were chosen from among the renowned jurists. Beside it stood the “Manṣūriyyah Dome,” which contained a library embracing every branch of learning.

4 – The Nāṣiriyyah Madrasah: named after al-Malik al-Nāṣir Muḥammad ibn Qalāwūn. It was completed in 703 AH, and the first to teach there was the Mālikī judge Ibn Makhlūf (1).

Among the madrasahs of greater Syria were:

1 – The Ẓāhiriyyah Madrasah: built by al-Malik al-Ẓāhir in 670 AH; the first lecturer there was Shaykh Ṣadr al-Dīn Sulaymān al-Ḥanafī (2).

2 – The Great ʿĀdiliyyah Madrasah: named after al-Malik al-ʿĀdil Sayf al-Dīn, who died before it was finished. His son al-Malik al-Muʿaẓẓam completed its construction and endowed it with charitable waqf properties, and a number of judges taught there (3).

In addition to these were the mosques in which lessons were delivered and that enjoyed the patronage of the sultans—such as the Ibn Ṭūlūn Mosque, al-Azhar Mosque, the Ḥākim Mosque, and others (4).

These mosques played a prominent role in the scholarly revival of the period; yet, as we have said, the most notable feature was a dearth of original production and a certain intellectual stagnation. Effort was largely confined to compiling information on every discipline and to authoring extensive or abridged works in those fields, with little trace of innovation or renewal.

Nevertheless, this does not prevent us from stating that there were eminent scholars active on the scene,