The Mosque of Sultan
al-Mu'ayyad is a Mosque in Cairo next to Bab Zuwayla built
by the Mamluk sultan Al-Mu'ayyad Sayf ad-Din Shaykh from whom it takes its name.
Construction began in 1415 and the mosque was completed in 1421. The complex
included a Friday mosque and a madrasa for four madhhabs It replaced a prison which originally stood next to Bab Zuwayla.
The mosque was
intended as a funerary complex and for use in Friday prayers, but its greatest
purpose was that of a madrasa for Sufi students, according to al-Maqrizi's
story of its origins, The Mosque of Sultan al-Mu'ayyad was the last great hypostyle mosque built in
Cairo, throughout its history, the Mosque of Sultan al-Mu'ayyad has undergone
extensive renovations. Even early on, reconstruction was necessary, In 2001,
the mosque again underwent restorations, this time by the order of the Egyptian Ministry of
Culture.