Preserving the Sacred House

This impressive plaque commemorates repairs made to the door of the Ka‘bah in AH 1119/1708 CE, above which it remained for over 350 years. Its inscription is divided into two sections. The upper features verses from the Holy Qur’an which emphasize that the first house of worship was in Makkah al-Mukarramah, and that pilgrimage there is a duty on all those who are able. The poem in the lower inscription honors Sultan Ahmed III (r. AH 1115–43/1703–30 CE) who commissioned the repairs and the plaque. It also forms a chronogram that gives the date of AH 1119/1707–08 CE.

To contribute to the renewal of the Ka‘bah stands among the highest honors a Muslim patron can attain. In AH 1039/1630 CE, the Ka‘bah was severely damaged in a flood, necessitating major repairs. These repairs included a new door, installed in AH 1045/1635 CE, the exterior of which was covered with gilded silver plates, with inscriptions and decoration in relief. By AH 1119/1708 CE the door required repair once more, and cracks in the door were sealed and gilded. The work culminated in a ceremony attended by Makkah al-Mukarramah’s most distinguished notables.

The inscription on this plaque was written in the jali thuluth script and commissioned from the master calligrapher Salih Çelebi, who composed it in Makkah after performing the Hajj, only a few years before his death in AH 1124/1712 CE. The metalwork itself required a high-level of skill, with the inscription highlighted in black against the gold background. It remains to be established whether it was produced in Makkah or a major metropolitan center, such as Cairo or Istanbul.