“It was made according to sacred proportions” | The lost geometry of the minbar of Saladin

Following an arson attack and ensuing fire at Al-Aqsa mosque in 1969, restoring the damaged mosque became an urgent priority. King Hussein of Jordan secured the structure and before long the roof was restored -- its richly ornamented ceiling glowing above the worshippers once more. The destroyed minbar of Saladin, however, was a more complicated problem. How to replace such an iconic treasure? A temporary substitute was put in place while a solution was sought. The initial idea to replicate the original seemed simple enough, but as it turned out, replacing the minbar of Saladin was far from easy. For the late King Hussein and his successor, King Abdullah II, it became a lengthy and far-reaching quest. One that was to last more than 30 years. As efforts to restore the minbar to its original form began, it became clear that the knowledge of sacred geometry used to design the holy steps had been lost. Not only that, but the ancient and traditional craftsmanship needed to rebuilt it had now slipped away. - - 'Stairway to Heaven' is the story of an ancient and magnificent work of sacred art, whose loss not only shook the art world, but triggered the shocking realisation that traditional Islamic knowledge and skills have all but vanished. In 1969, Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem was attacked by a fanatic, and in the blaze that followed, one of the world's most precious works of art, the minbar of Saladin, originally installed in 1187, was destroyed. The minbar lay in ashes. Thirty years later, the royal family of Jordan, as the traditional guardians of Al-Aqsa mosque, decided to reconstruct the minbar. Fortunately, some black and white photos survived, which showed an intricately constructed pulpit from more than 16,000 hand-carved pieces of walnut, ivory and ebony, held together without glue or nails. Using sacred geometry and the richness of symbolism, the minbar was a masterwork of Islamic art. Narrated by Academy Award-winning actor Sir Kenneth Branagh ('Belfast', 2021), 'Stairway to Heaven' chronicles the journey to recreate the Saladin minbar and its final restoration in Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem, as well as how the consequences of a tragic event have come to symbolise the renaissance of Islamic art around the world. With HM King Charles III (then The Prince of Wales), HRH Prince Ghazi, Sir Christopher Frayling, Dr Khaled Azzam, Professor Keith Critchlow and Dr Minwer al-Meheid. The film would not have been possible without the generous support of the King Abdullah II Foundation and Mohammed Jameel KBE, founder and chairman of Community Jameel. Made available to Community Jameel by kind permission of the owners, The Prince’s Charities / The Prince of Wales’s Charitable Fund / The Prince’s Foundation. To learn more visit: https://www.communityjameel.org/centr...