Page:Africa by Élisée Reclus, Volume 1.djvu/507

 The so-called "Joseph's Well," sunk near the mosque by order of Yusûf Salahed-din (Saladin the Great), descends to the level of the Nile at a depth of 286 feet. From the surface of the ground to about half of this depth a winding incline enables the oxen to reach a landing, whence the water is raised to the top by working a system of buckets.

South of the citadel in the direction of Old Cairo, and northward of the fort of the Jebel-Mokattam, other mosques of all sizes raise their graceful domes above

the tombs of kings and princes. These elegant structures present a striking contrast to the bare ground, here strewn with all manner of débris, and to the rugged walls of the surrounding quarries. The Kait-bey mosque, north of the cluster of hills, dates from the fifteenth century, but has been recently restored. It is, perhaps, the most perfect specimen of Arab architecture in Egypt, at least as regards the arabesque and geometrical designs of its fretted walls, and the exquisite symmetry of its minaret, disposed in corbelled galleries. Thus the country which