Mario Rossi (1897-1961) was an Italian architect and notable contributor to 20th-century

Islamic architecture Islamic architecture comprises the architectural styles of buildings associated with Islam. It encompasses both Secularity, secular and religious styles from the early history of Islam to the present day. The Muslim world, Islamic world encompasse ...

Life

Rossi was born in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

and studied architecture at the

Accademia di Belle Arti di Roma The Accademia di Belle Arti di Roma is a public tertiary academy of art in Rome, Italy. It was founded in the sixteenth century, but the present institution dates from the time of the unification of Italy and the capture of Rome by the Kingdom ...

, from which he graduated in 1917. He moved to Egypt in 1921 as an assistant decorator, invited by who was Chief Court Architect of Sultan (later King) Fuad, in charge of improvements at

Abdeen Palace Abdeen District is the home of Abdeen Palace (), a 19th-century Cairo palace built by Khedive Ismail and served as the Egyptian royal household's primary official residence from 1874 until the July Revolution in 1952. Since then it has been one ...

. He then worked for

Egyptian Public Works The Egyptian Department of Public Works was established in the early 19th century, and concentrates mainly on public works relating to irrigation and hydraulic engineering. These irrigation projects have constituted the bulk of work performed by th ...

, for Verrucci's successor Moustafa Fahmy, and with Antonio Lasciac on projects that included interior design, mansions, apartment buildings and mausoleums for a wealthy clientele. In 1929, despite being a Catholic, he won the competition to become the Chief Architect of the Waqf Administration. In this capacity, he designed a number of mosques and religious building between 1929 and 1941, most prominently in Alexandria. He also worked on the restoration of older monuments, including the

Mosque of Muhammad Ali The Muhammad Ali Mosque or Mosque of Muhammad Ali () is a historic mosque in Cairo, Egypt. It was commissioned by Muhammad Ali of Egypt, Muhammad Ali Pasha and built between 1832 and 1857. Situated in the Cairo Citadel in a position overlooking th ...

and the

Al-Rifa'i Mosque Al-Rifa'i Mosque (, transliterated also as ''Al-Rifai'', Al-Refai, Al-Refa'i, locally known as El-Refa'i, and in English: the Refaai Mosque) is located in Citadel Square, adjacent to the Cairo Citadel. Its name is derived from the Ali Abu Shubb ...

in Cairo. Like thousands of other Italian Egyptians, he was dismissed and expropriated during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

at the initiative of the British authorities, and

interned Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without Criminal charge, charges or Indictment, intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects ...

between 1941 and 1944 at Camp Fayed in the

Suez Canal Zone The Suez Canal (; , ') is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia (and by extension, the Sinai Peninsula from the rest of Egypt). The c ...

. In 1946 he converted to Islam, and in that period again worked for the Waqf Administration, now as an external consultant. He also designed the

Islamic Center of Washington The Islamic Center of Washington is a mosque and Islamic cultural center in Washington, D.C. It is located on Embassy Row on Massachusetts Avenue just east of the bridge over Rock Creek. When it opened in 1957, it was the largest mosque in the ...

. From 1954 to 1960 he worked in

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

on the decoration of the

Masjid al-Haram Masjid al-Haram (), also known as the Sacred Mosque or the Great Mosque of Mecca, is considered to be the most significant mosque in Islam. It encloses the vicinity of the Kaaba in Mecca, in the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia. It is among the ...

Mecca Mecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia; it is the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valley above ...

. He died in Cairo in 1961. He and his wife Rosa had a son, Alessandro.

Works

Rossi's architecture was based on careful study of ancient Islamic buildings in Egypt and beyond, particularly those from the

Fatimid The Fatimid Caliphate (; ), also known as the Fatimid Empire, was a caliphate extant from the tenth to the twelfth centuries CE under the rule of the Fatimid dynasty, Fatimids, an Isma'ili Shi'a dynasty. Spanning a large area of North Africa ...

and

Mamluk Mamluk or Mamaluk (; (singular), , ''mamālīk'' (plural); translated as "one who is owned", meaning "slave") were non-Arab, ethnically diverse (mostly Turkic, Caucasian, Eastern and Southeastern European) enslaved mercenaries, slave-so ...

periods.

In Greater Cairo

* Villa Tawfiq,

Zamalek Zamalek ( , ''al zamalek'') is a ''qism'' (ward) within the West District (''hayy gharb'') in the Western Area of Cairo, Egypt. It is an affluent district on a man-made island which is geologically a part of the west bank of the Nile River, wit ...

(with Ernesto Verrucci-Bey), now

Helwan University Helwan University is a public university based in Helwan, Egypt, which is part of Greater Cairo on over . It comprises 23 faculties and two higher institutes in addition to 50 research centers. Overview Helwan University is a member of the ...

Faculty of Music * Two villas for the children of Ahmed Afifi Pasha,

Giza Giza (; sometimes spelled ''Gizah, Gizeh, Geeza, Jiza''; , , ' ) is the third-largest city in Egypt by area after Cairo and Alexandria; and fourth-largest city in Africa by population after Kinshasa, Lagos, and Cairo. It is the capital of ...

, 1920s * El Gabaleya apartment building,

* Gaston Weiser apartment building, Garden City * Villa Assem,

* Votive church of the

Syriac Catholic The Syriac Catholic Church is an Eastern Catholic ''sui iuris'' (self-governing) particular church that is in full communion with the Holy See and with the entirety of the Catholic Church. Originating in the Levant, it uses the West Syriac R ...

Cemetery,

Abbassia Abbassia ( ) is a neighbourhood that makes up five shiakhas (census blocks) in al-Wayli district in Cairo, Egypt. The Saint Mark's Coptic Orthodox Cathedral is located in Abbassia. The medical faculty of Ain Shams University and its aff ...

* Villa Hassan Sabry,

* Italian

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

Memorial, Latin Cemetery,

* Villa George Wissa, Garden City, 1930s * Al-Tabbakh Mosque, near

Mohamed Naguib Major General Mohamed Bey Naguib Youssef Qutb El-Qashlan (; 19 February 1901 – 28 August 1984), known simply as Mohamed Naguib (, ), was an Egyptian military officer and revolutionary who, along with Gamal Abdel Nasser, was one of the two prin ...

Metro station A metro station or subway station is a train station for a rapid transit system, which as a whole is usually called a "metro" or "subway". A station provides a means for passengers to purchase tickets, board trains, and evacuate the syste ...

, 1929-1933 * Umar Makram Mosque on

Tahrir Square Tahrir Square (, ; ), also known as Martyr Square, is a public town square in downtown Cairo, Egypt. The square has been the location and focus for political demonstrations. The 2011 Egyptian revolution and the resignation of President of Egypt, ...

, 1948-1954 * Zamalek Mosque,

, 1953-1955

Elsewhere in Egypt

Abu al-Abbas al-Mursi Mosque The Abu al-Abbas al-Mursi Mosque () is an Egyptian mosque in the city of Alexandria. The historic mosque is named after the 13th century mystic Abu'l Abbas al-Mursi, who is also buried in the same place along with members of the Ashraf family. ...

Alexandria Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...

(with Eugenio Valzania), 1929–45 * Islamic Center,

Asyut AsyutAlso spelled ''Assiout'' or ''Assiut''. ( ' ) is the capital of the modern Asyut Governorate in Egypt. It was built close to the ancient city of the same name, which is situated nearby. The modern city is located at , while the ancient city i ...

, 1930 * Fouly Mosque, Minya, 1945–46 * Abderrahim al-Qenawi Mosque,

Qena Qena ( ' , locally: ) is a city in Upper Egypt, and the capital of the Qena Governorate. Situated on the east bank of the Nile, it was known in antiquity as Kaine (Greek Καινή, meaning "new (city)"; Latinized transliteration: Caene) and ...

, 1949 * Al-Qaed Ibrahim Mosque, Mahatet El Raml,

, 1948–51 * Muhammad Kurayyim Mosque near Ras El Tin Palace,

, 1949–53

Outside Egypt

Washington DC Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and Federal district of the United States, federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from ...

, 1949–57

Influence

Rossi influenced a younger generation of Egyptian architects, such as Ali Thabit and Ali Khayrat who designed the Salah al-Din Mosque in El Manial, Cairo (1959). His

was a key source of inspiration for the

Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque ( ) is a mosque located in Abu Dhabi, the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. It is the List of mosques in the United Arab Emirates, country's largest mosque, and is the key place of worship for Salah, daily I ...

Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi is the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. The city is the seat of the Abu Dhabi Central Capital District, the capital city of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and the UAE's List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, second-most popu ...

, designed by architect Yusef Abdelki and built between 1996 and 2007.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rossi, Mario 1897 births 1961 deaths Italian people of Egyptian descent 20th-century Italian architects Architects from Rome