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Unit No11

Omar Bey Sadiq al-Baqli

Coordinates of the main entrance

30.044956N - 31.272647E

Attribution

Omar Bey Sadiq al-Baqli

Higri (AH)Dates as given in the Inscription

Before 1315

Miladi (AD)Dates as given in the Inscription

Inscription Contemporary with the building?

Yes

Multiple date(s) In the inscription?

Yes

Assumed Date

Before AH 1315

Based on

(date written on cenotaph)

Original Use

Funerary enclosure

Current Use

Funerary enclosure / storage

Overall condition

Good

Features of unit 11

Present Count Material Comments (see description for details)
Free standing structure No
Walled enclosure Yes 1 stone
Rooms by the perimeter wall Yes 4 stone
Freestanding structure(s) in enclousure Yes 1 wood A wooden canopy above cenotaphs
Dome over the tomb chamber No
Neo-Mamluk architectural decoration No
Garden layout Yes 1
Sabil(s) No
Wall fountain(s) No
Canopy on columns / pillars Yes 1 wood This the free-standing structure mentioned above
Carved marble cenotaph(s) Yes 2 2
Decorated limestone tomb-markers No
Decorated gateway Yes 1 stone There is a secondary undecorated gateway
Decorative door-leaves No 11 wood
Decorative window grilles Yes 6 iron
Decorative shutters No wood Eight non-decorative shutters
Painted ceiling(s) No
Decorative paving(s) Yes cement tiles

Unusual or unique features

• Open wooden canopy with a lantern over cenotaphs

Description (The direction towards Mecca (Qibla) is described as eastern and other directions are named accordingly)

A walled enclosure with single-storey structures by the main façade and an open wooden canopy over cenotaphs placed at the back of the site. The main (eastern) façade slants obliquely in relation to the rectangular lot, following the line of the street that runs at an angle to Sultan Ahmad street, to which the lots in the area are aligned. The strictly symmetrical tripartite façade features a central entrance gate to each side, a pair of windows covered by semicircular arches, separated by a pillar with an engabed semi-column but otherwise undecorated, with a small plain oculus above. The windows are fitted with decorative wrought-iron grilles of a vaguely Art Noveau design (not Islamic patterns), and simple panelled wooden shutters. The very slightly protruding entrance section is slightly higher and contains a rectangular recess topped with a cavetto cornice with a rectangular door, the lintel of which and the relieving arch above are surrounded by a plane rectangular frame (possibly intended to be carved into knotted mouldings but never finished?) The façade is topped by a simple stone cavetto cornice and simple fleur-de-lys crenellations. The corners and the sections with openings are built of ashlar stone, while the parts between them are built of rubble stone. The external facades are coated with yelow wash.
The secondary northern façade (longer side of the lot) is plain, built of rubble stone and plastered. It has an undecorated secondary entrance in its right section and two rectangular windows with grilles and shutters similar to those in the front façade. The window frames feature a wooden horseshoe arch in the upper part.
The main entrance leads to the vestibule that opens on the courtyard with a wide rectangular opening with a wooden-and-stained-glass screen including a glazed two-leaf door. Rooms in the north-eastern and south-eastern corners of the enclosure are accessed from the courtyard. The latter has a simple wooden porch on two slender posts.
The south-western quarter of the enclosure is taken by an elaborate free-standing canopy of rectangular plan, with a roof supported on three square slender wooden posts to each shorter side, and four to each longer side, and with four internal posts supporting the structure of the lantern. The roof ends wooden eaves with elaborate frills. The windows of the octagonal lantern are divided into geometric panes glazed with transparent and coloured glass. It is covered with a conical roof.
The canopy covers two elaborately carved marble cenotaphs, one of them remarkable for a naturalistic depiction of a basket of flowers in raised relief

Condition of preservation

The enclosure is in a good overall condition; its rooms are used as a storage. Pieces of woodwork are missing.

Information abut the founder, family history, etc.

There is a small marble plaque by the entrance door with a well-executed incised inscription saying:
“Burial ground of the late Omar Bey Sadiq al-Baqli”,
and below it, a larger plaque with the incised inscription saying:
“Burial ground of the family of Brigadier Hasan Bey Hamdi”. Neither inscription contains a date.
The date 1315 AH on a cenotaph corresponds to AD 1897

Field recording by
Hadeer Ahmad and Nur Atiya

Date recorded
August 30, 2022

Data entered by
Yusuf Yassir

Date entered
May 1, 2024