The Tower of the Lion or Burj el Sbaa was part of a set of seven guard towers built by the Mamluk in the fourteenth – fifteenth centuries to protect the city of Tripoli against the sea.
The Lion Tower ( برج السبع,Burj es-Sabaa) is a small fortress located at the far eastern end of the Tripoli harbor in North Lebanon. The tower was named after the relief decorations depicting lions that used to line the façade. The structure dates back to the end of the fifteenth century and is attributed to Mamluke Sultan Seifeddine Bersbey.
The tower is considered an exceptional example of military Mameluke architecture. Its portico is adorned with stripes of black and white ashlar stones, and ancient Roman columns were laid down horizontally to reinforce the tower’s wall. The ground floor is one single large room that was decorated with armorial carvings and paintings, traces of which can still be seen.
The Lion Tower is one of the most beautiful works of Mamlouki military architecture that can be seen in el Mina, Tripoli,Lebanon. It is a massive rectangular structure with two upper floor, on the façade of which is offset a front building with a lancet-arched door. This opens onto a huge room with six bays covered by ribbed vaults.
None of the other towers on the coast compare to this structure, which is unique not only by its mass, the extent of its defences, its monumental appearance, but also by many decorative elements distributed throughout with a sense of rhythm and symmetry.
Location: The Lion tower is situated near Tripoli old railways.
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