After a lengthy restoration, a 13th-century mosque in Cairo that had fallen into disrepair due to its use as a soap factory, slaughterhouse, and fort reopened on Monday.
The Al-Zhahir Baybars Mosque, located just north of central Cairo, covers three acres and was built in 1268 during the reign of the Mamluk dynasty, making it Egypt’s third-largest mosque.
Tarek Mohamed El-Behairy, who oversaw the restoration, stated that the mosque had been mechanically and chemically restored to its original state.
“Some parts were destroyed, and some parts were dismantled because they were structurally unsuitable for continued use in the mosque,” he explained.
Even during the reconstruction, we were adamant about following the proper archaeological style.
The $7.68 million restoration project began in 2007 and was partially funded by Kazakhstan.
For 225 years, the mosque had been closed, abandoned, or used for non-religious purposes, all of which contributed to its deterioration.
The Ottoman Empire converted the building into a soap factory in the nineteenth century after it served as a fort during Napoleon’s Egyptian campaign. Following that, it was used as a slaughterhouse during the British invasion of Egypt in 1882.
The Mamluks’ three-century reign in Egypt, which ended in 1517, was largely due to the efforts of a historical figure known as Al-Zahir Baybars.
