Al-Rumi Mosque (Mankalibugha)

A mosque of the Mamluk period in the old city of Aleppo. Its historic name is the Mankalibugha Mosque, after Mankalibugha, the Mamluk viceroy who held office in Aleppo. In the quarter it is simply called al-Rumi, and both names point to the same building.

Getting there

It lies between the Saffahiyah quarter to the west and Bab Qinnasrin to the north. Walk down the lane running south from the gate; the mosque stands at the end of a narrow street, its front set back from the line.

What to see

The minaret. Aleppo has many minarets and none of them looks like this one: the proportions of the shaft, the transition under the gallery and the cap at the top are repeated nowhere else in the city. Seen up the narrow lane, the shaft rises alone above the roofs, and that is the only place you can photograph it from.

What remains

The minaret took visible damage in the fighting that ran through the old city of Aleppo. The condition of the building and whether it is open for prayer can change; ask when you reach the quarter. You come here to see a minaret, and part of what you see is the damage.