The traditional scholarship on Mamluk architecture has concentrated most heavily in the matter of description of specific monuments--the approach of Briggs and Creswell, amongst others. The strength of this approach is in its archaeological documentation of the specifics of each particular building so examined. Its sho rtcomings, of course, have to do with the instability of this approach to provid e a broader context for the study of architecture, to give insight into the moti ves of the patron or, at least in any specific way, into the specifics of the fu nction of a monument. It is precisely these sorts of details and data which waqf iyya can provide. Sultan Qansuh al-Ghuri (1501-1516), the last of the Mamluk rul ers was a great patron of building. He erected several foundations, mostly in Ca iro. Of these, the most important was the Ghuriyya complex, located in Cairo on al-Qasaba al-'Uzma, the main street near the Azhar Mosque. The complex accommoda tes a variety of functions and includes a madrasa, a mausoleum, a khanqah, a kut tab and a sabil. Al-Ghuri's life and character are discussed in relation to his activities as a patron of the arts and architecture. Al- Ghuri's waqfiyya is stu died in detail in five sections following in broad outline the organization of t he waqfiyya itself. The first deals with the introduction, including a statement of the purpose of the waqf, an enumeration of the sultan's titles, the declarat ion of the act of waqf, and explanation of its reasons. Part two consists of the descriptions of the buildings forming the Ghuriyya complex as given in the waqf iyya. In part three a listing of the endowments, lands, buildings and other prop erties bequeathed to the waqf is given. Part four is a discussion of the stipula tions having to do with expenditures, the appointments of officials and employee s and their responsibilities. And finally the fifth section deals with the regul ations and conditions established by the patron to secure the waqf and insure it s continuity. The introduction to al-Ghuri's waqfiyya deals with the matter of m otives which were essentially grounded in personal piety and hope for divine rew ard. However, it is made clear from other passages in the waqfiyya that al-Ghuri had purposes of family solidarity and political security in mind as well. Waqfi yyas are useful ...