Description of the attraction
Al-Mursi Abul-Abbas is a 13th-century Sufi saint from Muslim Spain who in the last years of his life moved to Egyptian Alexandria. His full name is Shahab ad-Din Abu-l-'Abbas Ahmad ibn 'Umar ibn Muhammad Al-Ansari Al-Mursi. Al-Mursi Abu'l Abbas, as he is commonly called, is one of the four highly revered saints of Egypt. The respect and popularity of his works and deeds in Egypt were so great that "Mursi" became a household name in the country.
The place where the modern mosque is located has a long history. First, there was the tomb of Al-Mursi Abul-Abbas, the tomb was in a small building near the Eastern harbor of Alexandria. In 1307, one of the richest traders in Alexandria visited the saint's grave and ordered his people to build a mausoleum and a dome over the burial. At his expense, a beautiful mosque with a small square minaret was erected, and the salary was also paid to the imam. The mosque with the coffin on the right has become a place of pilgrimage for many Muslims from Egypt and Morocco, while traveling to Mecca or back.
Never repaired, the mosque fell into disrepair by the end of the 15th century and was abandoned. The next ruler of Alexandria ordered to rebuild a religious building and erected a mausoleum for himself next to Abul-Abbas, where he was buried after his death. The mosque underwent the next renovation in 1596 after the visit of Sheikh Abu Al-Abbas El-Kurzema, who also built a tomb here.
By 1863, the present mosque had become unsuitable for worship. One of the famous Islamic architects of Alexandria restored the building and ordered the demolition of some of the surrounding houses in order to free up more space.
A few decades later, in the 40-50s of the 20th century, a major reconstruction of the building was carried out again, the walls were raised 23 meters in height and decorated with artificial stone. The minaret, located on the south side, was made 73 meters high and consists of four sections. The first section is about 15 meters high, square in shape, the second is a four-meter octagon. The height of the third level is 15 m, it is a hexahedron, and the uppermost level is rounded, its height is 3.25 m, the top is covered with brass and decorated with a crescent.
The mosque has two main entrances. The north door opens onto the square and leads to the street adjacent to the royal palace. The eastern gate also opens onto the square. The stairs to them are made of Egyptian granite. The main inner part of the mosque is an octagon with sides 22 meters long, decorated with artificial stone and mosaic panels. The ceiling, supported by sixteen Italian granite columns combined into arches, is 17 meters high. All the upper vaults are decorated with traditional paintings - arabesques. The floors are paved with white marble and sunlight enters through the windows in the outer domes. Doors, minbar 6, 5 m high, window frames and handrails are carved from precious wood and walnut. The pillars near the entrance to the mosque are decorated with Kufic inscriptions.
The mosque is now operated by the government's Islamic Foundation.
