A MARBLE TILE WITH THE NAMES OF THE TEN COMPANIONS PROMISED PARADISE (INVENTORY NO. 2097, MUSEUM OF ISLAMIC ART IN CAIRO) REDATING AND RECLASSIFICATION

The main aim of this study is to re-date and reclassify one of the masterpieces in the Museum of Islamic art in Cairo. It carries the names of the Ten companions promised paradise applied in a type of Kufic script, which is octagonal in form. It has, so far, been dated back to the Mamluk period. It was originally found in the mosque of al-Sayyida Nafīsah. In this study, I prove that it dates back to the Ottoman period, specifically during the restoration works in the same mosque carried out by the Ottoman sovereign ʿAbdalraḥman Katḫudā. I have based my conclusion on a comparative study bet-ween the present plaque and another identical one preserved beside the Ottoman mihrab in al-Azhar Mosque having the same text, which is considered amongst his works in al-Azhar dated 1167 AH./1753 AD. In this paper, I conduct an analytical study of the style and text of the examined artifact compared with the one preserved in al-Azhar mosque and another preserved in the mosque of al-Burdīnī (1025-1038 AH.-1616-1629 AD). The study concluded that the artifact dates back to the Ottoman period, not the Mamluk, as supported by ʿAbd al-Raḥman al-Ğabartī, who mentioned that ʿAbd al-Raḥman Katḫuda restored the mosque of al-Sayyida Nafīsah and added a new qibla wall in al-Azhar mosque.