This seminar explores the architectural and urban development of Islamic Cairo (al-Qahira) between the 7th and 16th centuries. As a nexus of both the Islamic empire and the Mediterranean world, Cairo provides an opportunity to explore a major Islamic Medieval city. Modern day Cairo emerged first as a provincial capital (al-Fustat and later al-Qata'a) in the 7th and 8th century and later morphed into a capital under successive dynasties from the 9th to the 16th century. Exploring Cairo throughout this critical historical period, one of both relative stability and upheaval during the post-conquest period to the Crusades, allows for a better understanding of the reciprocity between architecture and urbanism on the one hand and broader political shifts on the other. A central organizing theme of this course is Cairo's position as a place of multiplicity and confessional diversity, embedded within networks of cultural and economic exchange. Other themes explored include the role played by ceremonies and processions on urban form and the development of public space as well as the development of various religious, charitable, military and educational institutions and their impact upon shaping the city.
This seminar explores the architectural and urban development of Islamic Cairo (al-Qahira) between the 7th and 16th centuries. As a nexus of both the Islamic empire and the Mediterranean world, Cairo provides an opportunity to explore a major Islamic Medieval city. Modern day Cairo emerged first as a provincial capital (al-Fustat and later al-Qata'a) in the 7th and 8th century and later morphed into a capital under successive dynasties from the 9th to the 16th century. Exploring Cairo throughout this critical historical period, one of both relative stability and upheaval during the post-conquest period to the Crusades, allows for a better understanding of the reciprocity between architecture and urbanism on the one hand and broader political shifts on the other. A central organizing theme of this course is Cairo's position as a place of multiplicity and confessional diversity, embedded within networks of cultural and economic exchange. Other themes explored include the role played by ceremonies and processions on urban form and the development of public space as well as the development of various religious, charitable, military and educational institutions and their impact upon shaping the city.
