Islamic architecture

Islamic ArchitectureIslamic Architecture

ISLAMIC ART ANDISLAMIC ART AND
ARCHITECTUREARCHITECTURE
• It includes the art and architecture of the
territories of Middle East, North Africa,
northern India, and Spain that fell under
Muslim domination beginning in the 7th
century AD.

• Introduction:
• The first followers of Muhammad (PBUM),
coming from the Arabian Peninsula, had
no native artistic traditions as compared
to the empires they had conquered. They
then took them as their starting point.
• As Islam spread, its art forms developed,
modified by the different climatic
conditions and available materials.

• In the lands of Islamic conquest, they absorbed
and adapted their art styles. Islamic art thus
developed from many sources i.e., Roman,
Early Christian, and Byzantine styles were
taken over in early Islamic architecture.
• The influence of Sassanian art (from Persia)
the architecture and decorative art of pre-
Islamic Persia under the Sassanids was of
paramount significance;
• Central Asian styles were brought in with
Turkic and Mongol incursions.
• Chinese influences had a formative effect on
Islamic painting, pottery
and textiles.

History SequenceHistory Sequence
The development of Islamic art from the 7th to the
18th century may be classified in three periods.
• The First period Umayyad caliphs (661-750),
who extended Islam from Damascus, in Syria, to Spain.
• The middle period spans the time of the Abbasid
caliphs (750-1258),
who ruled Islam from Baghdād, in Iraq, until the time of the
Mongol conquest.
• The third period from the Mongol conquest
to the 18th century.

Other distinctive art styles in different parts
of the Islamic world, besides
Umayyad and Abbasid art include:
• Earlier in Egypt (and Syria), distinctive
styles were associated with Fatimid
period, (909 to 1171).

• Other distinctive art styles in different parts of the Islamic
world, besides Umayyad and Abbasid art include:
• Earlier in Egypt (and Syria), distinctive styles were
associated with Fatimid period, (909 to 1171).
• the Seljuk Turks, who ruled Iran from the mid 11th
century to 1157.
• The Mamluks, who established control in 1250 from
Egypt.
• The-Khanids, a Mongol people who controlled
eastern Iran from 1256 to 1349.

• The Timurids, the greatest patrons of
Iranian culture, who ruled western Iran
from 1378 to 1502.
• The Ottoman Turks, rulers of Turkey
from 1299 to 1922, who extended their
empire to Egypt and Syria in the 16th
century.
• The Safavids, rulers of all Iran from 1502
to 1736.

ArchitectureArchitecture
• The mosque, the most prominent and distinctive aspect
of Muslim architecture, was designed to function as a
place of ritual ablution and prayer.
• The desert climates in which Islam first became
established also required that the mosque give
protection from sun, wind, and sand.
• The initial prototype was a simple walled rectangle
containing a fountain and surrounded with porticoes.
• At the centre of the kiblah, the wall facing the direction
of Mecca, was the mihrab, a niche.
• The minbar, a pulpit, stood near by.

• Structural elements were the arch and the
dome;
• Roofs were either flat or vaulted, and windows
were small.
• The mosque had at least one tower, or
minaret, from which the call to prayer was
issued five times daily.
• The same basic plan is followed to this day.

• A classic example of the early mosque in
the western Islamic world is the well
preserved Great Mosque at Al Qairouan
in Tunisia, which was built between 836
and 866.

The Great Mosque at Qairouan,The Great Mosque at Qairouan,
TunisiaTunisia
is the principal building of the Aghlabids
and has an important relationship to the
mosques of the Umayyad and Abbasid
capitals. Its square minaret stands on the
center line of the building.

• The original structure of the early eighth century was
swallowed up in the reconstruction of the ninth
century.
• More bays were added to the courtyard face of the
prayer-hall, and a central dome (since rebuilt) was
constructed over it.
• Mihrab was constructed— probably the earliest
examples of its kind in Islamic architecture.
• The luster-tiles appear to have been imported from
Iraq.
• The building has slightly pointed horseshoe arches
carried on Corinthianesque columns.
• The dome is carried on cusped squinches.

The Great Mosque at
Qairouan, Tunisia

The Qairawan mosqueThe Qairawan mosque
• The Qairawan mosque was begun in the 7th century and
rebuilt in the 9th century.
• As with many early mosques, existing materials -
especially Roman columns - were used in the
construction.
The mosque was built around an open courtyard
surrounded by arcades on three sides.
• The fourth side was the facade of the sanctuary, a flat-
roofed area with a series of arcades running
perpendicular to the rear wall in the center of which is
the mihrab, the niche which gives direction to the
mosque as well as that of prayer.

Courtyard of the Samarra Mosque

Facade of Samarra MosqueFacade of Samarra Mosque

The Mosque of Ahmad Ibn TulunThe Mosque of Ahmad Ibn Tulun
• The Mosque of Ahmad ibn Ţũlũn is located in Cairo, Egypt.
• It is the oldest mosque in the city surviving in its original form,
and is the largest mosque in Cairo in terms of land area.
• Son of a Turkish slave at the Abbasid court at Samarra, was
sent to Cairo to be deputy to the governor.
• Commissioned by Ahmad Ibn Tulun, the Abbassid governor of
Egypt .
• The mosque was built from 868–884.
• The mosque was constructed on a small hill called Gebel
Yahskur, "The Hill of Thanksgiving

• Al-Qatta'i ("The Quarters") was established by
[[Ahmad ibn Tulun]] when he was sent to Egypt
by the Abbassid caliph to assume the
governorship in 868 C
. Ibn Tulun arrived with a large military force that
was too large to be housed in al-Askar. The
city was founded on the Gabal Yashkhur.
• It was a hill to the northeast of the existing
settlements.

• The grand ceremonial mosque was needed as
the focal point of ibn Ţũlũn's capital named Al
Qatta.
• It served as the center of administration for the
Tulunid dynasty. The mosque originally was
backed by Ibn Tulun’s palace.
• A door adjacent to the minbar allowed him
direct entry to the mosque.

• the mosque is noted for its use of pointed
arches two centuries before they
appeared in European architecture.

Interior of Ibn tulun’s mosque

The Great Mosque atThe Great Mosque at
Córdoba in SpainCórdoba in Spain
786 to 965786 to 965

• The Great Mosque at Córdoba in Spain
covers 2.4 hectares (6 acres) and was
built in several stages from 786 to 965. It
was converted to a Christian cathedral in
1236.

The
mosque
after being
changed
into a
cathedral

Religious architectureReligious architecture
• Islam has a unique religious architecture
comprising of:
• the mosque (masjid), a place of
community gathering and prayer, and
• the madrassa, or religious school.
Important among the various
characteristic forms.

Secular architecture:Secular architecture:
• Islamic secular architecture includes,
• a) Palaces,
• b) Caravansaries,
• c) Cities, the elaborate planning of which
shows concern for the all-important
access to water and for provision of
shelter from heat. A third type of building
important in the Islamic world is

• d) The Mausoleum, serving both as an actual
tomb for a ruler or holy man and as a symbol of
political power. All these structures, religious
and secular, share many organic and
decorative features.
• e) Gateways
• f) Gardens
• g) Forts

MosqueMosque
• Muslims call the direction in which they
pray the qibla. In all mosques throughout
the world. The qibla is marked by a
decorative mihrab, or niche, (towards
west) within the mosque.

• Mihrab
It was the niche oriented towards Mecca.
• Courtyard
It was a simple rectangle containing a fountain (for
ablution) and surrounded with porticoes (dalans).
• Minaret
During the lifetime of the Prophet, the call to prayer at
Medina was made from a rooftop. In later period, a
tower was built at the corner of the mosque or
courtyard (or, as at Sāmarrā’, Iraq, freestanding) from
which, after Muhammad's lifetime, the call to prayer
was issued five times a day.

• Domes
Domes, a great feature of all Islamic
architecture, developed both from Sassanian
and Early Christian architectural sources.
The earliest surviving mosque is the Dome
of the Rock (late 7th century) at
Jerusalem, one of the great religious
structures of the world. It marks the spot
where, according to tradition, Muhammad
ascended to heaven.

Dome of the Rock.Dome of the Rock.
• . This mosque has a dome set on a high drum.
• It has a centralized or annular (ring like) plan with two
corridors. The design is derived from Roman
architecture.
• The Dome of the Rock, therefore, does not conform to
the basic mosque plan.
• Its dome is gilded, and all its other surfaces are covered
inside and out by colorful tile mosaic.
• This square brick building had a dome resting on
squinches (small arches that span the corners of the
square) instead of pendentives (spherical triangles, or
rounded triangular sections of vaults) as used in the
Byzantine world.

• Squinches are more easily built than
pendentives, and the device thus led to the
spread of domed mosques, mausoleums, and
other types of buildings throughout the Islamic
world

Squinches
• Honey comb motif is
the most important
characteristic feature
of the domes

SquinchesSquinches
• In architecture, any of several devices by which
a square or polygonal room has its upper
corners filled in to form a support for a dome.
• by corbelling out the courses of masonry, each
course projecting slightly beyond the one below;
by building one or more arches diagonally
across the corner; by building in the corner a
niche with a half dome at its head; or by filling
the corner with a little ...

Stalactite workStalactite work
• pendentive form of architectural
ornamentation, resembling the geological
formations called stalactites. This type of
ornamentation is characteristic of Islamic
architecture and decoration. It consists of
a series of little niches, bracketed out one
above the other, or of projecting prismatic
forms in rows and tiers that are connected
at their upper ends by miniature squinch
arches. Its infinite ...

EyvanEyvan
• In the Abbasid mosques of Iraq, an eyvan,
an open, vaulted, two-storey passageway
or hall, was introduced into each side of
the arcades surrounding the mosque
courtyard. The eyvan had its roots in the
architecture of Sassanian Iran.

Eyvan of Amir’s PalaceEyvan of Amir’s Palace

• Although the horseshoe arch is more typical of
Islamic architecture, especially in earlier
examples, the pointed arch was also known.
Probably of Syrian origin, adapted by the
Umayyad and Abbasid Mosques.
• From Iraq it was carried to Egypt in the 9th and
10th centuries.
• In later Egyptian mosques, built under the
Mamluks (from the 13th century), the pointed
arches have a Gothic profile transported by the
Crusaders.

Development of Pointed ArchDevelopment of Pointed Arch

Mimber and MaqqsuraMimber and Maqqsura
• The first known use of a mimbar, or pulpit, was
in the mosque of Medina; originally used as a
seat, it soon became a true pulpit for
preaching.
• Another structural detail typical of some but not
all mosques is the maqqsura, a screen or
enclosure placed around the mihrab to
protect the leaders of the community during
services; this structure was developed after
three early caliphs were murdered.

MadrassaMadrassa
• Under the Abbasids, in the middle period,
a new kind of religious building, the
madrassa, was introduced in eastern Iran.
Its form, based on Sassanian architecture,
was taken over into a new kind of mosque
that soon spread to many countries.

• The madrassa and madrassa-mosque
have eyvans on four sides (with a larger
one in front of the qibla), connected by
two-storey arcades.
• In the madrasa these arcades lead to
dormitories(small rooms).
• In the mosque there are simply niches. In
some late madrassas, the courtyard is
covered by a dome.

• At Eşfahān (Isfahan), Iran, is an early, great
example of a madrasa-mosque.
• In this building, as in tombs of the period, the
muqarna motif, the stalactite like
ornamentation of vaulted roofs, was developed;
• a typically Islamic style of decoration, it consists
of a honeycomb of niches with small projections,
set into a vaulted roof or dome.

• Later examples of madrasa-mosques, both in
Eşfahān and both of the 17th century, are the
Masjid-i-Shah with its high, pointed, tiled dome
behind the main eyvan, and its interior surfaces
and stalactites covered with tile.
• The Masjid-i-Shaikh Lutfullah,is an example
with an even more extravagantly tiled dome.

Secular ArchitectureSecular Architecture
• desert palaces in Syria and Iraq (Alhambra
Palace of the Moorish kings at Granada) Spain
• hunting parks
• domed baths
• Other types of buildings that were prominent in
the history of Islamic architecture were
• public baths,
• bazaars (marketplaces),
• gardens as well as garden pavilions,
• and ribats or frontier garrisons.

Round CityRound City
• An Abbasid city-building project was the
construction of the Round City (762) at
Baghdād, known primarily from written
descriptions because its site lies under the
modern city.
• The Round City contained a series of concentric
rings, with the caliph's residence, mosques, and
household in the center. The conception of the
plan has its roots in Sassanian Iran.

CaravansaraiCaravansarai
• These rest houses for travelers, built along
the caravan routes, had an aisled hall and
a courtyard for animals.

Tombs and MausoleumsTombs and Mausoleums
• Despite Islamic strictness against the
building of elaborate tombs, mausoleums,
erected as symbols of the power of
departed or dead leaders, became the
most important feature of Islam, after
mosques and palaces.

• The most outstanding example of this
form, it is the predecessor of one of the
most famous of all Islamic mausoleums,
the Taj Mahal (mid -17th cent.), in Āgra,
India, built by two Iranian architects, (one
of the seven wonders of world).

DecorationDecoration
• Plaster, patterned brickwork, and tile
were used as decorative media in and on
Islamic
• To this the Turks added glazed brick and
tiles the latter often luster painted like
their pottery. The city of Kāshān, Iran,
specialized in this production.
• Tiles in various shapes, such as stars,
were fitted together into wall panels.

• In the 15th century, tile ceramicists from
Iran, which was still an important center,
established tile production in Turkey.
• With the development of workshops at
İznik, the Turks had their own superb
source of tiles.

• Other Islamic architectural decoration included
wood carving, occasionally inlaid with ivory
used on maqqsuras, mimbars, windows and
doors, and various structural elements.
• Stone reliefs and marble inlays are found in
buildings in Spain, Turkey, and Egypt (from the
Mamluk period).

• Mosaic Tile Work
in Ceramics

Decorative ArtDecorative Art
• Since the figural art is prohibited in Islam,
the artists used their energies into
the development of decorative patterns
• based on geometric forms
• Arabic script,
• and foliate shapes (later stylized as
arabesques).

The Floral patternThe Floral pattern

The Star PatternsThe Star Patterns

The Jali PatternThe Jali Pattern

Calligraphy on a buildingCalligraphy on a building

Islamic architecture

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