The Tonshuk Palace- Kaser Sit Tonshuk

The lady Tonshuk, daughter of Abdalla El- Mathferia, was the wife of the Mameluke leader Muthafar A-Din. At the end of the 14^th century she donated the building to a Sufi order, a group of Muslim mystics. The lady stayed in the castle until the day she died. She was buried in the mausoleum facing the castle. The building’s façade is decorated with stone ornaments characteristic of the era of Mameluke rule in Jerusalem: a combination of black and white stones (some of the black stones were damaged or have disappeared over the years, leaving only the white stones), an ornamental vaulting known as Muqarnas, and Ablaq- a combination of red and yellowish stones- all indicate that the building was built during the Mameluke era in Israel. The metal grates on the windows are also characteristic of the Mameluke architecture, with a circle in the meeting point of the grates. Such grates can be seen in other streets throughout the old City of Jerusalem. During the 16^th century, the Mameluke Jerusalem surrendered to the Ottoman army, which was armed with guns and canons. Under the Ottoman rule, Jerusalem became a provincial town at the periphery of the Empire, but the Temple Mount remained an important religious center. During this time Haseki Sultana, the favorite wife of Suleiman the Magnificent who built the Walls of Jerusalem, lived in this place, and introduced the distribution of free soup to needy Muslims. Throughout the Ottoman era, the Saray, the building housing the administrative apparatus of municipal and provincial government, as well as the local police headquarters, all inhabited the place. Today the building serves a vocational school.