Mosque · Mamluk · 1356
Mamluk architecture in Ibn Tulun’s shadow.
Cairo
A Mamluk madrasa, mosque and mausoleum beside Ibn Tulun, distinguished by a high dome and minaret that shape the Saliba Street skyline.
Get to know this place
Mosque · Mamluk · Built 1356
Beside Ibn Tulun Mosque, Amir Sarghitmish al-Nasiri founded his madrasa in 1356 for the study of Hanafi law and hadith. It supported religious scholarship, including students who came from outside Egypt, adding a Mamluk teaching institution beside a mosque already centuries old.
A courtyard and iwans organise the interior, while the dome and minaret share the surrounding skyline with Ibn Tulun. Their proximity gives the visit a clear visual theme: buildings different in age, scale and architectural language stand within a short walk of each other. Inside, the iwans return attention to teaching and worship.
Details worth pausing for
High dome
Minaret
Iwans
Proximity to Ibn Tulun Mosque
Hours, prices and practical details
Tips and things to know
Combine it with Ibn Tulun and Gayer-Anderson.
Start with the facade from Saliba Street.
Good to know
Address and directions
Saliba Street, Sayyida Zeinab, beside Ibn Tulun Mosque
Nearest landmark: Al-Sayeda Zeinab
Nearest metro: Al-Sayeda Zeinab
The best route depends on your starting point. Navigate to Saliba Street, Sayyida Zeinab, beside Ibn Tulun Mosque; for Historic Cairo sites, expect to walk the final part through narrow streets.
Get directions ↗The places closest to Amir Sarghitmish Madrasa, to make a day of it.
Ahmad Ibn Tulun MosqueSpace, calm and surviving ninth-century architecture300 m · about 4 min on foot
Amir Taz PalaceA palace courtyard with a present-day cultural role.350 m · about 5 min on foot
Bayt Al-SinnariAn Ottoman house tied to the making of Description de l’Égypte400 m · about 5 min on foot
Distances and times are estimates from where each place sits on the map; the actual route may differ.
Stops close to each other, in an order we tried. Follow it as it is, or make it your own.
Photo: Dennis G. Jarvis · CC BY-SA 2.0
A suggested route · Architecture
A day among Cairo’s grandest mosques: start with the Citadel’s view over the city, descend to Sultan Hassan and al-Rifai, and continue to the vast courtyard of Ibn Tulun and the Gayer-Anderson house.
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