History of the Building

[Picture source: © 2011 Issam Hajjar]

Historian Ghazzi inform us that the Jamiʿ Sharaf (Fig. 1) was founded in late Mamluke times during the reign of Sultan Qansuh al-Ghawri (reigned 906 /1500-01 to 922 /1516-17).[1] Four tombstones in the mosque’s courtyard indicate nevertheless the existence of an earlier construction dating at least from the late 14^th century. Three of the tombs distinguish by a similar form and date from the end of the year 795/1393 and the beginning of 796 /1393, one of these tombs belongs to a certain Hajj Sharaf b. Baba Faraj b. Amir Hajj.[2] We may suppose that this Hajj Sharaf did lend his name to the mosque, and we might have therefore a terminus ante quem for the foundation of a religious structure preceding the current mosque.[3]

In any case, during the reign of the Mamluke Sultan al-Ghawri, we can identify a substantial reconstruction of major parts of the mosque – if not the entire mosque structure – within the context of important urban interventions in the northern suburb of Aleppo (see below). This reconstruction of the mosque is not precisely dated; we possess only one inscription – located above the entrance – mentioning construction work during the reign of al-Ghawri (Fig. 2).[4] The adjacent qastal (public fountain) is nevertheless dated by inscription in the year 897/1491 and was constructed by the slave trader Burdbak (see below).

Figure 1: Sharaf Mosque [Picture source: © 2007 Stefan Knost]