Assignment Islamic architecture

Submitted to Sir Abdul Rehman

Submitted by Jazb-e-Ali

Section CV-3-C

Registration no bscet01191013

The University of Lahore

Department of Technology (Civil Division)

ISLAMIC ARCHITECTURE

The great cities of the Islamic world form a chain reaching from northern India to
the Andalusian region in modern Spain, encompassing Marrakech, Cairo,
Damascus and Baghdad along the way. These places were constructed along trade
routes, some pre-dating the coming of Islam, others built as a result of its conquest
of new areas. Mainly inland, their initial purpose was to provide a space for
exchange and respite for merchants moving across the great trading routes of North
Africa and the Middle East. As these cities developed they grew to be leading
centers of learning both for scholars and artisans.
 
As merchants and students moved between cities they spread with them not only
their knowledge of science and religion but also an understanding of architecture.
From this a certain language of design developed, unifying and identifying Muslim
places across the chain. These Islamic architectural elements are most noticeable in
the shape of mosques, with their distinctive forms of courtyards, minarets and
domes, but are also reflected at a wider scale across towns and cities. Alongside
this architectural language closer inspection reveals individual touches, where each
region and city developed its own style, using different building materials and
decoration to express its identity and culture. Some of the most striking examples
of this are the Diene Mosque in Mali and the palace of Al- Hambra in Granada,
Spain.
 
The elements of the buildings and cities were not only designed for their great
beauty but also held within them a physical expression of Islamic life and
spiritualism. The cities were not simply a collection of buildings, peppered
throughout a public area, but were a collective of buildings and gardens. The
person moving through them would experience a flow between large open spaces,
built to accommodate collective gatherings, and smaller more intimate areas in the
market or in courtyards. The mosque itself would be flanked by minarets, great tall
towers marking both the territory of the building and reaching up, connecting the
horizontal flat earth with the heavens. The final culmination of this flow of space
would be the prayer hall of the mosque, a place where the earth, with its four walls,
and four seasons, meets heaven, a universal circle reaching up into the sky.
Introduction to Islamic Architecture
Islamic architecture, building traditions of Muslim populations of the Middle
East and elsewhere from the 7th century on. Islamic architecture finds its highest
expression in religious buildings such as the mosque and madrasah. Early Islamic
religious architecture, exemplified by Jerusalem’s Dome of the Rock (AD 691) and
the Great Mosque (705) in Damascus, drew on Christian architectural features such
as domes, columnar arches, and mosaics but also included large courts for
congregational prayer and a mihrab. From early times, the characteristic
semicircular horseshoe arch and rich, nonrepresentational decoration of surfaces
were employed. Religious architecture came into its own with the creation of the
hypostyle mosque (see hypostyle hall) in Iraq and Egypt. In Iran a mosque plan
consisting of four Evans (vaulted halls) opening onto a central court was used.
These brick-built mosques also incorporated domes and decorated squinches
(see Byzantine architecture) across the corners of the rooms. Persian architectural
features spread to India, where they are found in the Taj Mahal and Mughal
palaces. Ottoman architecture, derived from Islamic and Byzantine traditions, is
exemplified by the Selimiye Mosque (1575) at Edirne, Tur., with its great central
dome and slender minarets. One of the greatest examples of secular Islamic
architecture is the Alhambra. For full treatment of the subject, see Islamic arts
8 Masterpieces of Islamic Architecture
The architectural heritage of the Islamic world is staggeringly rich. Here’s a list of
a few of the most iconic mosques, palaces, tombs, and fortresses.

Taj Mahal

Taj Mahal, Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India

In 1631 Mumtaz Mahal, the third and favorite wife of the Mughal emperor Shah
Jahan (reigned 1628–58), died while giving birth to the couple’s fourteenth child.
Devastated, the emperor commissioned the Taj Mahal, a massive mausoleum
complex on the southern bank of the Yamuna (Jumna) River that ultimately took
more than 20 years to complete. Today the Taj Mahal is the most famous piece of
Islamic architecture in the world, with the possible exception of the Dome of the
Rock in Jerusalem. The monument is remarkable both for its size (the finial of the
dome of the central mausoleum stands 240 feet [73 meters] above ground level)
and for its graceful form, which combines elements of Indian, Islamic, and Persian
design. From afar, viewers are dazzled by the white marble of the central tomb,
which appears to change color with daylight. Up close, the building is richly
decorated with Arabic calligraphy and inlays of semiprecious stones. Inside there
are cenotaphs (false tombs) for Mumtaz Mahal and Shah Jahan; the actual tombs
are in a chamber beneath the ground floor. As early as the 1660s, travelers reported
that Shah Jahan had intended to build a matching mausoleum for himself out of
black granite on the opposite bank of the Yamuna; modern scholars, however,
regard this as a legend with no basis in fact.

The Alhambra

On a hill overlooking the Spanish city of Granada stands the Alhambra, a palace
built by princes belonging to the Muslim Nasrid dynasty (1238–1492) in the 14th
century. Although some portions of the palace have been demolished, three parts
remain: a fortress (Alcazaba, or al-Qasbah) on the west end of the hill, a princely
residence to the east, and a cluster of pavilions and gardens known as the
Generalife. The courtyards and rooms of the Alhambra are exquisitely decorated
with colored tiles, carved stucco, carved wood, and calligraphy. Some of the most
remarkable ornamental features are the intricately carved geometric stalactite
designs (a recurring pattern in Islamic architecture called muqarnas in Arabic) that
adorn the halls surrounding the Court of the Lions.

The Friday Mosque, Esfahan

Located at the center of Esfahan—a city full of architectural treasures—is the

sprawling Friday Mosque. A mosque has stood on the site since the 8th century,
but the oldest elements of the current structure are two domes built during the
Seljuk dynasty, which ruled parts of Iran in the 11th century. In the early 12th
century the mosque was rebuilt around a rectangular courtyard adjoined on each
side by an iwan—a type of hall that opens into a tall arch on one side. The four-
iwan design, which first appeared in Esfahan, later became the norm for Iranian
mosques.
The Dome of the Rock

The Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem is the oldest extant Islamic monument and one
of the best-known. Built in 691–692, about 55 years after the Arab conquest of
Jerusalem, the design and ornamentation are rooted in the Byzantine architectural
tradition but also display traits that would later come to be associated with a
distinctly Islamic architectural style. The structure consists of a gilded wooden
dome sitting atop an octagonal base. Inside, two ambulatories circle around a patch
of exposed rock. The site is sacred to both Judaism and Islam; in Jewish tradition it
is said to be the spot where Abraham prepared to sacrifice his son Isaac,and in
Islamic tradition it is held to be the site of Muhammad’s ascent to heaven. The
interior is richly decorated with marble, mosaics, and metal plaques.