The madrasa is an Islamic school that was built by Nur al-Din (1118-1174) on the apse of the former Byzantine cathedral of Aleppo. The capitals are very close stylistically to those at Qalat Seman, suggesting that the church was originally built in the second half of the fifth century. Beside the steps down into the madrasa is a large basalt block inscribed with Christian symbols and some Syriac words. Its placement seems designed to underline Islamic supremacy over the former Christian owners of the site.
Creator
Emma Loosley
Date of Visit
December 1992
May 1997
Contributor
Cherryl & Richmond Hunt
Emma Loosley
Rights
Metadata and all media released under Creative Commons
unless otherwise indicated
Type
Architecture
Tags
Aleppo, Architecture, Basalt, Byzantine, C12th, C5th, Capital, Cathedral, Church, Inscription, Madrasa, Madrasa Halawiyeh, Nur al-DIn, Qalat Seman, Sculpture, Syria, Syriac, Syriac Inscription
Collection
Citation
Emma Loosley, “Madrasa Halawiyeh,” Architecture and Asceticism, accessed December 21, 2024, https://architectureandasceticism.exeter.ac.uk/items/show/203.