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Architecture in the Medieval Islamic Empires

Introduction: When Islam exploded across the Middle East and into India in the East and all the way to Spain and Morocco in the West, this vast empire began to assimilate (take in) architectural styles from many traditions. The religious architecture was to become the most obvious symbol of Islam: the mosques and the holy shrines. Yet the mosques throughout the world do not look alike. They have used local materials and have built upon previous cultural styles. Yet they have similarities. Likewise, palaces, forts, and castles reflect the religion of Islam. They are symbols of power and the dangers their leaders faced. While the empire became a vast trading network, the buildings that housed the camel caravan traders - the caravanserai - reflected their importance to the empire, as well. The wealth and power of the empire was often directed into buildings that are recognized for their beauty and innovation (new ideas). Behold the beauty that was created in the Islamic Empires of the Middle Ages.

 

I. The Holiest Places in Islam

Photo courtesy of IslamiCity

A. The Kaaba - in Mecca, Saudi Arabia

The Kaaba is the "cubic" shrine in Mecca, the center of Islamic worship and the holiest place in Islam. ("Kaaba" means "cube" in Arabic.) It was originally a shrine built by Abraham devoted to the one God, about 2000 B.C. For more images, see IslamiCity's images of the Kaaba.

Muslims pray five times a day facing the Kaaba in Mecca, and if they are able, they will make a Pilgrimage, or "hajj", there at least once in their lives.

 

At the time before Islam, the Kaaba was used to house about 360 idols for the various tribes of Arabia. The Prophet Muhammad was against idol worship and preached that there was one God (Allah). This started the hostilities (attacks, fighting) against him and his followers. After leaving Mecca and going to Medina, the Prophet Muhammad and his followers finally returned triumphantly (in triumph, victoriously) into Mecca. There the Muslims destroyed the idols and rededicated the Kaaba to the one God.

 

 

 

B. The Dome of the Rock - Jerusalem

 

 

This beautiful structure was built by the Caliph Abd al-Malik and completed in 691 A.D. The building encloses a huge rock located at its center from which the Prophet Muhammad ascended (went up) to heaven at the end of his Night Journey.

 

 

 

Learn more about the Dome of the Rock:

For a good explanation of the importance of the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem (and a cut-away view) go to Jerusalem Mosaic. This site also tells of the history of this famous building. Look at the architectural features of the building. What is its shape? How is it decorated?

Also see IslamiCity's images of Jerusalem including Al Aqsa Mosque with its silver dome, and the Dome of the Rock with its golden dome (built over the rock from which Muhammad made his night journeys).

Also see some good aerial photographs and architectural plans of the Dome of the Rock (Holy Oke)

Architectural History of the Dome of the Rock: The Dome of the Rock that we see today is somewhat different from the original building that was constructed by 'abd al-Malik in 691 A.D.. The entire dome was rebuilt by al Zaher Li-L'zaz in 1022 A.D. due to an earthquake in 1016 A.D. (Duncan 1972:46). The drum was rebuilt in 1318 A.D. (Creswell 1969:30), and the inscriptions (both the lower sura 36 and the upper sura 17) were not added until 1876 A.D. by Abdul Hamid II (Duncan 1972:66). The present doors (where sura 2:144 is found) were not erected until 1545 A.D. (Creswell 1969:26). The southern portical was not built until 1817 A.D. by the Sultan Mahmud (Duncan 1972:64). [1]

 

C. Medina - Burial Place of Muhammad (PBUH)

See the burial place of Muhammad and the Prophet's Mosque in the city to which Muhammad and the early Muslims fled as they escaped the dangers in Mecca. See IslamiCity's images of Medina and the Prophet's Mosque. (IslamiCity)

 

II. Mosques

Great Mosque of Samara, Iraq. Courtesy of Iransaga. It was built 848-852 AD. on an open plan. It is the largest mosque of Islam (748 x 512 ft).

A mosque is the most important Islamic building. It is a sacred building used by Muslims for prayer. The word "mosque" is Arabic for "a place of prostration" or bowing down to Allah. Besides being a place of prayer, the mosque was also used as a "community center" for a combination of reasons: a school, for political and social meetings, a place for judging cases, and other functions in the Islamic community.

For more of an introduction to mosques, see "What is a mosque?" "Examples of mosques" from a map, and "Activities" related to arches and ellipses. All these sites are from Hyperion Cultural Academy's excellent webpages.

 

A. Mosques from around the World

Bougoni, Mali, West Africa. Built around 1890. [Image from Baobab Narratives]

Royal Mosque, Isfahan, Iran. 17th century [Image from Anglia, U.K. "Welcome to Isfahan"]

Great Mosque, Xian, China.

Originally built in 742 AD during the Tang dynasty.

Suleyman Mosque, Istanbul, Turkey.

Built between 1550 and 1557 by Sinan, the renowned architect of the Ottoman golden age.

[Image from Hyperion Cultural Academy]

Ibn Tulun Mosque, Cairo, Egypt. Built in 879.

Demak Mosque, Indonesia. Built in 1477 AD

 

Learn more about the mosques of the world:

Virtual Tour of Isfahan, Iran - a tour of the capital city in medieval Iran (16th century). This is now a UNESCO world heritage site and is being preserved as a "treasury" of architecture. It shows large mosques and mosjids (smaller mosques), palaces, etc. You can tour the city by clicking on buildings from a map, clicking on doors of buildings to get inside, or by following the text and clicking on highlighted words. Don't get lost!

"Mosques Around the World" shows 14 paintings of mosques in the Philippines, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Arabia, U.S., Canada. See more mosques and sacred sites (from IslamiCity) in Africa, Asia, America, Europe, etc. These include the Kaaba, Dome of the Rock, Medina, and more. See the Great Mosque in Xian, China and the "minaret" which is in the style of a pagoda (Chinese style tower). See another tour of the Great Mosque in Xian. See the Great Mosque in Córdoba, Spain.

See a mosque in Mali, West Africa (from Baobab Narratives). Also from West Africa, see Djenné (Mali) for an image of the "mud" mosque. Learn more about mosques in East Africa as well.

"Islamic and Arabic Art and Architecture" (includes metalworks, woodwork, cultural objects, materials & techniques and more) [from Islamic Arts & Architecture Organization].

"Gallery of Islamic Art" (includes links to arts, architecture, Dome of Rock and mosques around the world, calligraphy and more)

Arabic Music, Films & Pictures Their "Picture Album from the Islamic World" has several great photographs of mosques throughout the world.

See images of Islamic Indonesia and visit the Demak Mosque in Indonesia, the country with the world's largest Muslim population.

 

Next, go inside a mosque. (Page 2)

 

You are here at Page 1: Holy Places and Mosques

Go to Islamic Architecture, Page 2 - Inside a Mosque

Go to Islamic Architecture, Page 3 - Palaces

Go to Islamic Architecture, Page 4 - Forts, Castles

Go to Islamic Architecture, Page 5 - Homes

Go to Islamic Architecture, Page 6 - Caravanserai

Go to Islamic Architecture, Page 7 - Bath houses, Tombs, and Architecture

 

Go to the Student Activities Page on Architecture

Go to the Main Page

Books and Magazines

  1. Umm El Madayan - An Islamic City Through the Ages, Ayoub, et alia, Houghton Mifflin, 1994
  2. Inside Story: A 16th Century Mosque, by MacDonald and Bergin, Peter Bedrick Books, N.Y., 1994
  3. Modern Knowledge Library: Rise of Islam, p. 28-29.
  4. Silver-Burdett, Rise of Islam, by Moktefi, pp. 32 - 33
  5. A Medieval Banquet by Audrey Shabbas, "Islamic Architecture" pp. 53 - 79
  6. ARAMCO World: May-June, 1976 Architecture in Arabia p.19-21
  7. ARAMCO World: November-December, 1985, "The Minarets of Cairo" pp. 10 - 23
  8. ARAMCO World: July - August, 1985 "Muslims in China" (Entire Issue)
  9. ARAMCO World: Islam's Path East (Entire Issue)
  10. ARAMCO World: January-February, 1991 "Fortified Oman" p. 8-17
  11. ARAMCO World: November-December, 1993 [Crusaders' Castles] "Stones that Did the work of Men" pp. 20 - 27
  12. ARAMCO World: May-June, 1993 "Room for Tradition" [architecture, decoration in Damascus] p. 10 - 17 and "Fez: Preserving a City" p. 20 - 27 and "A Mural Celebration" p. 34 - 39
  13. ARAMCO World: July-August, 1993 "Homes of Old Makkah" p. 20 - 29 and "Suakin time and Tide" p. 32 - 39
  14. ARAMCO World: January-February, 1994 "Jerusalem On-Screen" p. 30 - 31 [3-D computer images architecture]
  15. ARAMCO World: January-February, 1992 "Mosque in Islamabad" [Pakistan] p. 20 - 29
  16. ARAMCO World: November-December, 1990 "Djenné: Living Tradition" p. 18-29 [W. Africa mosques]
  17. ARAMCO World: January-February, 1996 "A Tradition of Diversity: Mosques of Cote D'Ivoire (Ivory Coast)" p. 32 - 35
  18. ARAMCO World: July-August, 1994 "White Mosques of Jerba" p. 2 - 7 [island off Tunisia]
  19. ARAMCO World: September-October, 1996 "The Dome of the Rock [Jerusalem]" p. 20 - 35
  20. ARAMCO World: May-June, 1995 Traditional architecture in the Middle East has ways of ... "Keeping Cool"
  21. "Art, Architecture and the City: Visual Approaches to Understanding the Islamic Middle East," The Center for Middle Eastern Studies, University of California, Berkeley (slides)
  22. Ibn Tulun: The Story of a Mosque by Fiona Macdonald, Hood Hood Books, Cambridge, UK, 1995 Distributed by ASTRO Pictures. Call 1-800-39-ASTRO