Al-Sayyida al-Mu'iziyya
Al-Sayyida al-Mu'iziyya, mainly known as Durzan,[1] was the main consort of Fatimid Caliph al-Muizz[2] and the mother of the Fatimid imam-caliph al-Aziz.[3][4] She was known as the first patroness of Fatimid architecture. Durzān also founded the second great Fățimid mosque of Cairo, a congregational mosque (no longer extant) located in the Qarafa.[5][6]
| Al-Sayyida al-Mu'iziyya | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mother of the Imam-caliph | |||||
| Tenure | 975–995 | ||||
| Born | Mahdia, Tunisia | ||||
| Died | c. 995 Cairo, Egypt | ||||
| Spouse | al-Mu'izz li-Din Allah | ||||
| Children | al-Aziz | ||||
| |||||
Biography
Durzan was born in the city of Mahdia, on the coast of modern-day Tunisia, in 955,[7] and was brought as a slave, or jariya, to the Fatimid court. It is said that, because of her beautiful singing, she was also called Taghrid (lit. 'Singing As A Bird').[7] Although many Fatimid sources were destroyed, material evidence and literary sources exist that confirm the vastness of her patronage.
In 976,[8] Durzan inaugurated the first phase through the building of the Jami al-Qarafa Mosque with her daughter, Sitt al-Malik. As Cortese and Calinedri argue, this inauguration of the Jami al-Qarafa Mosque marked the first of the two main phases of Fatimid female architectural patronage. Durzan also sponsored a qasr (palace), a bath, a watering pool and a mausoleum.[9][10]
Delia Cortese and Simonetta Calderini have noted Fatimid women’s patronage of public monuments and the link between piety – or religious propaganda – and charity during the delicate early stage of Fatimid rule.
In 973 she moved to the newly established Cairo to the court of the Caliph,[7] where later she died in 995.[11] It is said that when she died in Cairo, her daughter Sitt al-Malik mourned for a month.[11]
References
- Sources
- "Splendour of Fatimid architectural legacy in Egypt remains vibrant". the.Ismaili. 2017-02-13. Retrieved 2021-11-17.
- Hasan, Masudul; Waheed, Abdul (1974). An Introduction to the Study of Islam: 1001 Questions & Answers. Ferozsons. p. 121.
- Grabar, Oleg (1987). Muqarnas: An Annual on Islamic Art and Architecture. BRILL. p. 16. ISBN 978-90-04-08155-0.
- Bloom, Jonathan M. (2007). Arts of the City Victorious: Islamic Art and Architecture in Fatimid North Africa and Egypt. Yale University Press. p. 70. ISBN 978-0-300-13542-8.
- Cortese 2006, p. 167.
- Reassessing the Roles of Women as 'Makers' of Medieval Art and Architecture. BRILL. 2012-05-07. p. 662. ISBN 978-90-04-22832-0.
- Pomerantz & Shahin 2015, p. 99.
- Bloom, Jonathan M. (1986-01-01). "The Mosque of the Qaraf a in Cairo". Muqarnas Online. 4 (1): 7–20. doi:10.1163/22118993-90000205. ISSN 0732-2992.
- Cortese 2006, p. 168.
- Bloom, Jonathan M. (1983). "The Mosque of al-Ḥākim in Cairo" (PDF). Muqarnas. 1: 15–36. doi:10.2307/1523069. ISSN 0732-2992. JSTOR 1523069.
- Pomerantz & Shahin 2015, p. 100.
- Bibliography
- Cortese, Delia (2006-01-06). Women and the Fatimids in the World of Islam. Edinburgh University Press. ISBN 978-0-7486-2629-8.
- Pomerantz, Maurice A.; Shahin, Aram (2015-10-14). The Heritage of Arabo-Islamic Learning: Studies Presented to Wadad Kadi. BRILL. ISBN 978-90-04-30746-9.
Further read
- Calderini, Simonetta; Cortese, Delia (2014-01-01). "5 The Architectural Patronage of the Fāṭimid Queen-Mother Durzān (d. 385/995): An Interdisciplinary Analysis of Literary Sources, Material Evidence and Historical Context". Material Evidence and Narrative Sources: 87–112. doi:10.1163/9789004279667_007. ISBN 9789004279667.