Mosque Architecture

https://smarthistory.org/introduction-to-mosque-architecture/



A mosque is a building or place where Muslims gather for prayer. Like the church to Christianity, the mosque is a very important part of the Islam religion. The original mosque was thought to be the home of the Prophet Muhammad. His home was constructed in the "7th-century Arabian style, with a large courtyard, surrounded by rooms supported by columns". As a result many of the mosques is this area are designed in this same style. Islam is a global religion, its followers spread across the world. The followers of Islam have constructed Mosques all over the world many with different designs and representations. Due to the common function of the mosque, they do share common features.



Every mosque, regardless of the time it was built and the region it was built in shares four common features; a courtyard (Sahn), a niche (Mihrab), a tower (minaret), and a dome (qubba). The courtyard is the place where all men in the town are required to congregate for Friday prayer. This is an essential element of the mosque. Another essential element of the mosque is the niche. The niche respresents the direction of Mecca in relationship to their location, this is the direction in which prayer must be directed. Minarets take many different forms, but these towers are the location from which prayer is called. Finally the dome, this a a big symbolic piece in the mosque that represents the vault of heaven or the afterlife. 

Comments

  1. Amanda SantistevanSeptember 27, 2020 at 7:23 PM

    This is a very informative piece! I especially find it intriguing that the first mosque was thought o be a home to the prophet Muhammed. I like the way you broke down the important four features, makes it very interesting to learn about and easy to comprehend.

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