Cairo’s Alabaster Mosque is known for Ottoman-style pencil-shaped minarets and its association with Muhammad Ali Pasha.
Also called the Mosque of Muhammad Ali, it was built inside the Citadel of Cairo between 1830 and 1848. Muhammad Ali Pasha commissioned it as a congregational mosque and as a dynastic monument. Its large central dome, surrounding half-domes, and slender minarets reflect Ottoman architectural models, especially those associated with Istanbul.
The popular name “Alabaster Mosque” comes from the extensive alabaster facing used on interior and exterior surfaces, although not every visible surface is made from the same material. The building is sometimes confused with Mamluk mosques in Cairo’s historic center; its Ottoman vocabulary and prominent citadel location make it architecturally distinct.