Suggested methods for preserving the Mahmudiyah Mosque (975 AH / 1567 AD)

Although the Mahmudiya Mosque in the Salah al-Din Square area of the Citadel bears many different values that distinguish it from other archaeological buildings that were established in the Ottoman era, it suffers from neglecting and lack of care, and suffers from many different aspects of damage, whether structural, architectural, urban or public.

The research aims to identify, highlight and restore the total or partial of these different values of that mosque (the subject of the research) and the changes that occurred to it, or the total or partial loss or obliteration of these values, and it also aims to monitor the various manifestations and factors of damage affecting the case of the study.
And conducting examinations, analyzes and tests for the building materials used in the building, using polarizing microscope, scanning electron microscope, X-ray diffraction and X-ray florescence in addition to tests of physical and mechanical properties and the geographic positioning system (GPS) was also used for latitude and longitude.
Where the study concluded through the results of those examinations, analyzes and various tests of damaged samples of limestone taken from the case of the study, and the results showed that materials suffer from deterioration and corrosion in calcite crystals and loss in the binding material It also showed the presence of cracks and fine cracks in the mineral crystals of the stone as a result of the internal stresses resulting from the blooming of salts on the surface (Efflorescence) and under the surface (Sub-florescence) and within the components of the stone (Crypto florescence) resulting from the rise of salt solutions from contaminated soil in the walls of the mosque, It was also shown through the physical properties tests that there was a decrease in the density of limestone and an increase in its porosity and its ability to absorb water. Components of limestone, where calcium sulfate compound was found in the results of X-ray diffraction analysis and scanning electron microscope examination, and from the above it is clear the deterioration of the current state of building materials as part of the deterioration of the building, and many active cracks were detected, whether vertical, horizontal or inclined It confirms the exposure of the mosque to the subsidence of the bearing soil and the presence of excessive loads, as it is likely that it was exposed to previous earthquakes It was also found through monitoring with the tendency monitoring device (GPS) that there were tendencies in the minaret of the mosque.
The research ended with the development of several proposals for intervention and preservation represented in structural conservation proposals represented in proposals for soil treatment and foundations and architectural preservation proposals represented in the repair of cracks and the processes of completion, replacement and replacement and proposals for careful preservation represented in the extraction of salts and cleaning operations, and the research provides a set of recommendations related to the processes of Preserving ancient buildings.