Mamluk Architectural Footprints in Lebanon

The Qartawiyya is certainly the largest and most handsome madrasa in Tripoli and its most important building in this category. As its name indicates, it was founded by Qaratay ("the Black Colt"), whose full name, Amir Shahab al-Din Qaratay ibn Abdallah al-Nasiri al-Ashrafi al-Jukundar al-Hajib, was established by Sobernheim.

It was built by Prince Saif al-Din Muhammad al-Tawashi in the fifteenth century AD. It is characterized by its ornate gate and a small Andalusia style window and was turned later into a mosque.

It was built in the early 14th century and features a unique arc of stone pillows.

It was built in the Mamluk era in the first half of the 14th century AD by by Sayf al Din Aqturaq. Its main façade is decorated with inscriptions and texts showing the history of construction and estates.

A Mamluk school that dates back to the 14th century. Some historians believe it was one of the city’s wealthy “Prince Nur Eddine”, the builder of Nuri Hammam, which is directly across. The school is distinguished by its magnificent marble mihrab.

Built in the Mamluk era in the 14th century, it is the largest school in Tripoli after the Qaratawi School and has recently become a mosque. Its gate bears no decorations and inside to the left there is a mausoleum without writing, owner unknown.

A Mamluk school built by Prince Ezzeddine Edmar Ashrafi with his wife Argun Khatoun hence the name “Khatouniya. Construction date is 1374 AD with the school Waqf estate and conditions engraved on the entrance wall.

An old Mamluk building, builder unknown. It was called Al-Mashhad because it enclosed a mausoleum, located in Al-Nouri district to the right of the Great Al-Mansouri Mosque’s main entrance. The school is characterized by an impressive gate, filled with geometric motifs, mosaics and white and green marble, with Mamluk muqarnas that marked the gates of most of Tripoli’s schools and mosques.

Keskiner, B. (2016). The Octagonal Kufic Inscription in the Qartawiyya Madrasa and its Counterpart in the Sultan Ahmed Mosque. In A. Ohta, J. M. Rogers, & R. W. Haddon (Eds.), Art Trade and Culture: From the Fatimids to the Mughals (pp. 86–91)