The Mosque of Ibn Tulunمسجد ابن طولون

The mosque was built between 876 and 879 by Ahmad ibn Tulun, the governor who founded the royal city of Al-Qata'i. When that city was later destroyed, the mosque was spared — and so it remains the oldest mosque in Cairo, and indeed in all Egypt, to keep its original form. Built largely of brick rather than stone, in a style recalling the great mosques of Iraq, it is a precious survivor from the early centuries of Islamic Egypt, over eleven hundred years old.

The mosque is famous for two things. Its enormous open courtyard — one of the largest of any mosque — is a serene expanse of space surrounded by arcades on pointed-arch piers, topped with elegant cresting. And its minaret is unique in Egypt: a tower with an external spiral staircase winding around the outside, echoing the celebrated minaret of Samarra in Iraq. Together they give the mosque a grand simplicity and a timeless, almost abstract beauty unlike anything else in Cairo.

Despite its fame, the mosque is often peaceful and uncrowded, making a visit a calm and moving experience; climbing the spiral minaret rewards you with lovely views over old Cairo. Tucked beside it is the charming Gayer-Anderson Museum, set in two preserved historic houses. As at all mosques, modest dress is required and shoes removed. Quiet, ancient, and beautiful, Ibn Tulun is a beloved highlight of Islamic Cairo.

• What it is: Cairo's oldest mosque surviving in its original form.
• Arabic name: مسجد ابن طولون (the Mosque of Ibn Tulun).
• Built: 876–879, by Ahmad ibn Tulun.
• Famous for: its vast courtyard and unique external spiral minaret.
• History: the sole great survivor of the lost city of Al-Qata'i.
• Nearby: the Gayer-Anderson Museum, in two historic houses.

Sources include standard histories of medieval Cairo. Some details are approximate.