Islamic Arts and Architecture: Modernity Derived from Antiquity. (Graduate level)

Islamic Arts and Architecture: Modernity Derived from Antiquity. (Graduate level) Islamic mosques architecture started in Al Madinah, in the Prophet Mohammed s house. The building was of a rectangular shape that had multiple entrances and was surrounded by walls; it enveloped a prayer area, arcades and rooms. This was the first appearance of a mosque in the Islamic architecture (Isma ʻi l & Damlu ji, 1998). As a beginning, the only components of the mosque were a quibla wall, there was no minaret, nor a washing area. The development of the Islamic arts in architecture started when new settlements were conquered by the Islamic military, these include Basra, Kufa and Al-Fustat. Invading these cities granted the Islamic buildings with different styles of Islamic arts. Although modern mosques are not similar to ancient mosques, it is undeniable that they are derived from old mosques concepts and arts. The architectural elements of mosques increased with the immerging dynasties. As an illustration, the Madinah mosque was rebuilt by Al-Walid, an Umayyad ruler in 707-709, throughout this reconstruction, a new Islamic element was added, which is a minaret (figure 1). Figure 1 shows an evolution in mosques architecture, the four added minarets were used as a microphone to call Muslims for prayers (Blair, Bloom& Ettinghausen, 1994). Also, a huge change in the shaded area is noticed, as the first mosque had a smaller shaded area and a bigger open court. However, the evolution Figure 4 1

did not stop here, the great mosque of Damascus, built in 706, built by the same ruler of the Umayyad dynasty, is a work of art. According to historians, this mosque used to be a church, and after the mosque was built, it used to envelope the church as shown in figure 2. More than one new element were manifested in this mosque, first, this is the first mosque that envelops a church, a treasury, a mihrab and square shaped minarets. After some time, the church was removed, however, the burrier of John the Baptist lays there until today. Rather later implementations occurred to the mosque, the Mecca wall was enlarged, a pishtak entrance was added to the Mecca rewak, and the mosque became a T-shaped plan mosque, which means that all the mecca wall arches are running parallel to the mecca wall, except for the pishtak entrance aisle which arches are running perpendicular to the mecca wall, as shown in figure 3. It is equally important to mention the mosaic glass decorated treasury that stands on columns and is topped with a small dome, however, the dome is not the original dome, as the original one did not survive; on the other hand, the mosaic glass is original from 705. This treasury was used to collect and keep money. The heavy art decorations is also manifested in the transept of the pishtak of the Mecca wall (figure 4). This Gable roofed transept is 2

polished with a series of mosaic panels and natural elements, such as trees and birds. These mosaic masterpieces are adorned by marble grills situated in a reassessed round arch, as shown in figure 4. The development of the Islamic arts and architecture was not the product of the Umayyad dynasty alone, other dynasties such as the Abbasids dynasty also introduced new features to many mosques of their era. By the same token, the Abbasids dynasty managed to leave its mark in the Islamic art and architecture, as the largest mosque in Egypt was built during the Abbasids dynasty. The mosque of Ibn Tulun, apart from being the largest mosque in Egypt, is the only mosque in Egypt that managed to survive in its original form. This mosque maintains the same plan of the Umayyad dynasty mosques, as it is a square shaped mosque, surrounded by walls, featured by a minaret and four shaded areas, as shown in figure 5. The plan indicates that the arches are uniquely parallel and perpendicular to the Mecca wall, with only two aisles on each side of the mosque, except for the mecca wall, which accommodates five aisles. The mosque is characterized by a few new features, such as a square based, malweya like minaret, shown in figure 6, situated in the zeyada of the mosque (Ettinghausen, Grabar& Blair, 1987). It was indicated by historians 3

that this minaret is probably restored. Also, an important features complements the walls of the mosque, which is the small windows that give access to the observer to have a more accessible vision of the mosque. This feature gives a feeling of space and lets more light in the rewaks of the mosque. Ibn Tulun is the first mosque to have 128 windows, bands of stucco carvings decorating the windows, stucco grills, each stucco grill have a unique design and pattern, arches that are decorated with stucco carvings and even the openings in the spandrels and the soffits of the arches are decorated with stucco carvings (Behrens-Abouseif, 1992). A feature that characterizes this mosque is the two marble panels that have Quranic inscriptions, the name of the builder of the mosque and the date in which it was built (Creswell, 1973).. These panels were written in old Kufi as shown in figure 7. The aforementioned features are what composes the modern mosques of the 20 th century. Most of the 20 th century mosques similarly follow the steps of The Taj Mahal in India, which was built by Shah Jahan for his wife in 1635. This building, despite being Figure 8 known as a mosque, it is rather a burrier. As mentioned before, it was built for the wife of Shah Jahan, to rest there peacefully. However, the architecture of Figure 9 Figure 11 4

the Taj Mahal was influenced by the Timurids dynasty. This building is built of white marble, featured by one central pointed dome, four minarets, pishtak entrance and balconies, as shown in figure 8. The Grand mosque of Sheikh Zayed, located in Abu Dhabi, was designed by the Syrian architect Youssef Abdelki. The four minarets, situated at each corner of the open court, as well as the central dome of the mosque, are the clearest similarity between The Taj Mahal and Sheikh Zayed Grand mosque as illustrated in figure 9 (Jahic, 2008). Also, the main similarity between this mosque and ancient dynasties mosques is the walls surrounding the mosque, as this feature exits in almost every mosque. It should also be noted that, the rewaks of this mosque are designed to be see through and give a feeling of accessible vision, just like the mosque of Ibn Tulun (figure 10). Correspondingly, the pishtak entrance, displayed in figure 9, is heavily decorated and carved (Holod, Khan& Mims, 1997). These feature assures that modern mosques of the 20 th century are derived from ancient mosques. One last demonstrative evidence of our 5

argument, is the obvious similarity in the arrangement of domes and minarets, between Uc Serefeli (3 stories) cami and Sheikh Zayed Grand mosque. Uc Serefeli mosque was built by the Ottoman, in Tukey, and it took them ten years to build it, from 1437 to 1447 (Necipog lu, Arapi & Günay, 2005). Comparing between figure 9 and figure 11, it can be demonstrated that, both mosques have one large central dome, complemented by two smaller domes on each side, arches opening into the open court, and shallow domes topping the ceiling of three aisles of the two mosques (Kuran, 1987). On the other hand, some differences are also evident, such as the type of the domes, as the Uc Serefeli domes are the typical ottoman pointed domes, with no transitional zone, covered with metal sheets from the outside, which is common for most mosques in Turkey, while Sheikh Zayed Grand mosque s domes are round pointed domes, with a high drum area. Sheikh Zayed grand mosque is not the only 20 th century mosque that accommodates and imitates old mosques features and plans, Masjid Al Sahaba and Masjid Al Shortah in Egypt were also constructed according to the ancient plans and features. One of the 21 st century mosques that imitates ancient mosques, is Uwais al-qarni Mosque in Syria. Despite the fact that this mosque got destroyed, its pictures and history are very unique. This mosque, which used to be a landmark and Figure 14 Figure 12 Figure 13 a touristic 6

destination, was heavily decorated with blue tiles, had a circular minaret, which was also covered with tiles, as clear in figure 12. This mosque, that was featured with an open court, and pointed keel arches, was an obvious imitation of Masjidi Shah in Persia. The differences between the two buildings are very minor and would go unnoticed by someone who does not pay attention to details, however, to point them out, the differences are manifested in the decoration of the pishtak entrances of the iwans. The Masjidi Shah s pishtak (figure 13) is decorated with reassessed panels that are covered in blue tiles, while the Uwais al-qarni Mosque s pishtak is decorated in tiles, but with no panels. One final similarity between both buildings is that the lower part of the buildings is not decorated, while the upper part is beautifully covered in tiles and panels. Shockingly, both mosques are an imitation of The Great mosque of Isfahan which was constructed throughout the 7 th and the 8 th centuries. The iwan entrances of the Great mosque of Isfahan are almost identical to that of the Masjidi Shah, as can be concluded from figure 13 and figure 14. The only difference portrayed in the Great mosque of Isfahan is the stalactites decorating the pishtak entrance. Each of these three Islamic buildings was built in a 7

different era, by a different architect and using different materials, however, the similarities can never go unnoticed and clearly state how old buildings can revive in modern ones. In conclusion, Islamic arts and architecture are nostalgic and revivable. Many examples, from different eras and locations that were not stated in this paper, can easily point out the similarities between old and modern mosques and Islamic buildings. Other buildings like Khanqas for Sufis, Madrassas and Ribats, which do not exist anymore, also influence modern architecture. The similarities will always exist, and the differences as well, it is just a matter of taste and technicality that pushes an architect to imitate and innovate. 8

References: Blair, S., Bloom, J., & Ettinghausen, R. (1994). The art and architecture of Islam 1250-1800. New Haven [Conn.]: Yale University Press. Behrens-Abouseif, D. (1992). Islamic architecture in Cairo: An introduction (2nd Impression.ed.). New York; Leiden: E.J. Brill. Creswell, K. A. C. (1973). A bibliography of the architecture, arts, and crafts of Islam. Cairo: American University in Cairo Press. Ettinghausen, R., Grabar, O., & Blair, S. (1987). The art and architecture of Islam 650-1250. New Haven: Yale University Press. Holod, R., Khan, H., & Mims, K. (1997). The contemporary mosque: Architects, clients, and designs since the 1950s. New York: Rizzoli. Isma ʻi l, M. K., & Damlu ji, S. S. (1998). The architecture of the prophet's holy mosque, al Madinah (Madi nah English Ed.). London: Hazar. Jahic, E. (2008). Stylistic expressions in the 20th century mosque architecture/ stilski izrazi u arhitekturi dzamije 20. Stoljeca. Prostor, 16(1), 2. Kuran, A. (1987). Sinan: The grand old master of ottoman architecture. Istanbul; Washington, D.C: Institute of Turkish Studies. Necipog lu, G., Arapi, A. N., & Günay, R. (2005). The age of Sinan: Architectural culture in the 9

Ottoman Empire. Princeton: Princeton University Press. 10

Appendices: Arcades: A shaded area. Quibla: It is the direction towards which Muslims pray. Minaret: A high, tower-like, feature of a mosque, that serves a microphone to call for prayer. Pishtak: A high wall that precedes a lower ceiling wall. Mecca rewak: It is the aisle directed towards Mecca. Transept: A transept is a high ceiling aisle that leads to the mihrab. Gable: pointed hood top. Malweya: A malweya is a type of minaret that is circular and starts wide and narrows towards the top. Zeyada: A zeyada is an extra piece of land that surrounds a mosque. Cami masjid: A mosque in Turkish. Masjid: A mosque in Arabic. Drum: A drum area is the area above the transitional zone and under a dome. Iwan: It is a separated chamber-like area, usually located in madrassas and Khanqas. Madrassa: Is an Islamic multifunctional building that contains chambers, class rooms (iwans) and a prayer area. It can also accommodate other facilities depending on the dynasty. Khanqa: Is a Sufi type of Madrassa, where Sufis study and pray. 11