TheFountain of Qasim Pasha (Arabic:سبيل قاسم باشا,Turkish:Kasım Paşa Çeşmesi) is anablution and drinking fountain (sebil orsabil) in the western esplanade of theal-Aqsa Compound in theOld City ofJerusalem.[1] It is in front of theChain Gate.[2]
It was also known as theSabil an-Nāranj ("Sebil of theBitter Orange") andSabīl Bāb al-Maḥkama ("Sebil of the Court House Gate", from another name of theChain Gate, referring to a former court in theTankiziyya).[3][4]
The construction of the fountain was started in 1526 and completed within a year byQasim Pasha (Güzelce Kasım Paşa), theOttoman governor of theEyalet of Egypt (wali of Egypt) during the reign ofSuleiman the Magnificent.[5] It was the first public Ottoman building on the Haram al-Sharif (al-Aqsa Compound). In addition, it is believed that the fact that the first monument built was an ablution house may be related to the fact that the Ottoman state, mostly Hanafis, perform wudu in running water rather than still water.[6] Earlier Ottoman works on the site were not the construction of newer buildings, but the restoration ofWalls of Jerusalem.[7] Suleiman's projects elsewhere in Jerusalem include theMasjid an-Nabi Dawud andQanat as-Sabil [de].
A wooden colonnade was added to protect the benches and steps from rain and the summer sun in the 1920s restoration by theSupreme Muslim Council. Its dome was rebuilt during the restoration, and covered with lead panels that gave it a pointed and shallower profile. In 1998, the lead sheeting was replaced by a finely crafted stone.[7]
Like other sabils, it was to supply fresh water to the public for drinking andablution. There are accounts that the sabil was in use until the late 1940s.[citation needed] It originally got its water supply from a water channel, but today it is supplied with water from al-Aqsa's water system.[1]
It is an octagonal building consisting of 1.43-metre-long sides, topped by a dome.[1] The structure has marble paving and a modern fountain in its centre.[8] Around the sabil, there is a wooden canopy covered with lead which protects worshipers from the sun and rain.[1] It is mounted by green pillars and descending into it by four steps to perform ablution and drinking.[1] It has 16 faucets and several stone benches.[1] The dome of the structure is built atop an octagonal drum.[2]
It is unique in its design and differs from other Jerusalem and al-Aqsa Mosque sabils.
The fountain is located in the southwest of the Al-Aqsa Compound, nearBab al-Silsila and opposite theAl-Ashrafiyya Madrasa.[9]
To its north isSabil Qaitbay, another fountain. In between the two fountains, there is a fenced-off shallow square pool called thean-Nāranj Pool.
To its south is theDome of Moses. In between them, there is amaṣṭaba (platform), calledMaṣṭabat at-Tīn ('of the Fig') (مصطبة التين)[10] orMaṣṭabat aṭ-Ṭīn ('of Mud') (مصطبة الطين).[11] The mastaba has amihrab.
There is an Arabic inscription on the monument dedicated toSuleiman the Magnificent:
The inscription is dated Shaʿban 933AH (1527 CE).[5] In it, Suleiman is given the honorific "the secondSolomon" (سليمان الثانىSulaymān al-thānī), as they were deemed comparable in achievements related to Jerusalem.[5][4][12] A later inscription (1531) on theCitadel's entrance gate also refers to him as "the second Solomon".[5]
Gate of the Chain […], also known as Gate of the Law Court (bāb al-maḥkama) after the Shari'a Court to its south
1527 datierten, von Qāsim Pāšā erbauten Sabīl Bāb al-Maḥkama als zweiter Salomon (tūni Sulaimān) bezeichnet
A comparison is made between the justice, wisdom, wealth, and building activities of the Biblical King Solomon and Sultan Süleyman inShah Tahmasp's letter.
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31°46′38.39″N35°14′04.99″E / 31.7773306°N 35.2347194°E /31.7773306; 35.2347194
