Unit No38
‘Uthman Rustum and Muhammad Sulayman
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Coordinates of the main entrance |
30.041086N - 31.273382E |
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Attribution |
‘Uthman Rustum and Muhammad Sulayman |
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Higri (AH)Dates as given in the Inscription |
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Miladi (AD)Dates as given in the Inscription |
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Inscription Contemporary with the building? |
No |
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Multiple date(s) In the inscription? |
No |
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Assumed Date |
Ottoman period, probably 18th century |
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Based on |
based on stylistic features |
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Original Use |
Funerary monument |
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Current Use |
Funerary monument |
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Overall condition |
Fair |
Features of unit 38
| Present | Count | Material | Comments (see description for details) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free standing structure | Yes | 1 | Stone, Brick | |
| Walled enclosure | No | |||
| Rooms by the perimeter wall | No | |||
| Freestanding structure(s) in enclousure | No | |||
| Dome over the tomb chamber | Yes | |||
| Neo-Mamluk architectural decoration | No | |||
| Garden layout | No | |||
| Sabil(s) | No | |||
| Wall fountain(s) | No | |||
| Canopy on columns / pillars | No | |||
| Carved marble cenotaph(s) | Yes | 2 | 2 | |
| Decorated limestone tomb-markers | No | |||
| Decorated gateway | No | |||
| Decorative door-leaves | No | |||
| Decorative window grilles | No | |||
| Decorative shutters | No | |||
| Painted ceiling(s) | No | |||
| Decorative paving(s) | No |
Unusual or unique features
A type of funerary monument once abundant in the cemetery (as attested e.g. by the Description de l’Egypte) but now rare. Unique in being double.
Description (The direction towards Mecca (Qibla) is described as eastern and other directions are named accordingly)
A double open-sided canopy over two marble cenotaphs. Built of ashlar stone on a raised stone platform. Six octagonal pillars with simple chamfers in place of capitals and bases carry very slightly pointed, almost semi-circular arches with wooden tie-beams. Each square section is covered with a pyramidal roof covered with brick rubble and plastered. There is no cornice on top of the walls, neither any traces of crenellation. The structure is without any decoration (which may point to a date even earlier that the 18th century, when opulent decoration was typical.) The marble cenotaphs, on the other hand, are entirely covered with elaborate calligraphic inscriptions in raised relief.
The canopy stands off-centre in a huge irregular, roughly rectangular enclosure of brick walls, apparently of much later date. The numerous limestone tomb-markers in the enclosure are also evidently later.
Condition of preservation
The plaster cover of the pyramidal rooves is missing from their upper parts. The shahid stela on the E cenotaph is crudely fixed in its position with cement; its marble panels are detached from the rubble core. Top part of the W cenotaph is missing.
References in published/primary sources
For similar structures in the cemetery, compare Description de l’Egypte, Etat Moderne, Vol. I, Pl. 64, 65, 66.
- Field recording by
- Amr Abotawila
- Date recorded
- August 11, 2022
- Data entered by
- Hania Abdelmeguid
- Date entered
- May 8, 2024