A quarterly newsletterdevoted to the preservation

of architectural heritage

WELFARE ASSOCIATION

Old City of Jerusalem Revitalization Program Issue 7 May 2003

Al-Quds: • Walls • Gates • Markets • Fountains

• Soup Kitchen • Sufi Zawiyyah • Ribat Ala' al-Din • St. Anne's Church

•Jewish Quarter • 'Umari Mosque • Mamilla Cemetery • Glimpsing History

Contents

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Al-QudsHeritage and Life:

The Old City of Jerusalem

Revitalisation Plan

One of the Welfare Association’s main objectives in establishing a special programme dedicated to the revitalisation of the Old City of Jerusalem in 1994, was to create a nucleus for a comprehensive, diverse and integrated development process. Such a process, it was hoped, would not only promote the preservation of Jerusalem cultural heritage, but also stimulate socio-economic regeneration of the Old City and improvement of the living conditions of residents.

At the same time that Welfare implemented the restoration and rehabilitation of historic buildings and monuments, it also created a database for the Old City based on extensive sectoral studies and surveys of the economic, social, environmental and institutional conditions conducted by sector specialists. Survey results enabled the preparation of a comprehensive development plan, a master plan, to revitalise the Old City, and provide a technical reference for researchers, professionals and agencies interested in Jerusalem heritage and life.

The multi-step process was designed to include a variety of expert opinions and community input, and began with the establishment of a core team in late 1998. A multi-disciplinary planning team conducted sector studies. The data was analysed, both individually and collectively, through regular meetings and workshops and then each sectoral expert put forward specific proposals for future development. These preliminary study findings and sectoral proposals were presented and discussed during a seminar organised by OCJRP in 2000. International experts with extensive experience in the revitalisation of historic cities also participated in the seminar. The conclusions and recommendations that resulted from the discussions assisted in the development of the master plan’s proposal and recommendations.

The various studies were incorporated into a unified report, the first that provides an integrated comprehensive vision for the renewal of the Old City of Jerusalem. The plan was published in Arabic in December 2001; a revised version will be published in English in late 2003.

In view of prevailing political conditions and the difficulties that Palestinians and their local institutions encounter in Jerusalem, the planning team tried to put forward realistic proposals that would

Note: Dr. Yousef Natsheh, Head al- Awqaf Archeology Department at al-Haram al-Sharif,

is co-editor and chief contributor for this special issue on Jerusalem.

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TURATH is produced by the Old City of Jerusalem Revitalization Program (OCJRP) and published by the Welfare Association, with assistance from the Ford Foundation.

OCJRP Director: Shadia Touqan, Ph.D., RIBA, Architect, Urban Planner

TURATH Editor: Anita VitulloArabic Translator: Khalil ToumaDesign and Printing: TURBO Design, Ramallah

Newsletter Advisory Board: Hisham Qaddoumi, Architect, Chairman of the Technical Committee- OCJRP, Welfare Association Board of TrusteesIsam Awwad, Chief Architect, al-Aqsa Mosque and Dome of the Rock Restoration CommitteeKhaled Qawasmi, Ph.D., Civil Engineering, Resident Engineer, Hebron Rehabilitation CommitteeNada al-Hassan, Architect and Conservation ExpertNazmi Ju'abi, Ph.D., History and Archeology, Co-director of Riwaq, Center for Architectural ConservationSuad Amiry, Ph.D., Architecture, Co-director of Riwaq, Center for Architectural ConservationYousef al-Natsheh, Ph.D., Head of al-Awqaf Archeology Department at al-Haram al-Sharif

Mail: OCJRP-Welfare, P.O.B. 25204, Shu'fat, Jerusalem Tel: 972-2-234-3934, Fax: 972-2-234-3935 Email: turath@jwelfare.orghttp://www.welfareassociation.org

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facilitate a process of dynamic implementation. This deviates from the usual development plan of including all expected results, and should be evaluated with this difference in mind.

The planners were conscious of the need to provide a vision based on sound research, scientific methodology and evaluation. The result is the creation of a database and reference for a process of social and economic regeneration and institutional revival in the Old City, while providing for the protection of Jerusalem cultural heritage according to international laws and convention --- to protect the person and the place and to ensure their continuity.

--- Dr. Shadia Touqan, Director, OCJRP

Jerusalem’s Wall Jerusalem has always been a walled hilltop city. Early in its history defensive walls may have been created simply by building gates between natural rock formations. The massive Ottoman wall encircling the Old City of Jerusalem seen today was built by Sultan Suleiman al-Qanuni (1520-1566), in typical Ottoman architectural style with Mamluk influences. Considered one of the world’s most impressive and best preserved examples of the period, it has stood complete and unreconstructured for the past 460 years. It was built partly along the lines of Hadrian’s original fortification in the 2nd century and incorporates a portion of an original gate and arches in its base, near the monumental Damascus Gate.

Recent research shows that Muhammed Shalabi, a sculptor known apparently for his competence and efficient administration, was mandated to supervise the construction. The construction was carried out by skilled labor from the region and outside and, according to the 13 engraved stone plates affixed near the wall gates and towers, in less than five years (1537-1541), a relatively short period considering the size of the project and the building methods and tools available at the time. The wall was built with sandstone blocks, some quarried locally and some reused from previous construction.

The length of the wall is more than 4 kilometers, about 4235 meters. Its height from the ground, var ying according to the topography, averages between 5 and 15 meters and thickness varies from 1.5 meters to 3 meters. The most famous of its 34 towers are Burj al-Laqlaq (Pelicans’ Tower), and Burj Kebreet (Sulfur Tower).

Rehabilitating housing and institutions is crucial to revitalizing the Old City.

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Jerusalem’s GatesThere are seven gates in today’s Jerusalem wall; five are cross-vaulted gates included in the original Ottoman construction and two are simple gates added relatively recently (1899 and in the 1950s). An eighth gate, Golden Gate, is a closed façade in the eastern wall of al-Haram al-Sharif, with Roman foundations and evidence of Omayyad, Ayyubid, Mamluk and Ottoman construction atop. The original gates are Mamluk-inspired, double-angled for better defense and with saqatat, a chute in the roof from which oil and other materials could be dropped on unsuspecting invaders.

The original Ottoman gates are Bab al-Amud (Gate of the Column, better known as Damascus Gate), Bab al-Zahera (Flower Gate, better known as Herod’s Gate), Bab al-Asbat (also known as Lions’ Gate or St. Stephens Gate), Bab Nebi Daoud (Prophet David’s Gate, better known as Zion Gate), and Bab al-Khalil (Hebron Gate, better known as Jaffa Gate).

Some adaptions were made in the 19th century. In 1875 the narrow angled entrance in Bab al-Zahera was closed and the main gate opened. In 1898, next to Bab al-Khalil, a wide breach was cut in the wall to allow for the ceremonial entrance of Kaiser Wilhelm’s entourage. Today it is the main entrance for cars and taxis into limited areas of the Old City.

The recently added gates are the aptly named Bab al-Jadid (New Gate), which was built in 1899 by Sultan Abdel Hamid, at the behest of European powers, and the Magharibah Gate (Western Gate, better known as Dung Gate), originally a tower and opened as a gate by Jordan in 1953.

The wall is turreted and cut with 344 masaghl or vertical look-outs, and decorated with a large number of stone reliefs in circular, geometric and floral designs.

According to Turkish historian Evli Jelbi, the wall was built after Sultan Suleiman al-Qanuni dreamt that the Prophet Muhammed instructed him to protect the holy cities of Mecca, Medina, and Beit al-Maqdes (Jerusalem). An alternative theory is that the wall was mandated for defensive purposes against a possible Frankish invasion, under Charles the Fifth, or by Beduin forces. Others hold that Suleiman was motivated by a desire to restore Jerusalem’s preeminence as a holy city, and executed many building projects for this reason, including the renovation of al-Aqsa Mosque and the water canal system, and construction of public fountains.

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Golden Gate

Damascus Gate / Bab al-Amud

St. Stephen's Gate / Bab al-AsbatJaffa Gate / Bab al-Khalil

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Jerusalem’s MarketsCommercial activity in the city of Jerusalem has always been concentrated in public complexes known as khans, bazaars, qaisariyahs, and aswaq. Most popular during the Mamluk and Ottoman periods, these markets were streets divided into sections of shops that sold similar commodities, and small markets called suwaiqah. The three parallel markets in the center of the city --- Suq al-Lahamin (meat), Suq al-Attareen (spice and perfume) and Suq al-Khawajat (merchants)--- are still commercially active although, like other markets throughout the city, offer more variety than their names indicate. Only the southern half of Suq al-Khawajat is visible today. Some of the markets are covered by vaults suppor ting buildings that span the street and offer protection from sun and rain. Suq al-Attareen is entirely cross-vaulted with openings in the vaults for air and light.

Other markets are Khan al-Zeit (oil), and the most splendid, Suq al-Qattanin (cotton), which leads to a western entrance to al-Haram al-Sharif. The Mamluk-era vaulted market is comprised of 30 shops in rows on each side of a 95-meter east-west path, and contains

two public baths and a 2-storey khan. It was built in 1336 by Prince Tankez al-Nasiri, the local representative of Balad al-Sham, and is among the most complete and beautiful markets in the Palestine-Syria region. Part of the

khan is currently used as offices for the Islamic Awqaf Department and al-Quds University but the market area itself suffers from lack of maintenance and disuse due to political restrictions. Recently, the technical office of the Welfare Association’s Old City Revitalization Program designed a revival plan for the suq in cooperation with the Islamic Waqf Department.

Khan al-Zeit market is the main traffic thoroughfare in the Old City extending from the crossroads immediately inside Damascus Gate and continuing half-way through the Old City. A Byzantine mosaic map of Jerusalem found in Medaba, Jordan, clearly shows the route. For centuries this market specialized in the selling of olive and sesame products and included a number of oil pressers and soap makers, each with their own store. An ancient suq known

as the Cardo extends from the far end of Suq al-Attareen to Prophet David Gate. Some of the visible foundations of the Cardo date to the Crusaders era which, as archeological excavations indicate, were erected on the rubble and roads of earlier Roman and Byzantine markets.

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Suq al-Attareen

Suq al-Qattanin roof

Mshubuk, Khan al-Zeit

Christian Quarter

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Public Fountains

The public fountain (sabil) is a distinctive feature in Islamic architecture, serving as a decorative monument, and as a means of providing pilgrims and the poor with clean water, considered an act of alms-giving by Moslem rulers.

Public fountains were common in most Arab and Islamic cities, especially those important to the religion, and where water resources were scarce. They were built mainly in public pathways, either as free-standing units or attached to large architectural structures such as mosques, schools, and kuttabs (primary classes for teaching boys the Koran). When situated close to religious buildings, the fountains were used primarily by worshippers for ablution before prayers.

A total of 16 fountains can be found today in the city of Jerusalem. Most of those located inside the Haram al-Sharif are still functioning; others are situated near its main western entrances and placed for maximum impact in locations accessible to residents and visitors to the city. The two earliest date from the Ayyubid period (1187-1250).(A) Several were built by the Mamluks, of which two monumental fountains remain built late in the era (1250-1517). Twelve sabil built by the Ottomans are still standing.

The styles, shapes, designs and decorations of the public fountains in Jerusalem vary greatly. The oldest and one of the most distinctive is al-Kas fountain, in the southern area of al-Haram al-Sharif between al-Aqsa and the Dome of the Rock. The all-marble sabil is circular and uncovered, resembling a cup.(B)

The sabil of Ottoman ruler Qassem Pasha (1527) was built in a unique octagonal shape, and is covered with a half dome. It is surrounded with benches for ablution, placed at a slightly lower level than al-Aqsa, similar to al-Kas sabil. Until the late 1940s, it was fed by the canal system linking pools to the south of Jerusalem. Today it is still in use, connected to the local water system.(C)

The fountains of Sha’lan, Ibrahim al-Rumi, Qaytbay, and Magharbeh Gate share a similar interior design of a square room built over a cistern, and water basins and grilled windows on the north, south and west sides; the east side is the entrance for the caretaker who serves the fountain. The most outstanding of these fountains is the arabesque-domed Sabil Qaytbey, opposite Madrassa al-Ashrafiyyah.

Its rich geometric and floral carvings and calligraphic inscriptions, as well as its architectural elements, place it among the greatest examples of architectural art of the Mamluk era.(D)

The Shurbaji and Khalidi fountains, both located in the Old City but outside al-Haram al-Sharif, are not built over cisterns. Each has a rectangular basin behind which is a nave and a vault with a double window where fresh water is piped in. The Shurbaji fountain faces the entrance of the Damascus Gate courtyard and is in such neglected condition that it can be easily overlooked; the Khalidi fountain is in the middle of Bab al-Silsileh street leading to al-Aqsa Mosque.

Six fountains exhibiting a new style, with one open side and a beautifully decorated and sculpted nave, were built in 1536-7 at the beginning of the Ottoman period by Sultan Suleiman al-Qanuni. These fountains, named for their location (Sabil al-Wad, Sabil Bab al-Silsila, Sabil Bab al-Nazir (E), Sabil Bab al-‘Atm, and Sabil Bab Sitti Maryam), were distributed within the Haram plaza and around its main entrances, while Birkat al-Sultan is the only sabil found outside the Old City walls.

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Sabil Bab al-Nazir Aftimos fountain, 19thc. Greek Orthodox

al-Budairiyya al-Kas

Qassem Pasha pool Qaytbey

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Zawiyyah

al-Qadiryyah

(al-Afghaniyyah)

As a city of pilgrimage, Jerusalem attracted a number of Islamic Sufi orders that established religious institutions known by the Arabic name “Zawiyyah” or the Persian name “Khanqah.” More than 30 centers were founded in Jerusalem under the political protection and financial endowment of the city’s Islamic rulers. Most proliferated for a time and then disappeared. The Qadiryyah Order was

founded by Sheikh Abdel Qader Al-Jilani in the 10th centur y, and represents one of the oldest and best known sufi orders in the Islamic world. The zawiya is the only active one in Jerusalem; its followers still meet at least twice a week. It has maintained its original architectural design, which was one of the

Soup Kitchen: Dar al-Aytam al-Islamiyya

An early Islamic tradition and a form of alms-giving to the poor, the soup kitchen of Dar al-Aytam al-Islamiyya has been functioning since it was built in the mid-15th century, preparing simple meals for the poor in Jerusalem. Today, the assistance to the community is offered twice a week and on Islamic feast days, and daily during Ramadan. The OCJRP recently restored the ceiling, walls and floor of the kitchen.

stipulations in its endowment order, but not its name; today it is known as al-Zawiyyah al-Afghaniyyah.

The Zawiyyah was established in 1632 under Muhammed Pasha, the Ottoman ruler of Jerusalem, who was known for his patronage of sufi establishments in the city. Muhammed Pasha allocated a large sum of money to cover its running cost, and imposed conditions on the sufis residing in the Zawiyyah that they should meet with their sheikh after every prayer to read the holy Qur’an and offer special prayers.

The Qadiryyah Zawiyyah is on a road linking Ghawanmeh Gate, one of the entrances to al-Haram al-Sharif, with Tariq al-Wad.

The complex has a large rectangular courtyard with a garden of plants and trees, popular with sufis as a symbol of afterlife paradise. Eleven small cell retreats surround the courtyard on two sides, and a raised meeting hall on the third side. A small mosque is located east of the entrance, on an upper level.

The Ribat of Ala’ al-Din

al-Baseer

The Ribat, near the Bab al-Majlis entrance to al-Haram al-Sharif, is one of the oldest ribats, or pilgrims’ hospices, in Jerusalem, housing Moslem residents over the past 750 years. Since the late Ottoman period, it has been home to the African community---Palestinian families who trace their ancestry to pilgrims from Darfour in the Sudan and central Africa.

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Sufi mosque

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The ribat was established by the Mamluk prince, Ala’ al-Din Eid Aydughadi (known as al-Baseer), who became the trustee of al-Aqsa mosque and Ibrahimi mosque in Hebron during the reign of al-Thaher Baybars, and Sultan Qalawoon. According to its endowment engraved in 1267 on a marble plate fixed above the Ribat entrance, it was reserved for poor pilgrims. It was the first Mamluk religious foundation in the city; the location, a rocky plateau

level with al-Haram al-Sharif plaza, was probably chosen for its topography.

The original Mamluk structure is a single-floor construction over a 1.2 dunum area consisting of many stones from the Ayyubi and Crusader eras. The building’s southern facade overlooks the road to Bab al-Majlis. A large pointed vault leads to the entrance, flanked on both sides by marble benches, with a cross-vault above. A small door opens to a courtyard surrounded on three sides by small rooms known as khalawi (retreats). Modern concrete rooms have been added to the area by residents over the past century. Two halls occupy the southwestern corner of the courtyard; one is used today by the African community as a mosque and the other, once used for ablution and Ribat baths, has been converted into homes. In the opposite corner is a triple cross-vaulted hall with the tomb of the founder that can be accessed from an external door from the road that leads to Al-Haram.

The Ribat has been known by many names during its long history: Ala al-Din al-Baseer for the founder, the Abasiriyya School, Habs al-Dem (blood prison) or Habs al-Abeed (slave prison) during the rule of the Ottomans who used it for longterm prisoners. The OCJRP will be working with the African community in 2003 to rehabilitate the structures, and to upgrade and maintain facilities, including its front façade, retreats and courtyards.

Contributed by Amal Abul Hawa, OCJRP

St. Ann’s Church/ the

Salahiyya School

The site of the present-day Church of St. Ann, near Bab Asbat and the north side of the Mujahideen road and al-Haram al-Sharif, has monumental architectural evidence of its importance in the many lives and religions of the city residents since the end of the Greek era. The Greeks established an impressive double-basin reservoir (the northern 40m by 40m, and the southern 65m by 50m), separated by a dam of 60 meters long and 6 meters deep, visible today. The pool was once a gathering place where the ill and infirm sought a cure from the pagan god of medicine, Asclepios Serapis. Christians believe that Jesus Christ referred to that worship when he carried out a miracle at the site.

Following that miracle, and the belief that St. Ann gave birth to Virgin Mary the mother of Jesus Christ in a cave near the pool, the location held interest for Christian pilgrims. In the Byzantine era a basilica was constructed on top of the pool and extending to the place of pagan worship. This church was demolished during the Persian invasion, and reconstructed by Modestos.

The Crusaders built a small church on the ruins of the Byzantine church to commemorate the miracle cure, and a large church on top of the cave believed to mark Mary’s birthplace. The church is built in the solid but simple manner of Frankish architecture, and, of the 61 Crusader churches in Palestine of which traces can be found today, it is considered to be one of the most beautiful.

After evacuating the Crusaders from Jerusalem, Sultan Salahaddin al-Ayyoubi endowed the church to the Shafiitic order for transformation into the Salahiyyah school for Islamic theology in 1192. The Salahiyyah carried out a pioneering role in suppor ting intellectual and theological life in the city of Jerusalem. It remained a renowned theological school until 1856, when Ottoman Sultan Abdel Magid granted the property as a gift to Emperor Napoleon the Third for France’s assistance during the Crimean war. The site has remained under France’s protection during successive foreign rules: the British mandate, Jordanian administration and Israeli occupation.

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Facade of St. Anne's

Vaulted nave

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Constructing History in

Jerusalem’s Old CityTen months after the 1967 war, the Israeli government expropriated 29 acres in the southwest corner of the Old City of Jerusalem and began large-scale demolitions and urban reconstruction for the “restoration” of the Jewish Quarter. The size of the quarter had been fluid throughout history, reaching its maximum expansion in the second half of the 19th c., and shrinking again with the growth of the new city outside the walls in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Rather than reflect any particular historic phase, the expropriated area consolidated the post-war seizure of maximum territory. The new quarter included the original Jewish neighborhood but greatly expanded its size by adding other traditionally Moslem and Christian neighborhoods that had had a variable number of Jewish residents in the late 1800s, namely: the Moroccan Quarter, the al-

Sharaf Quar ter, Bab al-Silsileh Quarter and Darj al-Tabouna, as well as several large compounds located in the Armenian quarter.

Of the 700 b u i l d i n g s expropriated, only 105 had been Jewish-owned on the eve of the 1948 War, while 465 were Islamic waqf (111 waqf khayri’ for public, charitable use and 354 waqf dhurri’ for families), and the remaining 130

were privately owned. The “restoration” process caused several thousand Palestinian residents and owners, both refugees from West Jerusalem from 1948 and old time residents, to be evicted from their houses, usually after heavy pressure and harassment.

The Company for the Reconstruction and Development of the Jewish Quarter was established to technically implement the reconstruction plan. After the demolition of the majority of the remaining structures in the area, both ruined and sound, selected archaeological excavation sites were opened and new buildings constructed above the archaeological remains.

The original street layout was retained guaranteeing that the reconstructed quarter would have a compactness and an urbanity usually lacking in newly constructed settlements. But while its irregular alignments remind one of an ancient neighbourhood, the new architecture has been criticized as being inconsistent with the traditional vernacular architecture of the city. In the attempt to create an authentic Israeli architectural style, the Israeli team reproduced within modern buildings some formal elements of the Old City architecture, what some have termed a “neo-orientalist” style. The neighborhood’s overall image and the ideologically-oriented exposition of ancient heritage and archaeological remains underline the profound fracture between the historic evolution of the

city intra muros and the post-1967 settlement.

The Jewish Quarter architecture offers some creative and interesting solutions – notably in its attempt to revitalize the traditional architectural concepts of central courtyard and roof terrace – but fails in its approach to restoration of the existing ancient structures. The large majority of the original buildings that were demolished to make room for archaeological excavations and new houses were undoubtedly poorly conceived and poorly built, the result of endless additions and modifications more than precise design. Yet they managed to convey by their very chaotic appearance an image of civilizational continuity completely lacking in the new structures.

For tourists, pilgrims and Jewish and Palestinian residents with no visual memory of the demolished Moroccan Quarter, of the Abu Saud houses and of the pre-1948 Jewish quarter, the townscape of the reconstructed Jewish Quarter is commonly assumed to be a factual restoration of the city’s urban history. However, for those who know its origins, the quarter represents a dramatic cleansing of an ethnic population: the new residents who moved into the all-Jewish settlement were largely well-to-do Orthodox immigrants, primarily from Western countries; while many of the area’s Palestinian former residents were relocated to refugee camps on the Jerusalem border where they remain today.

Contributed by Simone Ricca

The ‘Umari Mosque in

Jerusalem’s Jewish

QuarterAfter the Moslem Caliph ‘Umar Ben al-Khattab peacefully conquered Jerusalem in the 7th century, he visited Palestine himself to attend to its affairs. Since then many mosques in the area adopted his name, and became known as the ‘Umari mosques. Today there is little architecturally to remind us of this era, since the mosques were invariably rebuilt and renovated over the ages. While the name ‘Umari does not mean that Caliph Omar himself established them, it does signify that these mosques are a millennium in age.

In Jerusalem there are two notable ‘Umari mosques, the ‘great’ Mosque of ‘Umar located opposite the entrance of the Church of Holy Sepulchre, and the ‘small’ ‘Umari mosque located east of the Sharaf neighborhood that once served Moslem residents in what is today’s Jewish Quarter. The small ‘Umari was extensively damaged in the 1967 war and vandalized after the Israeli occupation of the area and its isolation from the Islamic community. The mosque is closed today, but the minaret still rises, beacon-like, and intact.

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Apartment block housing

High-rise construction in Jewish quarter looms above southern wall of old city

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The Erosion of

Mamilla CemeteryOutside the Old City of Jerusalem, large sections of the historic Mamilla cemetery, a millennium-old burial place and pilgrimage site for Moslems that stretched over 168 dunums, were bulldozed following the 1948 war and made into an Israeli leisure park. Other parts of the cemetery were systematically leveled and asphalted for an Israeli municipal parking lot or simply disappeared beneath urban development.

Mamilla cemetery had been used continuously since 1187 as a final resting place for princes, scholars, sufis, muftis and judges, and up to the 20th century for the Jerusalem petit bourgeoisie. Historians list 14 rulers, 62 scientists (primarily from the Mamluk era), 36 sufis, and 33 judges among the dignitaries buried there. Its green spaces and pool were favored by pilgrims to the city as a site for rest, do’a’ (petitions) and repose. Various Islamic and Western historians have written of its splendid buildings, polished stone and marble monuments, and graceful grounds, which were tended to by Islamic rulers through regular restorations.

Today less than 100 tombs are left, saved perhaps due to their proximity to the Roman-era reservoir in the center of the cemetery. A few tombstones remain upright but most were broken by vandals and obscured by years of neglect. The rock-hewn pool (89 x 59 x 6 meters holding a capacity of 30,000 cubic meters) was once the main water supplier for the upper western parts of Jerusalem, and was linked directly to a pool inside the old city through an underground aqueduct.

The origin of the cemetery’s name cannot be confirmed and ranges from the Arabic Ma’man Allah (under the protection of God) to the Latin, St. Mamilla, after a chapel said to have existed nearby that predated the Crusader invasion. Archeological evidence indicates that the

grounds and pool alike were used by the Byzantines and the Persians as a mass grave during war, massacres and fatal epidemics. The Crusaders also disposed of many of the thousands killed in Jerusalem in 1099 in mass graves in Mamilla. The Crusaders also used the cemetery throughout their rule for the burial of priests of the Holy Sepulchre. Mamilla was restored as a Muslim cemetery by Salahadin, who endowed its pool to the “Salahiyya Khanqah.”

The cemetery use halted in 1927 when an order issued by the Higher Islamic Council prohibited further burials due ostensibly to over-crowding, but also because of the location of the cemetery in the center of the new city. The order was not strictly enforced, and some Jerusalem families continued to use their family burial plots in the 1930s during the British Mandate. The social class of the families is demonstrated by the intricacy of the decorated

lintels and the construction of the tombs.

Ancient stone markers that once boasted architectural designs seen in the Sufi residences, al-Zawiya al-Qalandariyya and Hosh al-Bustamiyya, dating back to the 14th century, unfortunately have all been destroyed with the exception of the singular Kubkubiyya, a domed mausoleum from the early Mamluk era. This distinguished building was restored in the late 19th century and remains in good condition, despite the closure of its entrance with concrete and general neglect.

Today, visitors to the cemetery can observe a number of smashed Mamluk tombstones that are displaced from the original tombs and scattered about in the southeastern corner of the cemetery. Several tombs, however, seem

to have enjoyed some attention, most probably on the initiative of family members in J e r u s a l e m , the few where inscr ipt ions have not been obliterated.

Contributionby Nazmi Ju’abi, Co-director of RIWAQ, Centre for Architectural Conservation

This minaret was renovated in 1397 but its original construction is probably Mamluk. Built on a two-meter high stone base, the body is divided into two sections by a cordon of decoration consisting of billet moulding. In order to secure suitable lighting for the minaret’s internal staircase, two rectangular windows were opened on each of the four sides of the minaret’s body. The upper par t of

the minaret, called the “candle,” consists of a small dome sitting on an octagonal base and encircled by the muezzin’s balcony. The style is similar to Jerusalem minarets constructed in the 15th century.

Kubkubiyya, from the early Mamluk period

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Zion Gate/ Bab Nabi Daoud

Jaffa Gate/ Bab al-Khalil

North-South Route1. *Damascus Gate (Bab al-Amud)2. *Khan al-Zeit3. Sitt Tunshuq’s Palace – OCJRP project (Mamluk)4. Complex of Khassaki Sultan 5. *Sabil Bab al-Nazir (Ottoman)6. *Suq al-Qattanin – OCJRP project (Mamluk)7. *Sabil al-Wad (Ottoman)8. Madrassa Taziyya – OCJRP project (Mamluk)9. Madrassa Tashtumuriyya – OCJRP project (Mamluk)10. Khan al-Sultan11. *The Three Markets (Crusader)12. *Upper cardo (Roman)13. St. Mark’s House/Syrian Orthodox14. *Bab al-Nabi Daoud

East-West Route1. *Bab al-Asbat (to Via Dolorosa)2. *St. Anne’s Church/Madrassa Salahiya (Crusader)3. Madrassa Salamiyya (Mamluk)4. Khanqa Dawadariyya (Mamluk)5. Church of the Flagellation6. *Zawiya Qadiriyya (Ottoman)7. *Khan al-Zeit8. Mosque of Omar (Ayyubi)9. Holy Sepulchre Church10. *Suq/Aftimos Fountain (19th c.)11. St. John the Baptist Church (10th c.)12. *Bab al-Khalil (Jaffa Gate)

*Noted in this issue of Turath

Other monuments/buildings:

A. al-Haram al-Sharif (Umayyid)B. al-Aqsa mosque (Umayyid)C. Dome of the Rock/Qubbat al-SakhraD. al-Aqsa library -OCJRP projectE. Islamic Museum -OCJRP projectF. al-Ashrafiya -OCJRP projectG. *Qaytbey fountain (Mamluk)H. *al-Kas fountain (Ayyubi)I. Palaces (Umayyid) excavation siteJ. *Omari mosque (Mamluk or earlier)K. Nea church (Roman) excavation siteL. St. James Armenian ConventM. al-Hariri mosque (Ayyubi)N. Khan al-Aqbat (late Ottoman)O. Latin Patriarchate (late Ottoman)P. Khanqa al-Salahiya (Ayyubi)Q. Zawiya al-Hanoud (Ayyubi)

مو��لعا

�با

با� صهيو

با� �خلليل

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Herod’s Gate/ Bab al-Zahera

Pelican’s Tower/ Burj al-Luqluq

St. Stephen’s Gate/

Bab al-Asbat

•

•

•

•

•

•

Golden Gate (closed)

Dung Gate/Bab al-MagharIbah

Sulphur Tower/ Burj Kebreet

Welfare

Associa

tion

�ملسلك �لشما�-�جلنو� 1 *با� �لعامو�

2 *خا �لزيت

�لقد� � �لقدمية �لبلد� �!عما –مشر#" طنشق �لست قصر 3

(من �لفتر� �ململوكية).

4 >مع خاسكي سلطا

5 *سبيل با� �لناظر (من �لفتر� �لعثمانية)

�لقد� (من �لقدمية � �لبلد� �!عما �لقطانني- مشر#" Dسو* 6

�لفتر� �ململوكية)

7 *سبيل �لو�� (من �لفتر� �لعثمانية)

8 �ملد�سة �لطاHجية

9 �ملد�سة �لطشتمرية –مشر#" !عما� �لبلد� �لقدمية من �لقد� (من

�لفتر� �ململوكية)

10 خا �لسلطا

11 *�ألسو�D �لثالثة (من �لفتر� �لصليبية)

12 *�لكا��# �لعلوO (من �لفتر� �لر#مانية)

13 بيت �لقديس ما� مرقص/ �لسريا �أل�ثوQكس

�#T�� U14 *با� �لن

�ملسلك �لشرقي- �لغر� (Vآلال� ��� Y!) Z1 *با� �ألسبا

2 *كنيسة �لقديسة حنة/ �ملد�سة �لصالحية

3 �ملد�سة �لسالمية (من �لفتر� �ململوكية)

4 �خلانقا� �لد�#����ية

5 كنيسة �جللد

6 *�لز�#ية �لقا��ية ( من �لفتر� �لعثمانية)

7 *خا �لزيت

8 جامع عمر (من �لفتر� �أليوبية)

9 كنيسة �لقيامة

(Oلتاسع عشر �مليال�� 10 *سبيل سوD �فتيمو� (�لقر

(Oلعاشر �مليال�� 11 كنيسة يوحنا �ملعمد� (�لقر

12 *با� �خلليل

�نصبة �مبا� �خر� A �حلرV �لشريف (�لفتر� �ألموية)

B �ملسجد �ألقصى (�لفتر� �ألموية)C قبة �لصخر�

D مكتبة �ألقصى –مشر#" !عما� �لبلد� �لقدمية � �لقد�E �ملتحف �إلسالمي- مشر#" !عما� �لبلد� �لقدمية � �لقد�

F �ألشرفية- مشر#" !عما� �لبلد� �لقدمية � �لقد�G *سبيل قايتباO (من �لفتر� �ململوكية)

H *سبيل �لكا� (من �لفتر� �أليوبية)I حفرياg � مو�قع قصو� fثرية (من �لفتر� �ألموية)

J *�جلامع �لعمرO (من �لفتر� �ململوكية f# قبل Qلك)K موقع حفرياg كنيسة جستنيا �جلديدi (من �لفتر� �لر#مانية)

L �ير ما� يعقو� لأل�من M جامع �حلريرO (من �لفتر� �أليوبية)

N خا �ألقباZ (من �لفتر� �لعثمانية �ملتأخر�)O �لبطريركية �لالتينية (من �لفتر� �لعثمانية �ملتأخر�)

P خانقاi �لصالحية (من �لفتر� �أليوبية)�H Q#ية �mنو� (من �لفتر� �أليوبية)

nهذ� �لعد� من تر� � *

با� �لساهر�

برq �للقلق

Zبا� �ألسبا

�لبا� �لذهيي (مغلق)

با� �ملغا�بة

برq �لكsيت

6 9

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