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In 1893, the French architect and archaeologist Albert Gayet (1856–1916) published a book on Islamic Art, L’Art arabe. Previously, he had been in Cairo as attaché to the Permanent Mission there (now the French Institute of Oriental Archaeology), and he remained for three years. His extensively illustrated publication deals with art and architecture of the Islamic lands from the beginnings until the end of the Mamluk period.
In the chapter ‘Le décor de la mosquée baharite [Bahri Mamluks]’, he discusses the use of stucco and glass windows in mosques in detail and reproduces three of them. He briefly details their manufacture and compares their motifs – bouquets of flowers, cypresses – with those found on faïence. As early examples, he names the stucco and glass windows in the Mosque-Madrasa of Sultan al-Ashraf Barsbay (826 AH / 1424 CE) and of Sultan Qaytbay (877–79 AH / 1472–74 CE). He states further that the Sayyida Zaynab Mosque until recently had windows that were in no way inferior to those in the mosque. Gayet also opines that the windows from the end of the period of the Bahri Mamluks were the most beautiful (pp. 226–227) and highlights that the light effect is that of precious stones: ‘[... ] sous la lumière translucide du ciel pâle de l’Orient, les rayons filtrés à travers le rouge des tulipes, le violet des jacinthes, le jaune des œillets, le blanc des anémones et le vert des cyprès tombent, dans la nef en poudroiement d’opale, d’or, de pourpre, de saphir et d’émeraude.’ (p. 179).
One of the illustrations (fig. 82) depicts the window from the Sayyida Zaynab Mosque in Cairo published by Prisse d’Avennes in 1877 (IG_42). There is no comment on the illustration, but Gayet cites Prisse d’Avennes’ ‘grand ouvrage’ several times. The other two illustrations show two stucco and glass windows of a particular shape. They are not rectangular, round-arched, or hexagonal as usual, but their arch line is recessed. Trifoliate flowers appear among their vegetal ornamentation. Gayet notes that they are preserved in the Museum of Arab Art in Cairo and date to the 15th CE century. While no comparative examples for this particular form are known, their floral design is similar to that of the oldest windows in Cairo, such as those in the Mausoleum of Al-Salih Najm al-Din Ayyub (built 640–48 AH / 1242–50 CE) and the Mausoleum of the ʿAbbasid Caliphs (built before 640 AH / 1242 CE), and of the type previously found in Damascus (see Flood, 1993, pp. 86, 89, figs 84, 87, ills 32, 34, 35).
Datation
1893
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