Mosque of Ahmad Ibn Tulun. 876-79. Monument 220. Sultan Lajin responsible for the stone fountain pavilion with a dome. Yeomans, pp. 34-35: The fountai
Mosque of Ahmad Ibn Tulun. 876-79. Monument 220. Sultan Lajin responsible for the stone fountain pavilion with a dome. Yeomans, pp. 34-35: The fountain we see today is essentially a domed cube with fourpointed arched openings on each side. It is square in plan on the inside, but the thicker north-east wall, containing a staircase, pushes the exterior plan nearer to being a rectangle, breaking the symmetry on the north-west and south-east sides. The plain stone cubic interior encloses an octagonal basin, and above this five tiers of crystalline stalactite niches (muqarnas) form the squinches and zone of transition that support the pointed dome. This zone is pierced on the four sides by tall pointed windows with three lights, and smaller windows above repeat the shapes of the muqarnas at regular intervals, admitting shafts of light into the interior. On the outside the zone of transition is strongly marked by stepped corners leading to the smooth pointed dome crowned with a finial. Although Mamluk in style, it sits well in its ninth-century setting due to its fine proportion and clarity of form.
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Keywords: architecture, cairo, dome, ibn, islamic, mosque, tulun, tulunid
