Water Dispensary and Qur’anic School of ‘Abd al-Rahmān Katkhūda

The name ‘Abd al-Rahmān Katkhūda, amir of Cairo and prefect of Egypt in the middle of the eighteenth century, is associated with many monuments—mosques, fountains, and tombs—that he built or restored. This sabīl-kuttāb is located near Bayn al-Qasrayn, one of the main roads in Cairo, where many monuments have been built. The building comprises an elementary school (kuttāb) and a public drinking fountain (sabīl). There are many such buildings in Cairo, Istanbul, and other large cities in the Islamic world, as they were built for pious reasons.

The building is organized on two levels. An entry point in the west opens onto a fountain, the water reservoir, and a flight of steps leading to the classroom on the first floor. The rectangular water distribution room (tasbil) is linked to a reservoir. Each of its three sides has a large arch. There’s a commercial area in the southern section, accessible via an independent entry.

The sabīl’s three facades are identical and each has a semi-circular arch resting on small columns containing a grilled window, allowing passers-by to drink water. The window is surmounted by a large arch resting on two fluted, twisted engaged columns on the corners of the building. The spandrels of the upper and lower arches are decorated in the same way with coloured marble marquetry. On the upper storey there’s a wooden balcony that overlooks the street. Resting on several tiers of muqarnas, it is composed of a mashrabiyya latticework balustrade topped by a row of semi-circular arches; these support the eaves and a new set of mashrabiyya, crowned by the roof.

The coloured marble decorations (arches with arch stones alternating colours and knot motifs in the spandrels) are reminiscent of Mamluk architecture, such as the doorway in the Qalāʾūn Complex (Cairo, 1283–1285), for example. This influence is found on the entry in the west facade, which has been built like a monumental Mamluk portal. The door, whose lintel bears the foundation text, is surmounted by a relieving arch with curved arch stones in alternating colours. Above is a rectangular window with a copper grill flanked by two columns, surrounded by marble arch stones similar to those on the relieving arch and surmounted by a row of muqarnas. This one supports a frame where there’s a circular motif that comprises knotted bands, decorated with vegetal elements in the Ottoman Baroque style. Finally, these elements are enclosed by a monumental tri-lobed arch, filled with muqarnas, whose upper lobe is ornamented with a radiating motif reminiscent of Fatimid decorations.

The walls inside the tasbil are entirely covered with glazed ceramic tiles.  They are decorated with the saz leaves, a typical Ottoman motif, which is found throughout the empire on buildings built since the sixteenth century. There’s also a panel depicting a view of the Holy Ka’ba and the buildings surrounding it. The tasbil room also has a wooden door with piers in the form of twelve-pointed stars. In the classroom there are seven marble columns similar to those on the exterior of the sabīl, which support pointed horseshoe arches. The decorations, which show Mamluk and Ottoman influences, have also been influenced by the European Baroque and Rococo styles: floral coronets and large, stylized leaves. These motifs were used extensively in Ottoman objets d’art and architecture.