Islamic Architecture and Art

Umayyad palace, Mshatta, Jordan

Early Islamic - 7th-9th centuries. Frieze on facade - geometric decoration with plants and animal motifs on exterior - interesting design & detail. Limestone. No animals appear on exterior wall of palace's mosque - no human/animal figures in sacred Islamic art. Plan - Roman influences. Bathing facilities - social purpose. Display wealth

Dome of the Rock

Early Islamic - 7th-9th centuries. Jerusalem, Israel. Caliph Adb al-Malik erected. Islam's first building, marks a religious spot - built to mark triumph of Islam in Jerusalem, site sacred to Muslims, Christians, and Jews. Shrine takes form of an octagon with a towering dome, Christian influences. 7 arches on each side, "blind" arcade on each of 8 sides, circular interior space around the rock. 2D rich mosaic ornament - Byzantine context, dome - Arabic script. Clerestory lighting system, 4 piers to support dome. Alternating colors of stone - Islamic architectural trait. Elaborated, patterned interior and exterior.

Great Mosque, Damascus, Syria

Early Islamic, 7th-9th centuries. Commissioned by Caliph al-Walid. Influences from Roman and Early Christian architecture. Stone blocks, columns, capitals salvaged from earlier structures (spolia). Pier arcades (like Roman aqueducts) frame courtyard. Minarets - earliest in the Islamic world - modifications of preexisting Roman square towers. Grand prayer hall - faces Mecca. Entrance - facade facing into courtyard, with pediment and arches - Roman and Byzantine models. Distinctive Islamic elements of mihrab, mihrab dome, minbar, and minaret. Extensive program of mosaics once covered walls - Roman, Early Christian influences - pavilion, flowering rooftop, classical perspective. Images of Paradise. No human or animal forms - not in Islamic sacred places. No elaborate furniture in mosque, enormous area of rugs.

Dome of Great Mosque, Cordoba, Spain

Early Islamic, 7th-9th centuries. Dome (in front of the mihrab) rests on octagonal base of arcuated squinches. Mosaics - work of same Byzantine artists that decorated the maqsura.

Great Mosque, Cordoba, Spain

Early Islamic, 7th-9th centuries. Hypostyle prayer hall. Multi-"loave," overlapping arches. Double-tiered, horseshoe-shaped arches, alternating colors of stone. Exterior and interior work together nicely. Dome: interior octagon, 2 overlapping squares and arches. 8 loaves, columns w/ capitals carrying arches. Two story system - needed to raise roof. Light and airy interior. Elaborate maqsura - area reserved for caliph, connected to his palace through qibla wall. Islamic experimentation with highly decorative, multilobed arches. Walls - marble and mosaics.

Friday Mosque, Isfahan, Iran

Early Islamic, 7th-9th centuries. Minarets, elaborate mosaic decoration, courtyard surrounded by arches. Elaborate facade. Qibla - facing Mecca. Domed maqsura, hypostyle prayer hall. Typical Iranian mosque plan: four vaulted iwans (vaulted rectangular recesses), courtyard. Qibla iwan largest - indicated direction of Mecca. Domed maqsura (generally reserved for ruler or his rep)

Great Mosque, Kairouan, Tunisia

Early Islamic, 7th-9th centuries. Rectangular shape, open courtyard with arcade. Resembles a Roman forum. Clear what side is oriented towards Mecca. Similar to hypostyle hall in Egyptian architecture - can continue to add on sections and expand. Needed a larger interior to accommodate an urban population. Incorporates distinctive elements of mihrab, mihrab dome, minbar, and minaret. Hypostyle mosque most like Muhammad's house in Medina. Oldest known minbar. Columned aisles flank nave, impressive minaret.

Minaret of the Great Mosque, Samarra, Iraq

Early Islamic, 7th-9th centuries. Unique spiral (snail shell) Minaret. More than 165 ft tall, seen from afar. Announced presence of Islam in Tigris Valley. Brick tower - stepped spiral ramp, increases in slope from bottom to top.

Court of the Lions, Alhambra

Later Islamic, 14th-18th centuries. Alhambra, Granada, Spain. Courtyard - fountain with marble lions, unusual instance of freestanding stone sculpture in the Islamic world, unthinkable in a sacred setting, lightweight architecture. Design of courtyard - distinctly Islamic, features many multi-lobed pointed arches and lavish stuccoed walls, calligraphy and abstract motifs are interwoven. Lush gardens, luxurious carpets, conjure image of Paradise for Muslims

Madrasa-mosque-mausoleum of Sultan Hasan, Cairo

Later Islamic, 14th-18th centuries. Dome on cube form - long life in Islamic funerary architecture. Tomb on South side of complex's mosque, praying Muslims faced the sultan's tomb. Four iwans, opening onto a central courtyard. Madrasa: theological college devoted to teaching Islamic law. Minaret, dome, large central courtyard. Massive building, shows diversity of regional styles in Islamic world

Muqarnas dome, Alhambra

Later Islamic, 14th-18th centuries. Palace of the Lions, Alhambra, Granada, Spain; paradise for Muslims that grew up in hot desert, beautiful here. Muqarnas dome, "Hall of the Two Sisters." Stucco material, typical Islamic decoration, octagonal drum of dome. Muqarnas - tier after tier of stalactite-like prismatic forms, aimed at denying structure's solidity. Intended to catch and reflect sunlight, form beautiful abstract patterns. Symbolized dome of heaven

Mosque of Selim II, Edirne, Turkey

Later Islamic, 14th-18th centuries. Architect: Sinan the Great. Rectangular plan, circular space, dome. Similar to Hagia Sophia, taller dome. Central dome, covering a square prayer hall. buttresses, lower dome, lots of light, bright interior. 4 minarets - call Muslims to worship. Interior is a fusion of an octagon and a dome-covered square with four half-domes at the corners. Plan features geometric clarity and precise numerical ratios. Sinan perfected the Ottoman architectural style, Edirne mosque climax of Ottoman architecture. Fluid interpenetration of several geometric volumes that represents the culminating solution to lifelong search for unified monumental interior space.

Ewer in the form of a bird, Sulayman

Luxury Islamic Arts, 7th - 9th centuries. Brass with silver copper inlay. Maker: Sulayman. Engraved decoration of body combines natural feathers with abstract motifs and Arabic calligraphy

Pyxis of al-Mughira

Luxury Islamic arts, 7th-9th centuries. Ivory. Design: felines attacking bovines. Human figures. Arabic script, intricate, interlaced design with no free space. Love of sumptuous materials and rich decorative patterns.

Dish with proverb, Nishapur

Luxury Islamic arts, 7th-9th centuries. "Knowledge, all though bitter at first, is sweeter than honey." Pretty white dish, Arabic script. Calligraphy - very sacred art in Islamic world.

Koran page, ink and gold on vellum

Luxury Islamic arts, 7th-9th centuries. Ink and gold on vellum. Stately rectilinear Arabic script, used in oldest known Korans. No depictions of animals or humans. Calligraphy - honor sacred words of Koran - holy task

House of Muhammad, Medina

Rise of Islam. Muhammad - founder, lived in Medina. God - Allah Hijra: 622, flight from Mecca to Medina. 640: Syria, Palestine, and Iraq conquered by Arabs 710: All of Northern Africa, towards Spain, France Mecca: Main mosque of Islam, all Islamic followers have to make pilgrimage to Mecca Mosque. Qibla wall - faces Mecca 5 Pillars of Faith: profession of faith in one God, must worship 5 times daily facing in Mecca's direction, give alms to the poor, fast during Ramadan, once in a lifetime - pilgrimage to Mecca. Islam = surrender to god A Muslim has surrendered to God. No human or animal figures in Islamic art - landscapes, etc.