The internal staircase of the Kaaba The internal staircase of the Kaaba is a fixed staircase inside the Kaaba, located in the Syrian Corner, which is used to ascend to the roof of the Kaaba. This staircase was first made of wood by the Quraysh during the reconstruction of the Kaaba five years before the Prophethood. This staircase has been rebuilt, repaired, and replaced several times throughout different historical periods. Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr, Al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf al-Thaqafi, Al-Mutawakkil Abbasi, and the Ottoman kings were some of the individuals involved. The latest internal staircase of the Kaaba was constructed during the reign of King Fahd of Saudi Arabia. The entrance to this staircase is a locked door adorned with gold and silver designs. Location and History The internal staircase of the Kaaba is located on the right side after entering the Kaaba, in the Syrian Corner.(1) Azraqī,Akhbār Makka, vol. 1, p. 294. , Ibn Rustah, Al-Aʿlāq al-Nafīsah, p. 33. For the first time, during the reconstruction of the Kaaba by the Quraysh, a wooden staircase for ascending to the roof of the Kaaba was built five years before the Prophethood.(2)Azraqī,Akhbār Makka, vol. 1, p. 165. , Fāsī al-Makkī,Shifāʾ al-gharām bi akhbār al-balad al-ḥarām, vol. p. 147. The internal staircase of the Kaaba has been repaired, rebuilt, and replaced several times throughout history. The list of these changes can be seen in the table below:***
Modern Internal Staircase During the reign of King Fahd (1982-2005 CE), along with the repairs to the Kaaba, the internal staircase was also rebuilt using glass to increase the light inside the Kaaba. These renovations were completed in the year 1417 AH.(16) Muḥyī al-Dīn Aḥmad Imām, Fī Rahāb al-Bayt al-ʿAtīq , p. 175,177. Additionally, the entrance to this staircase is a locked door adorned with gold and silver designs.(17) "Al-Kaʿbah al-Musharrafah***
References
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2. **Al-Aʿlāq al-Nafīsah: Ibn Rustah**. Beirut: Dār Ṣādir, 1892 CE.
3. **Pulkan Kaʿbah: Abū al-Faḍl Rabānī**. Dānishnāmah Ḥajj wa Ḥaramayn Sharīfayn, 1392 SH.
4. **Al-Tārīkh al-Qawīm: Muḥammad Ṭāhir al-Kurdī**. Edited by Ibn Duhaysh. Beirut: Dār Khadīr, 1420 AH.
5. **Shifāʾ al-Ghurām: Muḥammad al-Fāsī** (Died 832 AH). Edited by a group of scholars. Beirut: Dār al-Kutub al-ʿIlmīyah, 1421 AH.
6. **Al-ʿUqd al-Thamīn fī Tārīkh al-Balad al-Amīn: Muḥammad al-Fāsī**. Edited by Muḥammad ʿAbd al-Qādir. Beirut: Dār al-Kutub al-ʿIlmīyah, 1419 AH.
7. **Fī Rahāb al-Bayt al-ʿAtīq: Muḥyī al-Dīn Aḥmad Imām**. Andalus: Dār Qurtubah, No date available.
8. **"Al-Kaʿbah al-Musharrafah"**: Al-Haramain Website. Article publication date: 9 Ordibehesht 1399 SH, Accessed: 28 Ordibehesht 1403 SH.
9. **Marʾat al-Ḥarāmeyn: Ibrāhīm Rafʿat Pāshā**. Qom: Al-Maṭbaʿah al-ʿIlmīyah, 1344 AH.
10. **Mufarriḥat al-Anām fī Tāsīs Bayt Allāh al-Ḥarām: Zayn al-ʿĀbidīn ibn Nūr al-Dīn Ḥusaynī**. Edited by ʿAmmār ʿAbbūdī Nusār. Tehran: Mashʿar, 1428 AH.
11. **Manāḥiḥ al-Karam: ʿAlī ibn Tāj al-Dīn al-Sanjarī**. Edited by Al-Miṣrī. Makkah: Jāmiʿat Umm al-Qurá, 1419 AH.
12. **Mawṣūʿah Marʾat al-Ḥarāmayn al-Sharīfayn: Ayyūb Ṣabrī Pāshā**. Cairo: Dār al-Afāq al-ʿArabīyah, 1424 AH.