ARCE
Muqashqish Collection
Project Directors: Nairy Hampikian and May El-Ibrashi
Historic Era: 20th Century
Project Location: Luxor, Egypt
Project Duration: July 10, 2007 – July 31, 2008
A site of significance in the history of Luxor city, the mosque of Abu ‘Ali Isma’il al- Muqashqish, as well as the nearby Luxor Police Station, were documented by the office of Hampikian-Ibrashy under the auspices of the American Research Center in Egypt (ARCE) in 2007/2008. This was in response to plans to tear down both these structures to build the Avenue of the Sphinxes. Architects Nairy Hampikian & May El-Ibrashi documented the sites extensively through photo, manual, and digital architectural documentation methods.
Al-Muqashqish Mosque
The building of al-Muqashqish mosque happened over several phases, many of which were fairly modern. The oldest sections of the building seem to be the domed shrine and the minaret while the prayer hall appears to be the result of at least three building phases. There is no verifiable information as to who constructed the mosque of Al Muqashqish in its earliest versions. However, according to popular accounts, the current structure was built by one of Luxor’s most famous Coptic figures, Tawfiq Andraws Pasha (1893 – 1935), as part of an endowment of 100 feddans on the upkeep of religious buildings in Luxor to be split equally between Christian and Muslim sites.
Al-Muqashqish shrine was believed by the people of Luxor to have healing powers. Until its demolition, people visited the shrine for its spiritual attributes, filling containers in the alcove of the dome with oil and then smearing it on themselves in the belief that it will heal them. In true Luxor tradition, visitors also hung model boats from the shrine’s ceiling. Despite the undoubtable religious significance of the al-Muqashqish shrine to both Christians and Muslims, there are no conclusive answers as to who is buried in the shrine.
A myth credited to Egyptologist Georges Legrain’s Louqsor sans les pharaons (1914) claims that the shrine of al-Muqashqish houses the body of the Christian martyr Chantome, an ex-soldier turned healer martyred due to his refusal to renounce the Christian faith during the tenth Roman persecution of Christians of the year 284. After the Islamic conquest, many such sites were appropriated by Muslims, acquiring Muslim names and stories, in addition to Muslim domes marking them as sites of baraka or blessing. Chantome became known as Abu ‘Ali Ismail al-Muqashqish.
However, this Christian history is contested by Luxor’s foremost modern chronicler and director of Islamic Antiquities in Luxor, ‘Abd al-Jawwad al-Hajjaji, who claims Chantome was a dermatologist who converted to Islam after the Islamic conquest. He specifies that he healed skin diseases because, in Luxor, the term qashqash means a skin disease healed. Others believe that the person buried there is Shaykh Isma’il b. Ja’far b. ‘Ali al-Idfuwi (d. 711|1311), the paternal uncle of Abu Ja‘far al-Idfuwi the Upper Egyptian historian and chronicler.
In addition to its historical value, Al-Muqashqish mosque also played an essential role in contemporary life in Luxor city. Besides its spiritual significance, the mosque’s central location in Luxor city made it an extremely popular prayer spot among the traders working in the square as well as a cool refuge from the sweltering heat of the city during the afternoon.
Luxor Police Station
Luxor Police Station, a U-shaped two storey neo-pharaonic building that was built sometime between the 1920s and 1950s, was documented alongside al-Muqashqish mosque. For obvious security reasons, access to the police station for documentation before its demolition was denied and indefinitely postponed pending its evacuation; thus, the police station was documented during its demolition in 2008.
Statement of Responsibility
A site of significance in the history of Luxor city, the mosque of Abu ‘Ali Isma’il al- Muqashqish, as well as the nearby Luxor Police Station, were documented by the office of Hampikian-Ibrashy under the auspices of the American Research Center in Egypt (ARCE) in 2007-2008. This was in response to plans to tear down both these structures to build the Avenue of the Sphinxes. Architects Nairy Hampikian & May El-Ibrashi documented the sites extensively through photo, manual, and digital architectural documentation methods. This was made possible with the support of the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities (formerly the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities).
Funding Note
The documentation of al-Muqashqish Mosque and Luxor Police station was made possible with funding by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Grant No. 263-A-00-04-00018-00 and administered by Egyptian Antiquities Conservation Project (EAC) of the American Research Center in Egypt (ARCE).
Additional Resources