Currency - Egypt - 10 Pounds - Year 1974

Item code: 35/EG-5

Year	1974
Issue Start & End Date	01/09/1969 to 1978
Obverse	Sultan Hassan Mosque, Cairo (The Mosque of Sultan Hassan was built in 1359. At the time of construction the mosque was considered remarkable for its fantastic size and innovative architectural components.)
Reverse	Pharaoh and pyramids.
Size	181 x 90 mm

Obverse Description:

Sultan Hassan Mosque

Looking down from the Citadel at the Mosque of Sultan Hasan 2014 

The Mosque of Sultan Hassan is one of the largest mosques in the world, measuring 150m in length and covering an area of 7,906 sq m. Its walls rise to 36m and its tallest minaret to 68m. 

Visitors enter the complex through a tall portal that is itself a work of art. A dark and relatively low-ceilinged passageway leads to the brightly lit sahn, a standard cruciform-plan open courtyard. 

The courtyard centers on a domed ablutions fountain, which was probably an Ottoman addition. Soaring on four sides of the courtyard are vaulted liwans (sitting rooms), accented by hanging lamp chains and red-and-black rims. 

Each liwan is devoted to one of the four Sunni schools of jurisprudence. Skilfully fitted between and behind each liwan is a madrasa, complete with its own courtyard and four stories of cells for students and teachers. 

One of the liwans also functions as a sanctuary, containing the mihrab and minbar. It is distinguished from its roughly-plastered counterparts by soft-hued marble inlay and a band of Kufic script. 

To the right of the minbar in this room is a bronze door, exquisitely decorated with radiating stars in gold and silver, which leads into the mausoleum of Sultan Hassan. Its location benefits from prayers to Mecca and overlooks the Sultan's old stomping grounds on Midan Salah al-Din. 

The mausoleum, covered by a restored dome supported on stalactite pendentives, is quite beautiful, particularly in the morning when the rising sun filters through grilled windows.

Reverse Description:

Pyramid

A pyramid is a structure whose outer surfaces are triangular and converge to a single point at the top, making the shape roughly a pyramid in the geometric sense. The base of a pyramid can be trilateral, quadrilateral, or any polygon shape, meaning that a pyramid has at least three outer triangular surfaces (at least four faces including the base). The square pyramid, with square base and four triangular outer surfaces, is a common version. 

The most famous pyramids are the Egyptian pyramids — huge structures built of brick or stone, some of which are among the world's largest constructions. They are shaped as a reference to the rays of the sun. Most pyramids had a polished, highly reflective white limestone surface, to give them a shining appearance when viewed from a distance. The capstone was usually made of hard stone - granite or basalt - and could be plated with gold, silver, or electrum and would also be highly reflective.

Pharaoh

Pharaohs were rulers of ancient Egypt. Before the union of Upper and Lower Egypt, kings would wear crowns of different design, to show which part of Egypt they had rule over. The red crown was worn in Lower Egypt and the white crown in Upper Egypt. In later history, kings of the whole of ancient Egypt would wear a combination of the two crowns, called a Pschent. The word comes from the Egyptian word Per-aa, which means "Great House". Pharaohs were believed to be descended from the gods. When a Pharaoh died, all the treasure that they owned would be buried with them. The Pharaohs are often closely linked to the Pyramids as they were burial tombs for the Pharaohs themselves. Another famous burial place for Pharaohs is the Valley of the Kings.

റമെസ്സേ രണ്ടാമന്റെ മമ്മി

പുരാതന ഈജിപ്തിലെ രാജാവിന്റെ ഭരണകേന്ദ്രമായ രാജകൊട്ടാരമാണ്‌ ഫറവോ. യഥാർത്ഥത്തിൽ ഈ പദം രാജാവിന്റെ കൊട്ടാരത്തെ സൂചിപ്പിക്കാനായി ഉപയോഗിച്ചിരുന്നതെങ്കിലും കാലക്രമത്തിൽ അത് ഭരണസം‌വിധാനത്തേയും പിന്നീട് രാജാവിനെ സൂചിപ്പിക്കാനായും ഉപയോഗിച്ചു തുടങ്ങി. ഫറവോ എന്നത് പുരുഷരാജാക്കന്മാരെ മാത്രം പറഞ്ഞിരുന്ന പേരാണ്‌ എങ്കിലും ദുർലഭമായി സ്ത്രീ ഭരണാധികാരികൾക്കും ചേർത്തിരുന്നു. ഹോറസിന്റെ പുനർജ്ജന്മമായി കണക്കാക്കപ്പെട്ടിരുന്നതിലാണ് ആ രാജ്ഞിമാർക്ക് ഫറോ എന്ന് പേർ ചേർത്തത്. മഹത്തായ ഗൃഹം എന്ന അർത്ഥം വരുന്ന പേറോ (Per‘o) എന്ന പദത്തിൽ നിന്നാണ്‌ ഫറോ എന്ന പദം രൂപം കൊണ്ടത്.

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