The Al-Tawbat Mosque is a

mosque A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a place of worship for Muslims. The term usually refers to a covered building, but can be any place where Salah, Islamic prayers are performed; such as an outdoor courtyard. Originally, mosques were si ...

, located in

Tripoli Tripoli or Tripolis (from , meaning "three cities") may refer to: Places Greece *Tripolis (region of Arcadia), a district in ancient Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (Larisaia), an ancient Greek city in the Pelasgiotis district, Thessaly, near Larissa ...

, in the

Northern Governorate The Northern Governorate () is one of the four governorates of Bahrain. It includes parts of the former municipalities of Al Mintaqah al Gharbiyah, Al Mintaqah al Wusta, Al Mintaqah al Shamaliyah, Jidd Haffs and Madinat Hamad. Settlemen ...

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

. The mosque was built in the

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 ...

era, during the 14th century.

History

No founding inscription exists, so the exact year of construction is not known. However, it was estimated to have been built during the third reign of

Al-Nasir Muhammad Al-Malik an-Nasir Nasir ad-Din Muhammad ibn Qalawun (), commonly known as an-Nasir Muhammad (), or by his kunya: Abu al-Ma'ali () or as Ibn Qalawun (1285–1341) was the ninth Mamluk sultan of the Bahri dynasty who ruled Egypt between 129 ...

. The building was destroyed by a flood that occurred on January 20, 1612. The mosque was restored in June of the same year. An inscription tells about the construction and restoration by Husayn Pasha ibn Yusuf Sayfa, the governor of

Architecture

The outside of the building is not decorated. The structure comprises a

minaret A minaret is a type of tower typically built into or adjacent to mosques. Minarets are generally used to project the Muslim call to prayer (''adhan'') from a muezzin, but they also served as landmarks and symbols of Islam's presence. They can h ...

in its northwestern corner. On a square base rests an octagonal shaft. On its top is a square balcony. The entrance lies below the street level, some steps that are covered by an arch lead down to its door. The central part is the prayer hall that is covered by vaults over which three green domes form its roof. In its center an axial

mihrab ''Mihrab'' (, ', pl. ') is a niche in the wall of a mosque that indicates the ''qibla'', the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca towards which Muslims should face when praying. The wall in which a ''mihrab'' appears is thus the "''qibla'' wall". ...

is flanked by two smaller mihrabs to its sides like in the

Mansouri Great Mosque The Mansouri Great Mosque (also known as the Grand Mansouri Mosque, Great Mosque of Tripoli; ) is a mosque in Tripoli, Lebanon. It was built in the Mamluk period, from 1294 to 1298. This was the first building to be erected in Mamluk Tripoli. The ...

Gallery

Tawba Mosque in Tripoli, Lebanon 01.jpg, Entrance of the mosque Tawba Mosque in Tripoli, Lebanon 03.jpg, Minaret

Tripoli landmark map

References

External links