Special importance
[Picture source: © 2006 Stefan Weber] [Picture source: © 2006 Stefan Weber] The Jamiʿ al-Mihmandar remained an important Friday mosque in Mamluk and early Ottoman periods, the only one between the Umayyad Mosque and the Bab an-Nasr area, and therefore it was frequented by many people for the Friday prayer. Another monumental Friday mosque, the Jamiʿ al-Khayr, founded by Hajj Musa al-Amiri, was only constructed in the 18th century (in 1177/1763).[1]
This importance is reflected in the biographies of ulama of Aleppo, who served as imams and preachers (khatibs) in the mosque, like Shaykh Nasir ad-Din who was imam and khatib in the early 16th century, and his son Ahmad, who served as ‘second imam’ while his father was the khatib.[2]
The mosque’s minaret was influential in Aleppo’s subsequent architectural development and served as a model for the minaret of the Jamiʿ al-Maydani in the Almaji neighborhood outside Bab an-Nasr, which can be dated to the early 16th century.[3]
Current situation
The mosque was heavily damaged, particularly the qibliyya with its outer walls and the roof, including the dome, which partly collapsed. The shaft of the minaret was damaged as well.[4]
