Aga Khan Mausoleum
forty-eighth Imam (or leader) of the Ismaili sect of lslam, is another landmark of Aswan. Aga Khan Mausoleum ,is not an historical monument, but it has gained considerable popular cultural appeal.
The late Aga Khan (who claimed direct descent from Fatima, the daughter of the prophet Muhammad), used to visit Aswan every winter and take up residence in his white villa, Nur al-Salaam, situated just above the west bank.
He reputedly buried him self in the hot desert sands as a palliative for his rheumatism. He was so enchanted with the beauty of Aswan that toward the end of his life he expressed the desire to be buried in a spot overlooking his favorite part of the river.
He died in 1957.
His wife the Begum oversaw the construction of his mausoleum.
It was built in the Fatimid style with a single dome, one of the important innovations in Islamic architecture between the tenth and twelfth centuries.
Constructed of fine rose granite, its inner walls are of marble and inscribed with verses of the Quran.
A small mosque has been incorporated into the structure.
The sarcophagus is carved from Carrara marble from Italy.
Each day a fresh rose is placed on the Aga Khan’s tomb.
When the Begum is in residence in the villa, below the mausoleum, she carries the flower to her husband’s tomb
he self.
This has now been remedied.
The Egyptian government collected the blocks
Aga Khan Mausoleum in Aswan
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