The burial of Aga Khan IV in Aswan is an exceptional event in the modern history of the city. We hope this burial will promote Aswan as a tourist destination…
Ahmed Saleh, a representative of Aswan in the Egyptian parliament
Architectural wonder
Aga Khan III fell in love with Aswan soon after he arrived in it in 1954 for treatment of rheumatism and bone inflammation. He was advised by one of his doctors to travel to the Egyptian city to seek treatment by burying himself in its hot sands.
Having undergone a phenomenal recovery, he decided to make the city his winter residence.
Aga Khan III then hired Egyptian architect, Farid Shafie, to construct the mausoleum for him on a plot of land awarded to him by the late Egyptian President, Gamal Abdel Nasser.
Along with the mausoleum, Shafie also constructed what is now known as Villa Nour El Salam which became the winter residence of the spiritual leader of the Ismaili community.
In designing the mausoleum, engineer Shafie was influenced by the structure of Juyushi Mosque, an Islamic house of worship in Cairo constructed in 1085 during the reign of the Fatimid Imam-Caliph al-Mustansir Billah.
The mausoleum features a rectangular layout with a central dome and several smaller domes. It also features an interior mihrab (a niche in the wall of the mosque) for prayer.
Engineer Shafie used pink limestone in constructing the mausoleum and crenellated parapets (features of defensive structures) to line its outer wall.
There is an arched doorway on the western side of the building that serves as the only entrance to its interior.
There is also a large central dome on the eastern side of the mausoleum, which has arched tracery windows along the octagonal drum. Four miniature domes are also located on each corner of the outer wall.
https://www.newarab.com/features/how-egypt-hopes-capitalise-aga-khans-burial
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