The Expanded Narrative
The Al-Ashrafiyya School was founded by Sultan al-Ashraf Ismail ibn al-Abbas around 696 AH, opened in the year of his death 803 AH, one of the most important religious education centres of Islamic Yemen.
A historical glance
The Al-Ashrafiyya School was founded by Sultan al-Ashraf Ismail ibn al-Abbas around 696 AH, opened in the year of his death 803 AH. It was one of the most important religious education centres of Islamic Yemen, historically linked to the adjacent Ashrafiyya Mosque, housing educational facilities and tombs of several Rasulid kings.
Materials and design
The school was built of stone and plaster, designed to be a practical and aesthetic educational facility at once. It has four main entrances, and the higher southern entrance bears an inscription recording the sultan’s order to build it.
The educational function
The school was a main centre for teaching the Shafi’i school of jurisprudence, with a rich library of books in various sciences and arts, making it among the most prominent educational and religious institutions of Taiz.
