Mahmal

thumb|right|upright|Cover for a Damascus Mahmal, Istanbul, 16th century. Khalili Collection of Hajj and the Arts of Pilgrimage A mahmal () is a ceremonial passenger-less litter that was carried on a camel among caravans of pilgrims on the Hajj, the pilgrimage to Mecca which is a sacred duty in Islam. It symbolised the political power of the sultans who sent it, demonstrating their custody of Islam's holy sites. Each mahmal had an intricately embroidered textile cover, or sitr. The tradition dates back at least to the 13th century and ended in the mid-20th. There are many descriptions and photographs of mahmals from 19th century observers of the Hajj.

== History == The word "mahmal" comes from the root حمل (ḥ-m-l, "to carry"). A mahmal consists of a wooden frame made to fit on a camel, with a pointed top. There were textile coverings placed over it: an ornate processional covering and others for everyday use. These coverings are known as the kiswah or sitr al-mahmal. The earliest surviving covers, from the Mamluk Sultanate, are yellow, but later instances are red or green. The embroidered decoration would include the tughra (seal) of the Sultan as well as verses from the Quran. thumb|right|The return of the mahmal from Mecca to Cairo. Wood engraving, 1893 The first recorded sending of a mahmal was by Baibars, who was Sultan of Egypt from 1260 to 1277. Mahmals were sent from Cairo, Damascus, Yemen, Hyderabad, Darfur, and the Timurid Empire in different periods. Although the main pilgrim caravan from Egypt departed from Cairo, a separate caravan with its own mahmal departed annually from Asyut from the late 14th century.