Importance in Architectural History

[Picture source: © Julia Gonnella]

The Khānaqāh bi’l-Farāfira can be counted among the oldest built heritage in the neighbourhood of al-Farāfira. More generally, the Khānaqāh bi’l-Farāfira is one of the oldest surviving examples of ṣūfī convents in the Islamic world. In the arrangement of its different parts around the courtyard – the prayer hall, the īwān and the cells – the layout of the complex appears very similar to a madrasa of the Ayyubid period, being distinct in its second courtyard and the comparatively large number of residential cells. In fact, there seems to be no particular feature that could be attributed to its function as a convent for ṣūfīs. The only element that clarifies this function is the inscription on the portal. It seems that the similarity between ṣūfī convents and madrasas continues with modifications through the Mamluk period.

Some features of the architecture and decoration of the Khānaqāh bi’l-Farāfira are identical to those on other Ayyubid buildings. In its ‘plain style’, the Khānaqāh bi’l-Farāfira is connected to some of the most famous Ayyubid monuments of Aleppo, the so-called Madrasa al-Kāmilīya and the Madrasat al-Firdaus. It seems most likely that the three buildings were designed and realized by the same master builder.

Current Situation

While other parts of the al-Farāfira neighbourhood to the south and west of the Khānaqāh have apparently suffered from heavy destruction, satellite images give the impression that the Khānaqāh bi’l-Farāfira itself has utterly survived as an intact building.