Unit No86
Shalqami Family
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Coordinates of the main entrance |
30.041109N - 31.268107E |
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Attribution |
Shalqami Family |
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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? |
Yes |
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Multiple date(s) In the inscription? |
Yes |
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Assumed Date |
Early or mid-20th century |
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Based on |
stylistic features and building techniques |
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Original Use |
Funerary enclosure |
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Current Use |
Funerary enclosure |
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Overall condition |
Fair |
Features of unit 86
| Present | Count | Material | Comments (see description for details) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free standing structure | No | |||
| Walled enclosure | Yes | 1 | stone | |
| Rooms by the perimeter wall | Yes | A building on the eastern side of the lot | ||
| Freestanding structure(s) in enclousure | No | |||
| Dome over the tomb chamber | No | |||
| Neo-Mamluk architectural decoration | Yes | |||
| Garden layout | No | |||
| Sabil(s) | No | |||
| Wall fountain(s) | No | |||
| Canopy on columns / pillars | No | |||
| Carved marble cenotaph(s) | No | Interior inaccessible | ||
| Decorated limestone tomb-markers | No | Interior inaccessible | ||
| Decorated gateway | Yes | 1 | stone | |
| Decorative door-leaves | Yes | 2 | wood | Main door decorated with mafruka pattern |
| Decorative window grilles | No | |||
| Decorative shutters | No | |||
| Painted ceiling(s) | No | Interior inaccessible | ||
| Decorative paving(s) | No | Interior inaccessible |
Description (The direction towards Mecca (Qibla) is described as eastern and other directions are named accordingly)
A small roughly rectangular enclosure measuring approximately 17 x 9 metres, with the south-western corner cut obliquely. It borders on a street to the east, on neighbouring funerary enclosures to northern and southern sides, and on the embankment of the Salah Salem motorway to the back (west). The main (eastern) façade is strictly symmetrical, with the central part that contains the entrance portal projecting slightly and taller than the side sections. The entrance door and a single window in each of the side sections are placed in shallow recesses topped with muqarnas friezes (this over the portal larger and more elaborate.) The openings are rectangular, their monolithic stone lintels and above them relieving arches of huge joggled voussoirs are framed in knotted mouldings. There are remarkable similarities in construction and detailing to the nearby façade of the enclosure of ‘Abd al-‘Aziz Sukar (No 87 in this record). The two-leaved entrance door are panelled, including mafruka patterns. In the windows are simple (non-decorative) steel grilles and simple panelled wooden shutters. The façade is topped with a cornice and extremely simplified angular stone crenellation.
The eastern part of the enclosure is covered with a wooden roof. The shaded area is open onto the courtyard, with the roof supported on two slender pillars. The western part of the courtyard, amounting to more than half of the enclosure, is raised by one step. In this area, two rows of three slender masonry pillars each support a pergola roof (now much damaged.)
To the right of the entrance door, a small modern marble plaque is set into the wall, with an incised inscription stating that the funerary enclosure belongs to the children of Shalqami. There is no date.

Condition of preservation
The building is overall in good condition and maintained. There is serious damage to the lower parts of the walls from rising damp.
- Field recording by
- Mohammad Esam, Esraa al-Mahdi, Hadeer Ahmad, edited by Jaroslaw Dobrowolski
- Date recorded
- August 10, 2023
- Data entered by
- Hadeer Ahmad
- Date entered
- May 8, 2024