Sheikh Ali al-Bakka Mosque

31°31′42.3″N 35°06′13.5″E / 31.528417°N 35.103750°E / 31.528417; 35.103750ArchitectureTypemosqueStyleMamlukCompleted1282Minaret(s)1

Sheikh Ali al-Bakka Mosque or Shaykh Ali al-Baka Mosque (Arabic: مسجد الشيخ علي بكاء) is a 13th-century mosque in the northwestern section of the Old City of Hebron in the southern West Bank, Palestine. It is situated in the Harat ash-Sheikh (or Sheik Ali al-Bakka) quarter, one of the Old City's quarters, which is named after the mosque.^[1]

The mosque was founded by the Husam ad-Din Turuntay in 1282 during the reign of Mamluk sultan al-Mansur Qalawun. Turuntay was the representative of the sultan in Jerusalem. The sanctuary is named after Sheikh Ali al-Bakka, a renowned Sufi religious leader from Iraq who lived in Hebron.^[2] The minaret was erected by the viceroy and practical strongman of the sultanate, Sayf al-Din Salar (d. 1310).^[3]

The original mosque was mostly demolished, however the minaret still stands and is viewed as an exemplary work of Mamluk architecture. Sitting on a rectangular base, its shaft has a hexagonal shape. The minaret base has an arched corridor which leads to the courtyard. In 1978 a new mosque was built on the site, but preserved the remains of the original mosque.^[2]

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