0 minaret of mashhad al-husaini

the fatimid caliph al-faiz bi-nasr allah had built the mausoleum of al-hussaini in 549 A.H/1154 A.D., and nothing of the fatimid building remains except the door known as the green door .
repair works and renovation were followed during the ayyubids, when abu al-qasim ibn yahia nasir al-sukkari ordered the minaret to be built on top of the green door and it was finished by his son muhammad ibn al-qasim.
the minaret consists of a high square shaft transforming in to an octagonal body across spherical triangular pendentives. the octagonal shaft is crowned on top by stalactites tiers holding the wooden balcony which has taken the shape of the ottoman minarets .
the square shaft is decorated from the south west side by three recesses in the shape of mihrabs each crowned by a pointed arch ending with a straight line, whose interior is decorated by floral ornaments.
the spandrels are occupied with medallions, shallow recesses four of them crowned by pointed arches ending by a straight line whereas the other four are crowned with circular arches of radiant decorations. a group of special holders for lighting have been fixed in the upper part of the round shaft where a pole of three inflated balls follows at the top to be crowned by a crescent.


the stucco floral decorations engraved on the square shaft of the minaret reflect. andalusian infiuences which appeared in the ayyubids period. 
nonetheless building of mausoleums remains contradictory to islamic teaching with respect to the idea of building above the tombs. other opinions regard the case of building minarets as a different issue as some believe that it performs its function in serving moslems although in this particular mashhad it has no specific function such as calling for prayers but it was added as a land mark.