page_title: Al-Nasir Muhammad
section_title: Public works
hierarchical_section_title: Al-Nasir Muhammad / Third reign / Public works
caption_attribution_description: An entrance to the Mosque
context_page_description: 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 was the ninth Bahri Mamluk sultan of Egypt who ruled during three reigns: December 1293–December 1294, 1299–1309, and 1310 until his death in 1341.
context_section_description: An-Nasir Muhammad's long reign marked the apogee of Mamluk power and the high-water mark of culture in Egypt since Ptolemaic Alexandria. Extraordinary public works were set in motion. He redug once again the canal connecting Alexandria with the Nile: it was opened to traffic in 1311 and required workforces on a Pharaonic scale. Some of his major works in Cairo were the huge square that was called al-Midan al-Nasiri. He also carried out significant constructions and expansions in the Citadel, including the Qasr al-Ablaq (Striped Palace) the Great Iwan, a new Friday mosque, and the Citadel's aqueduct system. In addition, he built madrasas, including his funerary madrasa at Bayn al-Qasrayn, built public baths, and renovated more than thirty mosques, which added to Cairo's rich fabric of Islamic architecture. His own Mosque in the Citadel which stands until today was decorated with stone brought in triumph from the ruined cathedral of Acre. He also added to his father's complex of structures Cairo's first sabil, a fountain for the use of all, especially welcome to the poor who might not have access to a well.
caption: Sultan an-Nasir Muhammad Mosque, Cairo.
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