As Above, So Below
M.Sc. Urban Design - Revitalisation of Historic CIty DIstricts Prof. Ahmed Ouf - Dr. Sara Tarek - Urban Heritage Management // Lubna. Adil, Francisco, Gaurav, Mahmoud
Necropolis: Of Heritage & Craftsmanship
The city of dead , holding the static history of an overlaying historical layers of mamluk and ottoman and a huge number of funeral architectural valuable monuments hidden between the cemeteries. Previously tackled by a Revitalization project held By Archinos Firm that dropped a living vortex in the necropolis. However the area is still holding the Potential to expand to heritage districts incubating diminishing craftsmanship industries such as glass blowing. The approach is to Expand the living vortex to include the the Street of Al Malek al Mansour Othman street through the craftsmanship layer to form the urban character the district. Approach Dimension Craftsmanship Tangible Heritage Cultural Diversity Public Realms
Morphological Development
The Buffer Zone
The buffer zone in our case is the cemeteries in the Necropolis as they act as the isolating layer between the residential quarter and the two main axis (Salah Salem and Autostrad)
It’s also one of the main reason why the heritage district in the middle of it is diminished and hard to reach by usual means However using the cemeteries as buffer zone allows the further listing for historical tombs in the zone and allows to intervene with an accessability solution
Heritage List: Crafts
Map of craftsmen in the area (Source: ARCHiNOS)
Heritage List: Crafts
Glass Blowing: The workshops in the ‘City of the Dead’ make glass objects from re-cycled material. Their major products are drinking glasses and other tableware, candlesticks, and window panes that are then set in gypsum grilles.
Decorative Plaster: Ever since the early days of Islamic architecture, abundant stucco ornaments adorned the walls of mosques, palaces, and houses. The modern workshops of Cairo follow a very long tradition that goes back to more than 4,500 years ago.
Wood Working: The mediaeval mosques of Cairo, including those in the Qaitbey area of the Cemetery, include outstanding pieces of woodwork. The art of carpentary is still alive, and turned-wood screens are also produced in the “City of the Dead.”
Metal Work: Many workshops in the “City of the Dead” produce industrial and utilitarian metal objects. In the Qaitbey area there are also craftsmen who make brass and copper vessels decorated in traditional Islamic style.
Heritage List: Buildings
Tomb of Amir Qurqumas
The plain stone-built domed mausoleum originally stood next to the mosque of the Fatimid Caliph al-Hakim beside the Bab al-Futuh gate in the north walls of Cairo. When the Bohra, a sect of Isma’ili Shi’ites who claim direct spiritual descent from the Fatimid Caliphs, restored the mosque of al-Hakim in 1980-81, the tomb of Quiqumas was transferred to its present location within the funerary enclosure of Sultan al-Ashraf Barsbay. Qurqumas for whom the tomb was built, and of whom nothing but the name is known, was a different person from Amir Kebir Qurqumas whose funerary complex stands about 500 meters further to the north.
Khanqah-Mosque of al-Nasir Faraj ibn Barquq
This huge multifunctional religious complex was founded by Sultan Farag Ibn Barquq (reigned 1399-1405 and 1405-1412) in honour of his father, who at the end of his life expressed the desire to be buried in the Eastern Cemetery and is interred here. Farag himself, who ascended the throne when he was ten, was killed in Syria aged twenty-three and was buried there. Built of stone, the complex is among the most important and impressive in Cairo. It includes a courtyard mosque that also acted as a khanka with cells for Sufis, two sabil-kuttabs, two minarets, two domed mausolea, and an arcaded gallery joining with the earlier tomb of Anas. There were more associated residential and service buildings, indicating that Farag intended to turn this part of the desert into a living quarter of Cairo.
The Complex of Sultan al-Ashraf Barsbay
The complex in the Eastern Cemetery, built of stone, comprises a mosque with a minaret, a khanqa, and the sultan’s tomb. The unusually elongated prayer hall of the mosque and the attached tomb chamber have very rich internal decoration, with marble mosaic floors and marble wall panelling, painted wooden ceilings, and elaborate inlaid woodwork, including an exquisitely decorated minbar (pulpit), originally made in 1451 for the now-destroyed mosque of al-Ghamri. The dome of the tomb, over a scrolled zone-of-transition, is richly decorated with weblike interlacing star patterns. The present brick minaret is a late Ottoman-period replacement. The mosque is open for prayers. The façade of the khanqa (Sufi convent) survives (conserved by the Comité de Conservation des Monuments de l’Art Arabe.) The monumental inscription band on the façade contains parts of the endowment deed (waqfiya). The rest of the building is in ruins.
Rab‘ of Sultan al-Ashraf Qaytbay
This building is the extension for sultan Qaytbay mosque and madrasa ,and on of the few building in the district that are solely for communal service, the building act as a waqf which was a n area dedicated for charitable and miscellaneous activities , provided by the mosque for that purpose.
The building is a two storey building nearing the typology of a wikala since it consisted of storing rooms, and residential units on the upper floors each with its own staircase and bathroom, this assembly was usually related to the sufis waqf, The building facade is mainly plain but only on the porch it is ornamented ornately carved in knotted mouldings, floral motifs, inscriptions, and the sultan’s blazons The building is in a deteriorating state still
The Complex of Sultan Al-ashraf Qaytbay
The complex of Sultan Qaytbay was built between 1472 and 1474. It had fine craftsmanship from the Mamluk Period. It also had its influence from Sufism, where these mosque were used as multi-functional space where the public went for communal prayer, education, and Sufi rituals. Exceptionally the exterior of the complex’s stone dome is decorated with a carved straight-lined star pattern superimposed on another carved network of undulating arabesques. Current day status quo is the mosque is used for prayers and has an influx of tourist visitors.
Between Different Eras: Heritage Over-laying heritage over laying
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mausaliam and the khanqah the same vicintiadding to this in comparison the ty elaborateoverlaping a prominent between of thecomparison mausaliam and the khanqah the same vicintity elaborate life and death not inonly in the literal funtiocn a prominent comparison between life the but in the presentation and the uses, while and death not only in the literal mausaliam funtiocn stand still to tribute the deceased , but in the presentation and tha mamluki to offer thedome uses, has whilethe the abilty mausaliam standfood the deceased , tha the and shelterstill for to thetribute sky birds whil serving mamluki dome hasdeceased the abilty sultan to offer same fubction for the also food and shelter for the sky birds whil serving the same fubction for the also deceased sultan
The Urban Context
Coalition Between Life and Death
Coalition Between Life and Death
Coalition Between Life and Death: Conclusion
The existence of life, death, and history within Necropolis makes it a very poetic place. With life and death co-existing, the historic monuments rise to remind us of the immortality and bonds that can be made between people from different timelines through architecture, art, and ideaologies. This coalition can be seen vertically in the skyline of the area, and horizontally in the diversity of the existing elemetns.
Between What is & What Could Be?
Points of Interest Within the Site
The People The Community The craftsmanship layer as participation layer and inclusion of intangible heritage
The Practice The Market Al mansour Othman street. Is To incubate the friday market with specialized commodities to parallel moez street and gamalya street
The Place The Brand The districts skyline and bird boxes replacing minarets. As well as the tangible historic heritage that would accommodate the craftsmanship.
The People: The Community
Bringing influx of international people to the market, as currently the influx of danish music festival is not motivating the people. So the idea would be to bring competitors from the same field within, this will motivate the original community to compete and that’s the whole idea of elevating the people’s motivation.
Glass Blowing: Formal locations have already been provided by Archinos
Decorative Plaster: The community is dying so a revival is required as the next gen is not interested and these craftsmanship are there since king farouk’s time, Originally statues of people were made but now neoclassical and baroque elements are made.
Wood Working: An influence for their work is from the central european style of craftsmanship. Artworks are compatible with today’s modern age.
Metal Work: The metal work found in this region have a highlight from the mamluk period. Industrial and utilitarian metal objects are produced.
The Practice: The Market
Inspired to the Case study of tunsi old market (friday market) ,a vein that goes through the district to Adding a layer to the residential area which add live to it in the city of the dead by incubating its unique layer of craftsmanship inside the heritage list , linking the tangible and the intangible heritage layer through the dynamics of the specialized market. The Tunsi Old Market (Friday Market) Community Safety The existence of the market chiefs in the structure of the market overlay the area with a safety layer due to the alive market. Character Coherence The market society and the context are highly affected by the origin of the market and its relation with its origin (in this case the origin is imam el shafie dome) Location and shape of the friday market
The importance of the market
The Place: The Brand
The suggested Craftsmanship as a branding element: The Bird Box: Bird Breeding Carpenters
The Bird Box Passed down from father to son, the bird box is a distinctive feature of the area giving the skyline a magical addition and offering the people on the top an exquisite view. It is also place to a still practiced craft which is bird keeping. “Pigeon breeding has a long and rich history in the region, dating back 4,000 years to when people raised them in conical mud coops. At some point, the hobby developed the offshoot of pigeon flying, a beloved neighborhood sport tinged with cutthroat competition.” (The Rooftop Homes of Cairo’s Racing Pigeons, Metcalfe, 2014)
As Above, So Below: Concept
In necropolis, the city of the dead, life and death collide. The area itself is emerged below street level making it almost fortified.
The true beauty of necropolis resides in the people and the community living amongst the dead. The people of necropolis are generous, kind, and welcoming. Yet, their streets do not reflect the welcoming vibe of the people. There are many unused, open spaces around the heritage buildings that can be used for the purpose of making necropolis a more inviting area and to give the people (and children) a place that they can spend time in. As enchanting as the people and the clash of buildings are, necropolis is best appreciated from a higher level. This is where the bird boxes come in. The majestic structures that are inherited from father to son offer a powerful tool to showcase the true magic of necropolis. Stakeholders Local business owners The owners of the Bird Towers Islamic community Market shareholders or investors The corporate partners of the market Community workers Suppliers and construction companies Customers and visitors to the site
Left out spaces around the heritage sites
The Bird boxes on the roofs of the Mamluk Desert
Strategy Map
The Khanqah Typology The listed typologies are all having a common feature of including a rabaa and a madrasa building which allows a good potential if revitalized to incubate the craftsmanship layer The Rabaa of sultan Qaitbay The Rabaa is already partially used by the Archinos intervention but the unused part is still holding its potential and in a deteriorating condition
Project Flow
Project Flow