ISLAMIC ARCHITECTURE

1. ISLAMIC ARCHITECTURE

2. Islamic Period (632A.D.-1648A.D.) • Most of ruling class was Jewish or Christian at the time of the Prophet’s birth. Islamic movement began in 632A.D. following the death of the Prophet Mohammad • Nomadic Muslim Arabs had no significant architecture traditions before the conquests; only mud-brick architecture was in the SW corner of Arabian shield (Arabia Felix) where spices and aromatic herbs were main products (Frankincense and Myrrh). Trade was main economic income. Islamic architecture is characterized by tensions between religious asceticism and worldly pleasure. • Islam (submission to the will of God) was taught by Mohammad after he experienced his calling in 610AD. Reward and punishment comes at judgment of the world and Allah is the judge. 5 Mainobligations are: confession of faith, prayer (5X daily), charitable gifts, fasting in the month of Ramadan, and pilgrimage to Mecca. Pilgrimage opened the countryside to international trade.

3. After the death of the Prophet , his followers, his sons and widow began to argue over the administration of the faith. Islam was divided into factions allied with these family members, resulting in the Sunnites and Shi’ites and later the Sufi, Fatimids and other factions. • First regions to be invaded by the Muslim Arabs included: Syria, Palestine, Iraq, and Mesopotamia • Damascus was captured by 635A.D. • Jerusalem and Caesarea were captured before 640A.D. • Umayyad Caliphate (661A.D.-750A.D.) were the earliest dynastic rulers of Islam • By the 12th c. Islam has moved as far as Bengal (into what is now India), proving the superiority of their cavalry over the Indian elephant infantry. • By 1498 discovery of sea routes makes India of interest to the Europeans, who drive out the Arabs.

5. Typical Mosque Layout

7. Umayyad Mosque, Damascus. Constructed on the site of the church of St. John, which in turn was constructed on the site of the Roman Forum. The same building, with modification, served all three purposes

8. Prayer Hall

9. Iwan: A vaulted room, opening usually into the courtyard of a mosque, used for teaching the tenets of the faith. Children recite the Koran to learn it by heart. (Wazir Kahn Mosque Lahore, India)

10. Mihrab: The arched opening in the qibla wall which centers the participant’s attention on the prayers. Qibla Wall: orients the prayer lines toward Mecca Horseshoe arch: one typical form in Islamic architecture

11. Minbar:a raised platform where the Imam leads the faithful in prayer. The Imam also faces toward Mecca.

12. Squinch And Pendintive

13. Qubah/Dome Note the similarities to the form of the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul (Constantinople)

14. Minarets/Minarats Al-Wahlid is given credit for building the first minarets at Medina. (8th c.) Prior to this the call was issued from the roof or a doorway of the mosque.

15. Islamic stonework is known for its intricate floral motifs and screen-like piercing.

16. Most Islamic decoration was geometric after the Abbasids came to power. They were more restricted and banned any representation of human or animal forms. Inscriptions could be purely religious (but calligraphy can also be a decorative abstraction.) Moslems were very concerned with symbolism, especially of numbers. Form is dematerialized by breaking it up with patterns.

17. Dome of the Rock (691A.D.- 692A.D.) • Jerusalem, Israel

18. Dome of the Rock Jerusalem, Israel

22. Umayyad Great Mosque (706A.D. – 715A.D.)Damascus, Syria • Damascus, Syria

23. Umayyad Great Mosque Damascus, Syria

26. Islam in Spain • Spain was conquered in 750AD • Gardens in courtyard originally olive trees (now citrus) for shade and fruit. • Horseshoe arches are thought to be Spanish in origin. • AtCordoba Mosque: Space broken up by forest of columns and striped arches – atmosphere of mystery created by confusion of shapes and colors. A transcendental experience is produced, even without mosaics or tilework. Dome is mosaic like contemporary Byzantine buildings. Variety of patterns and capitols have pierced carving. • The Reconquista – Christian expansion pushes into the Iberian Penninsula by 1260; the Crusades recapture the Holy Land between 11th and 14th centuries, and the Mongols capture Baghdad in 1258. • 1517 the Ottoman Turks capture Egypt and Selim I claims the title of Caliph, but in 1924 Ataturk abolishes the Caliphate, breaking the empire apart.

28. Great Mosque of Cordoba (786A.D.) • Cordoba, Spain

29. Great Mosque of Cordoba Cordoba, Spain

32. Great Mosque of Cordoba Dome (962A.D. – 966A.D.)

33. Alhambra (13th Century A.D. – 14 Century A.D.) The Alhambra seen from east. The round structure is the 16th century Palacio of Carlos V. To the far left of it lies the Torre de Comares, part of the Serallo, and where the Salón de Embajadores lies. In between is the Court of the Lions and the Mexuar. In the back from this lies the Alcazba, overlooking the city of Granada. • Granada, Spain a palace for the caliph and his family

34. Hall of the Ambassadors

35. Court of the Myrtles, Alhambra

36. Court of the Lions at the Alhambra • Granada, Spain

37. Court of the Lions is a part fo the Harem. Notice the pierced carving at the top of the columns. Light comes through in the same way it does through date palm trees, so is reminiscent of Arabia.

38. Vault, Hall of Abencerrajes.To the south of the Lion Court is the Hall of the Abencerrajes The ceiling is 16-sided with stalactite decorations, lit by windows in the dome itself; light is reflected by the fountain on the floor.

39. Great Mosque of Masjid-I-Jami (1088A.D.) • Isfahan, Iran

40. The Mosque of Suleyman (1550A.D.) Hagia Sophia • Istanbul, Turkey • Architect - Sinan

41. "Suleyman the magnificent ordered a mosque appropriate to his title to be built by the architect Sinan, whereupon the present mosque was begun on one of the hills dominating the Golden Horn." "The mosque, and its attendant structures, madrasa, arms—houses, infirmaries, caravansarais, a medical school, hamams, schools of Tradition, a hospital, cells and shops were begun in 1550 by the architect Sinan and completed in 1557." —Ilhan Aksit. Treasures of Istanbul. p164. "Here Sinan demonstrated his transformation of the Hagia Sophia plan from which he had drawn his inspiration: his dome is buttressed by two half-domes and two typanum walls." "Sinan's solution of putting four minarets at the corners of his arcaded courtyard (inspired by the atrium) sets up a counterpoint between a solid volume on the mosque side and a 'negative' space on the courtyard side." — Henri Stierlin. Comprende l'Architecture universelle 2. p378-9.

42. Suleyman Mosque, Istanbul, Turkey.

43. 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).

44. Taj Mahal (1631A.D.-1648A.D.) Agra, India

46. Gardens in Persia and Islamic Cultures • During the Achaemenid age, Persian monuments conveyed concepts of the garden and of man’s dependence upon nature. • The Achaemenid tradition of garden design continued through two forms of landscape expression: hunting gardens and planted courtyards. In ancient Mesopotamia, agriculture relied on above-ground irrigation systems, which could be repaired, expanded, and enlarged. • To maintain their gardens and encourage agriculture, the Persians needed to develop irrigation systems which would work in this hot and dry climate. • Open canals were not efficient in this arid region, but cultivation became possible by constructing many underground irrigation canals called kariz or qanat • Coal miners in northeastern Iran improvised a way to extract the water from the coalmines using the qanat. • The Hailan-Aleppo qanat: A 12-km long subterranean channel dated to 13th century BC is the oldest discovered qanat. It still functioned until the early part of this century • These methods were gradually applied by farmers and spread all over the plateau of Iran.

47. Qanat: Main shafts that were excavated to the permanent subterranean water level, usually at the base of hills or mountains, with slightly sloping tunnels which were constructed by workers who dug to where the water was needed.

48. At approximately 50-foot intervals, shafts were dug to help remove material and maintain the qanat line. • A qanat taps water that has seeped into the ground and channels it via straight tunnels to the land surface. The major benefit of the qanat is that its underground location prevents the evaporation of the water. • Hammurabi (1792-1750 BC) in his famous code lists some regulations for the irrigation issues, for example, “If any one open his ditches to water his crop, but is careless, and the water flood the field of his neighbor, then he shall pay his neighbor corn for his loss.”

49. Hunting Parks • Cyrus the Great owned one of the earliest recorded hunting parks, an expansive site at Celaenae. • Fenced hunting parks enabled Persian kings to display their prowess in horsemanship and archery, symbolizing their nobility and authority. • “For them hunting and riding were no longer an economic necessity but a way of defining themselves. In some sense, they saw the basis of their nobility and authority in swiftness of movement-skill in horsemanship and archery like that of their ancestors- and in loyalty to their superiors.” • According to written accounts and engraved monuments, the term paradise also referred to hunting-parks with fruit trees grown for food.

50. Darius hunting in a grove of palms • We know that the tomb of Cyrus was enclosed by a grove, and his son Cambyses entrusted its care as a hereditary office to a family of Magi. • This grove was used as a place for hunting by Persians, like their neighbors, the Assyrians and the Babylonians, were interested with the chase in the open field. • Cyrus the Great owned a huge hunting park at Celaenae, which extended above the town on both banks of the Maeander, and there, he used to hunt on horseback for the sake of exercise. This is one of the earliest recorded hunting parks, dating to (356-323 BC). This hunting park at Celaenae was reported to be full of wild creatures and large enough to hold 130,000 troops. • The Persepolis platform was surrounded by huge gardens, which were used as hunting parks during the Achaemenid period. • The hunting scene is illustrated in some Achaemenid artifacts. • For example, in one of the finely-cut rock-crystals in Persepolis, King Darius is shown in a grove of palms where he is hunting. • The reason behind designing these fenced parks was that the Iranian aristocracy preferred hunting and riding in special preserves rather than in open country where the game might elude them.