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L’étoile, la chaîne et le Jugement. Essai d’interprétation d’un élément de décor dans la mosquée d’Ibn Ṭūlūn
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Mathieu Tillier
Published/Copyright:
December 14, 2015
Abstract:
Up until now, one of the flat miḥrāb-s in the Mosque of Ibn Ṭūlūn in Cairo has kept its mystery. Of its damaged decoration, in all likelihood dating back to the Ṭūlūnid period, only the central motif remains, consisting of a circled star hanging from a chain. This article examines the original significance of this miḥrāb. First, the foundation stele of the mosque provides an epigraphic context characterized by the predominance of an eschatological discourse. From there, I explore several hypotheses by engaging with textual and archaeological traditions relating to the themes of the star and the chain. The star could represent the “pearly star” evoking the infinite light of paradise in the Qurʾān. The chain may in turn refer to the chain of the Banū Isrāʾīl, a symbol of the absolute justice that God supposedly granted to Prophet David. Considering Ibn Tūlūn’s attempts to appear as a just ruler, one might see in this miḥrāb an evocation of the Last Judgment, which Ibn Ṭūlūn could have used to highlight his own justice.
Published Online: 2015-12-14
Published in Print: 2015-12-14
© De Gruyter
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- Les cinq esprits de l’homme divin (Aspects de l’imamologie duodécimaine XIII)
- A Ḥadīth Fragment on Papyrus
- L’étoile, la chaîne et le Jugement. Essai d’interprétation d’un élément de décor dans la mosquée d’Ibn Ṭūlūn
- Drei Fragmente von arabischen Staatsbriefen (14. Jh) im Archivo de la Corona de Aragón/Barcelona
- Mamluk Historiography Outside of Egypt and Syria: ʿAlī b. ʿAbd Allāh al-Samhūdī and his Histories of Medina
- Ajāʾib ve gharāʾib: Ottoman Collections of Mirabilia and Perceptions of the Supernatural
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