^ a b c d e McKenzie 2007, pp. 1–5.
- ISSN 0037-9808.
- ^ McKenzie 2007, pp. 192–194.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-300-21230-3.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-14-051323-3.
- ^ Meinardus 2002, p. xx.
- ^ a b McKenzie 2007, p. 232.
- ^ ISBN 978-90-04-34487-7.
- ^ a b c Meinardus 2002, p. 256.
- ^ McKenzie 2007, pp. 232–233.
- ISBN 978-977-424-691-3.
- ^ Meinardus 2002.
- ISBN 978-977-416-007-3.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-135-94206-9.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-4051-7935-5.
- ISBN 978-1-58839-109-4.
- ISBN 978-1-4422-6340-6.
- ^ S2CID 247508246.
- ^ Bloom & Blair 2009, pp. 84–85.
- ^ Behrens-Abouseif, Doris (2014). "Between Quarry and Magic: The Selective Approach to Spolia in the Islamic Monuments of Egypt". In Payne, Alina (ed.). Dalmatia and the Mediterranean: Portable Archaeology and the Poetics of Influence. p. 402.
- ^ Bloom & Blair 2009, pp. 105, 147.
- ^ Williams 2018, p. 7.
- ^ a b Raymond 2000.
- ^ O'Kane 2016, p. 2.
- ^ Behrens-Abouseif 1989, p. 50.
- ISBN 978-0-582-40525-7.
- ^ Ettinghausen, Grabar & Jenkins-Madina 2001, pp. 31–32.
- ^ Petersen 1996, p. 44.
- ^ a b Behrens-Abouseif 1989, p. 58–75.
- ^ Bloom & Blair 2009, pp. 105–109.
- ^ Behrens-Abouseif 1989, p. 10.
- ISBN 978-90-04-16165-8.
- ^ Raymond 2000, p. 80.
- ^ a b Yeomans 2006, pp. 104–105
- ^ Petersen 1996, p. 26
- ^ Yeomans 2006, p. 107
- ^ Yeomans 2006, pp. 109–110
- ^ Yeomans 2006, p. 111
- ^ Williams 2018, p. 153.
- ^ a b Ruggles, D.F. (2020). Tree of pearls: The extraordinary architectural patronage of the 13th-century Egyptian slave-queen Shajar al-Durr. Oxford University Press.
- ^ Behrens-Abouseif 2007, p. 114.
- ^ a b Williams 2018.
- ^ a b c Blair & Bloom 1995, p. 70.
- ^ Blair & Bloom 1995, pp. 70, 85–87, 92–93.
- ^ Raymond 2000, pp. 118–121, 135–137.
- ^ a b Behrens-Abouseif 2007.
- ^ Behrens-Abouseif 2007, pp. 73–77.
- ^ Williams 2018, p. 30.
- ^ Williams 2018, pp. 30–31.
- ^ Blair & Bloom 1995, pp. 83–84.
- ^ Williams 2018, p. 31.
- ^ Behrens-Abouseif 2007, p. 79.
- ^ Behrens-Abouseif 2007, pp. 80–84.
- ^ Williams 2018, p. 34.
- ^ a b Williams 2018, p. 17.
- ^ a b Blair & Bloom 1995, p. 251.
- ^ JSTOR 1523134.
- ^ ISBN 978-977-416-095-0.
- ^ Behrens-Abouseif 1989, p. 168–170.
- ^ Williams 2018, p. 264.
- ^ Williams 2018, pp. 137, 194, 226, 240, 264–265.
- ^ Behrens-Abouseif 1989, p. 167–170.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-119-06857-0.
- ^ Raymond 2000, p. 309–311.
- ^ a b Raymond 2000, p. 309–318.
- ^ Williams 2018, p. 8-9, 18-19, 260.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-19-530991-1.
- ^ Elshahed 2020, p. 86.
- ^ Williams 2018, p. 289.
- ^ Williams 2018, pp. 172–173.
- ^ a b O'Kane 2016, pp. 311–319.
- ^ Elshahed 2020, p. 34.
- ^ a b c Elshahed 2020, pp. 34, 310–311.
- ^ Elshahed 2020, p. 178.
- ^ Elshahed 2020, p. 319.
- ^ Elshahed 2020, p. 46.
- ^ Elshahed 2020, p. 35.
- ^ a b Elshahed 2020, pp. 36–38, 43.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-14-051323-3.
- ProQuest 2328013156.
- ISBN 978-1-000-78789-4.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-8108-8025-2.
- ^ a b Elshahed 2020, p. 135.
- ^ Raymond 2000, p. 315.
- ISBN 978-1-107-00108-4.
- ISBN 978-0-674-07245-9.
- ^ a b Elshahed 2020, pp. 41–42.
- ^ "Bibliotheca Alexandrina | History & Facts | Britannica". Encyclopedia Britannica. 19 September 2019. Retrieved 2023-01-11.
- ^ Rafik, Farah (2022-05-14). "Sharm El Sheikh's 'Al Sahaba Mosque' Blends Spirituality and Tourism". Egyptian Streets. Retrieved 2023-01-27.
- ^ "In photos:10 facts you may not know about the newly inaugurated 'Sahaba Mosque' in Sharm El-Sheikh". Egypt Independent. 2017-03-28. Retrieved 2023-01-27.
- ^ "Al Sahaba Mosque | Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt | Attractions". Lonely Planet. Retrieved 2023-01-27.
- ^ Elshahed 2020, pp. 24–31.
- ^ Elshahed 2020, pp. 24–25.
- ^ Rollins, Tom (19 February 2015). "Understanding Alexandria's embattled urban heritage". Middle East Eye. Retrieved 2023-01-11.
- ^ Sherief, Abdel-Rahman (2013-04-23). "Architectural heritage under threat in Alexandria - Daily News Egypt". Daily News Egypt. Retrieved 2023-01-11.
- ^ Kingsley, Patrick (6 February 2014). "Demolition of Alexandria architectural gem begins". The Guardian. Retrieved 2023-01-26.
- ^ Elshahed 2020, p. 25.
- ^ Español, Marc (7 April 2022). "Threat of demolition looms over Cairo's historic necropolis". Al-Monitor. Retrieved 2023-01-26.
- ^ "Egypt denies destroying ancient Islamic cemeteries to build bridge". Arab News. 2020-07-21. Retrieved 2023-01-26.
- ^ Ayyad, Ibrahim (6 September 2021). "Destruction of 120-year-old palace sparks anger in Egypt - Al-Monitor: Independent, trusted coverage of the Middle East". Al-Monitor. Retrieved 2023-01-26.
- ^ Abu Zaid, Mohammed (2021-08-26). "Historic Egyptian palace being razed as it is on verge of collapse: Official". Arab News. Retrieved 2023-01-27.
- ^ "Demolition of Tawfiq Andraos Palace - Egypt - Al-Ahram Weekly". Ahram Online. 24 August 2021. Retrieved 2023-01-27.
Sources
- Behrens-Abouseif, Doris (1989). Islamic Architecture in Cairo: An Introduction (PDF). Leiden, the Netherlands: E.J. Brill. ISBN 978-90-04-09626-4.
- Behrens-Abouseif, Doris (2007). Cairo of the Mamluks: A History of Architecture and its Culture. Cairo: The American University in Cairo Press. ISBN 978-977-416-077-6.
- Blair, Sheila; Bloom, Jonathan M. (1995). The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250–1800. Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-06465-0.
- Bloom, Jonathan M.; Blair, Sheila S., eds. (2009). "Architecture". The Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture. Vol. 1. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-530991-1.
- Elshahed, Mohamed (2020). Cairo Since 1900: An Architectural Guide. American University in Cairo Press. ISBN 978-977-416-869-7.
- Ettinghausen, Richard; Grabar, Oleg; Jenkins-Madina, Marilyn (2001). Islamic Art and Architecture: 650–1250. Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-08869-4. Retrieved 2013-03-17.
- McKenzie, Judith (2007). The Architecture of Alexandria and Egypt, c. 300 BC to AD 700. Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-11555-0.
- Meinardus, Otto F. A. (2002). Two Thousand Years of Coptic Christianity. American University in Cairo Press. ISBN 978-977-424-757-6.
- O'Kane, Bernard (2016). The Mosques of Egypt. American University of Cairo Press. ISBN 978-977-416-732-4.
- Petersen, Andrew (1996), Dictionary of Islamic Architecture, Routledge, ISBN 978-0-415-06084-4
- Raymond, André (2000) [1993]. Cairo. Translated by Wood, Willard. Harvard University Press. ISBN 978-0-674-00316-3.
- Wildung, Dietrich (2009). Egypt: From Prehistory to the Romans. Taschen. ISBN 978-3-8365-1030-1.
- Williams, Caroline (2018). Islamic Monuments in Cairo: The Practical Guide (7th ed.). The American University in Cairo Press. ISBN 978-977-416-855-0.
- Yeomans, Richard (2006), The Art and Architecture of Islamic Cairo, Garnet & Ithaca Press, ISBN 978-1-85964-154-5
Further reading
- Briggs, Martin S. (1921). "The Architecture of Saladin and the Influence of the Crusades (A. D. 1171-1250)". The Burlington Magazine for Connoisseurs. 38 (214): 10–20. JSTOR 861268.
- Grabar, Oleg (1961). "Review of The Muslim Architecture of Egypt". Ars Orientalis. 4: 422–428. JSTOR 4629167.
- El-Ashmouni, Marwa M.; Salama, Ashraf M. (2022). Influence and Resistance in Post-Independence Egyptian Architecture. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-1-000-61764-1.
External links
- Digital copies of Majallat al-Imarah (1939 to 1949), the modern architecture magazine founded by Sayyed Karim, hosted at ArchNet