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Minaret Park - Erbil

It is located at the Halabja Street opposite the Central Bank of the Region in Erbil, and was called so after the archeological lighthouse of Erbil (“Minara” means “lighthouse), which now occupies one corner of the park. Situated almost at the heart of the city, the park was designed in an attractive way. It contains a theater located at an undulating site at the west side of the park, and having a capacity of five thousand spectators. Many occasions have been celebrated there, including the French Cinema Week. The park also contains a cafeteria and many benches for the visitors to sit on.

Mudhafaria Minaret

History

The minaret was built between 586 AH (1190/1191 CE) and 630 AH (1232/1233CE) by the Turkoman prince of Erbil, during the reign of Salahadin, Muzaffar Al-Din Abu Sa’eed Al-Gawkaboori (Gökböri) who had entered in the obedience of Salahadin without war and married his sister.

Architecture

The minaret is 36 metres high and is composed of a high octagonal base and a tall cylindrical shaft, with a balcony located between the base and the shaft. This design was typical for mosques built during the reign of the Ayyubid Sultanate. It is believed that the minaret is the only remnant of a mosque, since destroyed.

It is built of baked bricks, the base being decorated with two tiers of niches with pointed arches, two on each of the eight faces that are inscribed in rectangular frames. The balcony parapet is carved with twenty-four small niches, the access door to the minaret steps is on the eastern side of the octagonal base and leads top to the balcony. From there a small door gives access to steps inside the cylindrical shaft that led to the second balcony now collapsed.

The shaft tapers inward and is decorated with several bands of interlocking diagonal Hazar-Baf motifs that are separated with thin bands. Examples of Kufi calligraphy can be seen, showing the names of Muhammad and Mas'oudi Muhammadi, the builders of the minaret.