The document summarizes key architectural features of mosques. Mosques typically include a large central prayer hall where worshippers pray on the floor. An open courtyard called a sahn surrounds the prayer hall and often includes a fountain for ablutions. A mihrab niche in the qibla wall indicates the direction of Mecca. Minarets are towers used to call worshippers to prayer. Domes symbolize the vault of heaven and decorate the interior with intricate patterns. Famous mosques mentioned include the Al-Masjid an-Nabawi mosque in Medina and the Blue Mosque in Istanbul.

1. ISLAMIC MOSQUE
SUBMITTED BY
VAIBHAV MUDGAL
B.Arch 3rd Year
Ideal School of Architecture

2. Introduction
• A Mosque/Masjid is a place of worship for the followers of islam.
• Most of the mosques have a particular architectural features which in todays time
has become a identity which are elaborated Domes, Minarets & Prayer halls.
• The mosque played a major role in the spread of education in Muslim world and
this has been its main characteristics throughout the history.
• Since the earliest days mosque has been a centre of muslim community, a place
of prayer only.
• In a mosque there are strict restriction on the uses of the area formally
demarcated as mosque.

3. • Mecca is considered to be the first mosque ever built.
• It is situated in Hejaz, Saudi Arabia.
• The Mosque is built around the house of Prophet
Muhammad

4. The Architectural Features of a Mosque
• The architecture of a mosque is shaped most strongly by the regional traditions
of the time and place where it was built. As a result, style, layout, and decoration
can vary greatly.
• Nevertheless, because of the common function of the mosque as a place of
congregational prayer, certain architectural features appear in mosques all over
the world which are mentioned down below:
• Prayer Hall
• Sahn
• Mihareb
• Minaret
• Qubba

5. Prayer Hall
• The large central area for prayer is called a musalla. No furniture is needed, as
worshippers sit, kneel, and bow directly on the floor,a few chairs or benches to
assist elderly or disabled worshippers.

6. Sahn (courtyard)
• The most fundamental necessity of congregational mosque architecture is that it
be able to hold the entire male population of a city or town. In many mosques
prayer hall is adjoined to an open courtyard, called a sahn. Within the courtyard
one often finds a fountain, its waters both a welcome respite in hot lands, and
important for the ablutions (ritual cleansing) done before prayer.
Fountain
Open Courtyard

7. Mihrab (niche)
• Another essential element of a mosque is a mihrab—a niche in the wall that
indicates the direction of Mecca, towards which all Muslims pray.
• The direction of Mecca is called the qibla,and so the wall
in which the mihrab is set is called the qibla wall.
• No matter where a mosque is, its mihrab indicates
the direction of Mecca (or as near that direction
as science and geography were able to place it).
Therefore, a mihrab in India will be to the west.

8. Minaret (tower)
• One of the most visible aspects of mosque architecture is the minaret, a tower
adjacent or attached to a mosque, from which the call to prayer is announced.
The Mosque of Jama Masjid
in Delhi having Minarets.

9. • Minarets take many different forms—from the famous spiral minaret of Samarra,
to the tall, pencil minarets of Ottoman Turkey. Not solely functional in nature, the
minaret serves as a powerful visual reminder of the presence of Islam.
The Sultan Ahmed
Mosque or Blue
Mosque in Turkey.

10. Qubba (dome)
• Most mosques also feature one or more domes, called qubba in Arabic.
• While not a ritual requirement like the mihrab, a dome does possess significance
within the mosque—as a symbolic representation of the vault of heaven.
• Some mosque types incorporate multiple domes.
The Sultan Ahmed
Mosque showing multiple
domes.

11. • The interior decoration of a dome often emphasizes this symbolism,
using intricate geometric, stellate, or vegetal motifs to create
breathtaking patterns meant to awe and inspire.

12. Some Famous Mosque Around the world
Al-Masjid an-Nabawi – Medina, Saudi Arabia

13. Sultan Ahmed Mosque or Blue Mosque-Turkey

14. Biblography
• https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/art-islam/beginners-
guide-islamic/a/introduction-to-mosque-architecture
• Picture-en.wikipedia.org
• defence.pk
• Transworldexpedition
• http://www.metmuseum.org/learn/for-educators/publications-for-
educators/art-of-the-islamic-world/unit-one/the-mosque
• http://religions.iloveindia.com/mosques/

15. THANK YOU