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The Fatimid Mosque is situated at a square in the historic centre of Qus. A three-stepped minaret in one corner dominates it. There are Ptolemaic, Roman remains and probably a Christian church underneath this mosque. The first mosque at this location was founded in the 7th century, but the oldest surviving part dates to the Fatimid Period. A glorious mosque at Qus was needed due to the pilgrims’ route and the vast commercial movements that passed the city. Pilgrims from all over Egypt and North Africa used to sail up the Nile and stop by Qus, then travel on camels or foot to the Red Sea on their way to Mecca; this was the foremost pilgrims’ route from AD 1058 to AD 1261. Nevertheless, at the time of Al-Zahir Baibars, he sent a pilgrim caravan to Mecca through Sinai; consequently, the trade moved away, and Qus started to lose its importance.