Tripoli, the capital of the North and second largest
town in Lebanon, is 85 kilometers, about 53 miles,
from Beirut. In it there are several ancient remains
and some very beautiful mosques, some bazaars or souks,
and some khans dating from the middle ages. Tripoli
is also a major port for Lebanon. In 1551 it was devastated
by an earthquake followed by a tsunami. Since 635
A.D. and the Islamic Conquest several mosques have
been built, places of worship and prayer.
A few minutes’ walk from the Citadel at the southern
entrance of the city there is one of the most beautiful
mosques in Lebanon. The mosque of Emir Seif ed-Dine
Taynal el-Hajele was constructed in the year 1336
in the middle of Tripoli among extensive orange groves,
not far from the Abu Ali river, although at present
it is surrounded by tall buildings and roads. This
mosque was constructed on top of the remains of a
church put up by the Carmelite Fathers at the time
of the Crusades, while the Crusaders themselves had
built the church on the traces of a Roman temple dedicated
to Zeus, locally called Baal. In this mosque there
is the vault of Seif ed-Dine Taynal close to the inner
hall of prayer and a marble patio surrounded by four
chambers that were used by the councils of the four
schools of magistrates of Tripoli during the time
of the Mamelukes, the Shafiyyeh, the Hanafiyyeh ,
the Malikiyyeh and the Hanbaliyyeh.
There are two halls for prayer, the first of which
is crowned by a large dome held up on Byzantine-Corinthian
capitals on four granite columns brought from Egypt
of the Pharaohs. The floor is paved with marble in
geometric forms, while separating the two halls there
is a door embellished with bas-reliefs, whose decoration
is considered as the finest work of the time of the
Mamelukes.
In the second hall is the Mihrab and the wooden trunk
both executed by the master craftsman Mohammad as-Safadi.
The minaret is of a kind unique in all the Arab and
Islamic world, with its two stone staircases, one
leading to the exterior of the mosque and the other
to the interior without their ever crossing each other.
Outside there are large areas arranged to receive
colonies and seminars, hundreds of scholars and sheiks
coming together from every country of the region.
When I was visiting the place, there was a numerous
group come from Jordan. Spacious parking lots surround
the mosque. In warm weather one finds several individuals
by the entrance from the road selling orange juice,
while nearby there are fountains with flowing water
where the conscientious sheiks may wash their faces
and their feet. To try to be up to date is not always
easy.
Palm trees and other trees offer welcome shade. The
Taynal Mosque is well worth a visit and will leave
one with nostalgic memories.
Joseph Matar
Translation from the French: Kenneth Mortimer
- Taynal Mosque: >> View
Movie << (2010-09-01)
- Taynal Mosque - Interior: >> View
Movie << (2015-04-15)
- Taynal Mosque - Interior: >> View
Movie << (2015-04-15)
