| Egyptian Journal of Archeological and Restoration Studies

Authors:
Salāḥ al-Dīn, W.
Tourist Guidance dept., Faculty of Arts, Ain Shams Uni., Cairo, Egypt

Abstract:
The main aim of this study is to re-date and reclassify one of the masterpieces in the Museum of Islamic art in Cairo. It carries the names of the Ten companions promised paradise applied in a type of Kufic script, which is octagonal in form. It has, so far, been dated back to the Mamluk period. It was originally found in the mosque of al-Sayyida Nafīsah. In this study, I prove that it dates back to the Ottoman period, specifically during the restoration works in the same mosque carried out by the Ottoman sovereign ʿAbdalraḥman Katḫudā. I have based my conclusion on a comparative study bet-ween the present plaque and another identical one preserved beside the Ottoman mihrab in al-Azhar Mosque having the same text, which is considered amongst his works in al-Azhar dated 1167 AH./1753 AD. In this paper, I conduct an analytical study of the style and text of the examined artifact compared with the one preserved in al-Azhar mosque and another preserved in the mosque of al-Burdīnī (1025-1038 AH.-1616-1629 AD). The study concluded that the artifact dates back to the Ottoman period, not the Mamluk, as supported by ʿAbd al-Raḥman al-Ğabartī, who mentioned that ʿAbd al-Raḥman Katḫuda restored the mosque of al-Sayyida Nafīsah and added a new qibla wall in al-Azhar mosque.

Keywords:
Octagonal tile Mamluk period Ottoman works Ottoman period

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