. Egypt painted and described . Alwavs associated with the Mecca pilgrimage, theori2:in of the ceremony would appear to be as the year of the flight 670 ( 1272) the SultanEz Zahir Beybars performed the pilgrimage to Meccain state, the journey being made on camel-back, andbeneath the shelter of the *Mahmal or canopy usedas a protection from the sun ; and succeeding Sultans,Khalifs, and Khedives followed the same practice untilcomparatively recently. The Khedives of Egypt havenow ceased to make the pilgrimage, but send the Mahmal as an emblem of royalty, in which is placedthe Kisw
. Egypt painted and described . Alwavs associated with the Mecca pilgrimage, theori2:in of the ceremony would appear to be as the year of the flight 670 ( 1272) the SultanEz Zahir Beybars performed the pilgrimage to Meccain state, the journey being made on camel-back, andbeneath the shelter of the *Mahmal or canopy usedas a protection from the sun ; and succeeding Sultans,Khalifs, and Khedives followed the same practice untilcomparatively recently. The Khedives of Egypt havenow ceased to make the pilgrimage, but send the Mahmal as an emblem of royalty, in which is placedthe Kisweh, or Holy Carpet, made each year as acovering for the Kaaba, or tomb, of the Prophet inMecca. On the arrival of the new one, the old carpetis returned to Cairo with the pilgrims, and is then cutup into small pieces which are afterwards sold as relics,the proceeds being applied to the Moslem charities. The Kisweh is made in Cairo at great expense,and consists of eight pieces of black cloth made of silk 226 RETURN OF THE MAHMAL. Religion and Character of the Egyptians and cotton mixed, and richly adorned with inscriptionsin gold thread. The ceremony is divided into two functions. Thefirst consists of the reception by the Khedive of theportions of the Kisweh/ which are then carried throughthe streets to the Husaneyn Mosque, where they arestitched together. A month later it is again blessedby the Khedive, when, enclosed in the Mahmal, it issent to Mecca with the pilgrims. This reception and despatch of the Mahmal is oneof the most picturesque of their many festivals, and itsprocession through the narrow streets, escorted bysoldiers, and amid the enthusiasm of the Moslem crowd,is very striking ; as also is its return with the oldcarpet, when, surrounded by its following of raggedand dirty, but pre-eminently blessed, hadjis, it ismet, away in the desert, by the proud and gratifiedrelatives of the pilgrims. Everything in connection with their religion has apicture value. The mosques
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, booksubjectegyptde, bookyear1902
