Khanqah al-Farafra
Aleppo, Syria
Khanqah al-Farafra is located just north of the Citadel of Aleppo in the center of a quarter named after it. This rare example of a Sufi monastery was built in 1237 by Ayyubid Governor al-Nasr II Yusuf (r. 1236-1260).

The Khanqah is entered on the north side through a muqarnas-vaulted portal that opens onto a narrow east-west running street. The portal leads to the rear of a deep iwan that opens onto the north side of the building's central courtyard. On the far side of the courtyard (the south side) is a triple archway leading onto a rectangular prayer hall three bays wide and one deep. The central bay (before the mihrab) is domed, while the lateral bays are barrel vaulted. On east and west sides of the courtyard, sleeping cells on two levels open onto the central space via doorways on the ground floor and windows on the upper story. 

Sources:

Burns, Ross. Monuments of Syria: A Historical Guide, 43.  London: I & B Tauris Co. Ltd., 1992.

Tabbaa, Yasser. Constructions of Power and Piety in Medieval Aleppo, 164-168. University Park, PA: The Pennsylvania State University Press, 1997.

Location
Aleppo, Syria
Images & Videos
Documents
Associated Names
Associated Collections
Events
1237-38/635 AH
Style Periods
1169-1260
Variant Names
Khanqah al-Farafirah
Variant
Khanqah al-Farafarah
Variant
Building Usages
religious