The Qalawun complex is a massive pious complex in Cairo, Egypt, built by Sultan al-Mansur Qalawun from 1284 to 1285. It is located at Bayn al-Qasrayn on al-Mu'izz street and like many other pious complexes includes a hospital (bimaristan), a madrasa and mausoleum. Despite controversy surrounding its construction, this building is widely regarded as one of the major monuments of Islamic Cairo and of Mamluk architecture, notable for the size and scope of its contributions to legal scholarship and charitable operations as well as for the richness of its architecture.
View of Qalawun's complex on al-Muizz street.
Facade of Sultan Qalawun's complex on al-Muizz Street
View of minaret and grilled windows from the façade
Carved stucco, marble mosaic, and gilded wooden coffers in the Qalawun complex's interior.
Qalāwūn aṣ-Ṣāliḥī was the seventh Turkic Bahri Mamluk Sultan of Egypt; he ruled from 1279 to 1290. He was called al-Manṣūr Qalāwūn. After having risen in power in the Mamluk court and elite circles, Qalawun eventually held the title of "the victorious king" and gained de facto authority over the sultanate. He is the founder of the Qalawunid dynasty that ruled Egypt for over a century.
For a time, Mamluk sultans after him received their coronation here.
The siege of Tripoli by the Mamluks of Qalawun in 1289.
The Qalawun complex (mausoleum-madrasa-maristan) on Muizz Street, Bayn al-Qasrayn