The Plan of al-Qahira

Abstract

Relying on physical evidence and historical texts, this study reconstructs the original tenth century plan of the Fatimid city of Al-Qahira, now embedded in the medieval district of Cairo. The author concludes that for religious and political reasons the Fatimids designed their new capital on the basis of a geometric figure, a pentagram, oriented due east. The plan is consistent with the Fatimids’ rigorous organizational skills, but the pentagram was also a powerful symbol in service to Isma’ili propaganda.