Bab Zuwayla

You have reached the southern end of the caliphs' city. Bab Zuwayla is the twin of Bab al-Nasr, where you started: it too was rebuilt in stone by the vizier Badr al-Jamali, in 1092. Its name recalls the Zawila, a Berber tribe whose soldiers camped in this area.

1A prisoner's minarets

The two minarets do not belong to the gate. They were added in 1419 and 1420 by Sultan al-Muayyad Shaykh for his mosque, which stands against the wall. Al-Maqrizi tells us that before becoming sultan, al-Muayyad was held in a prison that stood on this site, and swore that if he got out he would replace it with a mosque. He kept his word.

2A place of punishment

For centuries the gate was a stage for executions, and heads were displayed above it. In 1260 the heads of the Mongol envoys who had demanded Egypt's surrender were hung here. In April 1517, after the Ottoman conquest, Tumanbay, the last Mamluk sultan, was hanged from this arch. According to the chronicles, his body was left hanging for three days before it was buried.

Cairenes also call it Bab al-Mitwalli, after a popular saint who, according to tradition, lived behind its doors. People hung locks of hair or scraps of cloth on the gate to ask him for good health.

The gate was restored between 1999 and 2003, and today you can climb its minarets.

3What to look for

• The two minarets, with their muqarnas balconies.
• The great wooden leaves of the gate.
• The Street of the Tentmakers (al-Khayamiya), which continues on the other side.