The Tombstone of Prince Al-Hasan bin Imam Al-Mansur Billah Al-Qasim bin Mohammed, Preserved in the Duran Mosque: A Comparative Study of Form and Content

Abstract

Yemen is home to a substantial collection of tombstones, many of which remain positioned over the graves of their owners whether in cemeteries, within mosques, inside shrine domes annexed to mosques, or housed in independent domes. Among the most prominent sites preserving such artifacts is the Mosque of Prince Al-Hasan bin Al-Qasim in Duran. This study offers a comparative examination of the tombstone of Prince Al-Hasan bin Al-Qasim, currently preserved in the newly constructed Duran Mosque. The tombstone, along with five others, bears the signature of the artisan Qasim bin Mohammed Al-Hilm. These include the tombstones of Prince Al-Husayn bin Al-Qasim (two examples), Prince Ahmad bin Al-Qasim (two examples, one attributed to the same craftsman), Imam Al-Mu'ayyad Billah Mohammed bin Al-Qasim (one example), Lady Taqiyyah bint Shams Al-Din (wife of Imam Al-Qasim bin Mohammed and mother of Imam Al-Mutawakkil 'ala Allah Isma'il bin Al-Qasim), and Imam Yusuf Al-Akbar, known as the caller to Allah. The second tombstone of Prince Al-Hasan, which forms the core of this study, does not bear the artisan’s signature; however, the researcher attributes its craftsmanship to the same individual based on stylistic and material analysis.

The research emphasizes the tombstone’s material composition, structural design, sectional divisions, and inscriptive content. It concludes with an in-depth analysis of thirty-five honorific titles engraved on the tombstone, including four titles documented and studied for the first time.