Nabi Daniel Mosque

The Nabi Daniel Mosque is one of Alexandria's most storied religious buildings, standing on the busy central street that shares its name. The present structure is an Ottoman-era rebuilding of a much older foundation, and it has long been wrapped in legend, most famously the persistent but unproven belief that the tomb of Alexander the Great may lie somewhere beneath this part of the city.

Inside, the mosque is calm and dignified. A carpeted prayer hall sits beneath a simple dome, and a crypt below holds tombs traditionally associated with the prophet Daniel and a local holy figure, drawing worshippers and the curious alike. The building's fame rests less on architectural splendour than on the layers of history and myth attached to its ground.

Its location marks a crossroads of ancient Alexandria. Scholars have long placed the royal quarter and the great tombs of the Ptolemaic kings somewhere near here, which is why the mosque features in centuries of speculation about Alexander's lost mausoleum. Whether or not anything ancient survives below, the sense of standing above the city's deepest past gives the visit its charge.

The mosque is easy to include in a central walk, close to the Cavafy Museum, the Roman theatre and the corniche. As an active place of worship it should be approached respectfully: dress modestly, remove shoes before entering the carpeted areas, and avoid the busiest prayer times if you wish to look quietly around. Non-Muslim visitors are generally welcome outside prayer, and a small donation is appreciated. Take a moment on the street outside to picture the vanished royal city that once occupied this ground, a reminder that in Alexandria the ancient and the everyday are never far apart.