Huge, majestic red-brick mosque in Cairo.
It was built (876–879) by Aḥmad ibn Ṭūlūn (835–884), the Muslim governor of Egypt and Syria. The mosque's crenellated walls have merlons (see battlement ) that are shaped and perforated in a decorative pattern, and its three courts are lined with arcades of broad arches and heavy pillars. The arches are decorated with elaborately carved stucco. The main space is divided by pillars into five long aisles originally ornamented with panels of carved wood. Classed as a historic monument in 1890, the mosque has since been completely restored.