The Dome of the Rock, the famous and astoundingly beautiful structure stands in Jerusalem residing over where the Solomonic Temple, a scared Jewish spot, used to be. Built by caliph ‘Abd al-Malik, and completed in 692, as listed on the corner stone, it is a site of incredible importance to Muslims. Due to limited textual evidence, it is hard to say why the Dome of the Rock was built but historians peruse every bit of textual evidence and carefully analyze every detail of the Dome of the Rock in an everlasting struggle to understand the thought process of ‘Abd al-Malik so long ago. While that can never be done, historians can offer up theories, some more accepted than others, as to why the Dome of the Rock was built and what it truly represented. The most accepted theory is that caliph ‘Abd al-Malik built the Dome of the Rock to prove Islamic power over the people of his empire, specifically the Jews and Christians. It represented several things including dominance over religion, Islamic rule over the state while also honoring the scared rock of Zion and celebrating Muhammad’s famous isra’ and mi‘raj.
To understand ‘Abd al-Malik’s actions in reference to the Dome of the Rock, it is first important to understand the man himself. He came to power through force. In an effort to take over the empire ‘Abd al-Malik told Al- Hajjaj b. Yusuf to lead army of 2,000 into Kufa, he invaded in March of 692. This was the second time the Umayyads held siege of the city and many people feared starvation so they deserted the Zubayrid cause. The Civil War, long and brutal resulted in Marwanid victory and they took Mecca. ‘Abd al-Malik ruled conservatively to start. Soon after ‘Abd al-Malik defeated Ibn al- Zubayr and conquered Mecca he started ...
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...hat it truly represented, and with limited textual evidence, an answer is unlikely to be found. However, using the limited sources and examining the location of the Dome, the decoration used, the architecture of it, and the inscriptions presented, historians can make educated claims about Abd al-Malik’s thinking. The prevailing theory is that ‘Abd al-Malik, in an attempt to assert his power, built the Dome of the Rock to prove Islamic power over the people of his empire. He tolerated other religions but he wanted his subjects to know that Islam ruled overall. The Dome of the Rock represented this religious superiority while also honoring the scared rock that the Dome of the Rock is built upon. Finally, Muhammad is a central figure in Islamic history and his famous isra’ and mi‘raj are key elements in the faith and the Dome of the Rock celebrates those elaborately.
Brunelleschi 's Dome: How a Renaissance Genius Reinvented Architecture, written by Ross King, describes the history of the city of Florence and life at the end of the Middle Ages through the genius of Filippo Brunelleschi. The book begins by giving information about the historic competition that led to the impressive dome that sits atop Santa Maria del Fiore. It then gives an account of the history of Florence in the late 1300s and early 1400s and the building of the cathedral and the initial competition for the dome 's design. After providing information about Florence and the cathedral, Ross King gives background information about Filippo Brunelleschi, his experiences as an artist and scientist in both Florence and Rome, and insight into
Although Cordoba’s Mezquita and Rome’s Pantheon share similar architectural qualities, each of these buildings has their own unique characteristics. Cordoba’s Mezquita is an Islamic religious architecture where the community comes together for their daily prayers. Rome’s Pantheon is a temple used as place to display all the gods. A unique feature of the mosque is that some of the arches are horseshoe-shaped, a quality possibly originated from earlier Mesopotamian
Separated by approximately 400 years in history, the Ishtar Gate and the Pergamon Altar were both considered wonders of the ancient world. Eccentric rulers, Nebuchadnezzar II and Eumenes II, commissioned their grand-scale projects to publicly display their power and prestige, and that of their city-state, through grandiose architecture and artistry. Under their rule, Babylon (Neo-Babylonian dynasty) and Hellenistic Pergamon blossomed into centers of military power, arts and culture. While they are both remarkable architectural achievements in history I am specifically interested in the underlying themes of religion, politics, and cultural identity that they share. Through comparison
Throughout the years, technology has changed the way live. This has included the way we build magnificent buildings. Old wonders like the Pyramids at Giza have fascinated people for years. There is another building concept that has attracted people’s attention for ages as well, domes.
When Emperor Constantine found the city of Constantinople, it was soon to become the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire. But the Christin city needed a great church to represent it’s great value, so the Hagia Sophia was built (Krystek, Lee). The Hagia Sophia was built by the Byzantine Empire in 537 C.E., which was an Empire influenced greatly by the greek and roman styles (Krystek, Lee). It has a square base with a large dome on the top. Round arcs surrounded the large dome, adding mystical beauty to the Hagia Sophia (Krystek, Lee). Also, multiple colors of bricks were used to create patterns on the outside of the Hagia Sophia. On the inside, the walls are made of marble with glass panes which bring beautiful sunlight into the large museum (Krystek, Lee). The Hagia Sophia is very significant because it was rebuilt many times. The first church was built and then burnt down in 404 C.E. (Krystek, Lee). It was then rebuilt and burned down by riots in 502 C.E. (Krystek, Lee). Then the 3rd church was built by Justinian. After long periods of time, Sultan Mehmed conquered Constantinople and changed it to an islamic city, converting the church to a mosque (Krystek, Lee). In 1934, President Ataturk changed the mosque to a museum for the people and tourists, instead of a sacred place of worship (Krystek, Lee).
Christianity and Islam are religions are two of world’s most widespread religions. Both religions when founded were not accepted by the people of that time and they have faced great resistance. Early Islamic art and early Christian art both are historically important as both are similar in some ways. The most earliest architecture and first such structure from the Muslims is the Dome of the Rock located in Jerusalem. When the Muslims conquered the city of Jerusalem in they needed a place (Mosque) to worship and offer their prayers in congregation. At the same time they also wanted to build a monument that would show the success of Muslims and their religion Islam. Similarly, Christians used to build their churches and monuments to show their influence and selected sites which were former Pagan temples and Catacombs to build their churches. Muslims had already conquered Syria and Byzantine and therefore used their designs to build the Dome Of The Rock. The Santa Costanza was originally built in Rome, Italy in 360c. It was erected for Constantine's daughter, however, it was later transformed into a memorial church. It is now argued by scholars that the Santa Costanza was originally built for Constantine's sister Helina.
The Hagia Sophia was constructed first and it was meant as the main church of the Byzantine Empire. It is said that they built the Hagia Sophia in only 5 years, while it took nearly a century for the Notre Dame cathedral to be completed. While it did have what some would consider an extremely short construction time, they did have many issues with the dome. It nearly collapsed more than a few times. Once the builders and architects figured a plan to keep it stable, one on looker said, ”it is as if the Dome is suspended from Heaven itself”. The Dome of the rock was constructed for Christians, Jews, and Muslims but was to attract new followers to Malik’s Islamic brotherhood. The project for the construction had many issues, not only with the Dome itself, but also with revolts that would postpone construction for years. Once completed, many followers believed that Jerusalem was the third holiest place in the world due to Muhammed’s journey to Heaven in order to talk to God. The art within the Hagia Sophia was beautiful Mosaics and paintings of the Virgin Mary with Jesus. These were meant to represent how holy the building was. When the Muslims claimed the Hagia Sophia they did not want to destroy it due to beliefs so they renovated the building. They did this by breaking down images of humans and animals due to their belief that no images of figures
The Dome of the Rock Essentially unchanged for more than thirteen centuries, the Dome of the Rock remains one of the world’s most beautiful and enduring architectural treasures. Adorned with its magnificent gold dome and elaborate quranic inscriptions, the structure intimately represents the world’s second largest religion in a city historically associated with the three Semitic faiths. Representation, however, is not the only effect of this site. Despite its intended purpose, the Dome of the Rock inherently stands as the focal center of a millennium-old religious controversy. Located on what is essentially the world’s holiest site (obviously a speculative assertion) and inscribed with proclamations of Islamic religious superiority, the Dome symbolizes far more than Muhammad’s ascension to heaven.
One of the most defining features of both the Pantheon and Jesse Hall is the larges domes that sit atop their structures. When the Pantheon was created, there was no dome ever created to the scale or size of the one that tops the building to this day. The dome itself sits on a drum like structure that supports the structure. The top is not completely curved like many other domes today. A stepped dome is used near the bottom and begins to curve more towards the top where the oculus sits. This oculus allows any sort of element into the building including sunlight, rain, and snow. The Pantheon, being a space of religious worship when originally created used the dome for many different purposes. In Understanding Architecture, extra contributor David Wat...
The general structure of the Suleymaniye mosque mirrors that of many Islamic mosques, but Sinan's work shows that it can remain a unique piece of architecture. The mosque is designed around a central axis. The length is running from north to south while the width spans east to west. This is appropriate for the purpose of the building, where Muslims must face the cardinal direction of Mecca during prayer (Freely 124). Sinan further emphasizes the north and south direction by place two short pillars on the north end and two taller ones on the south end (see Image 2) (Nelipoglu 212). Looking at the plan of the Suleymaniye we see a definite presence of geometry (see Image 3). The mosque is made up of spherical and rectangular shapes, as well as series of arches along the facades. The main, central dome is further magnified by the surrounding half domes. This draws the attention towards the center (Goodwin 35). The dome becomes the spiritual focus, representing God's "unity without distinctions" (Freely 128). Sinan focused on a harmonious connection of the dome to the rest of the mosque to further emphasize its spiritual representation (Cansever 65). Sinan also strived for the Islamic belief of uninterrupted space between man and God. In his floorplan (see Image 3), he works to build the interior space with few obstructions as possible. Any existing obstruction was placed so that its transition was experienced gradually.
Monuments such as the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem and San Vitale in Ravenna, perform a great importance in Byzantine and Islamic architecture. Both of these structures did not exclusively represent the main place of worship, but most importantly as a symbol of achievement and growth within the current times of construction. Starting in 524, under the influence of Orthodox bishop Ecclesius, the development of San Vitale was to represent the achievements of the emperor Justinian. Julius Argentarius was the sponsor for this structure and it was dedicated by Bishop Maximian in 547. The Dome of the Rock is built on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem in 692 with the help of Abd al-Malik with the suspected intention to symbolize Islams influence in Jerusalem and its involvement in a highly Jewish and Christian supremacy. Although separated by over 100 yrs, both of these domes share multiple similarity's including a projected confidence of their originating culture.
...re that was most unique to the Early Dynastic period was the oval enclosure with a centralized platform to lend stability to the shrine. Storage were found near the enclosure. The Temple Oval at Khafaje best exemplifies the unique formation of the oval enclosure in the temples. This enclosure had a double perimeter wall present which was highly unusual for enclosures. Another oval temple was found that Tell al Ubaid, which had a rectangular platform in the center. In the front of this platform there were elaborate decorations, which were belived to have fallen from the façade of the temple which had stood on the platform. Besides these oval temples there were also plans of temples with a number of single or double roomed shrines, one noteworthy temple is from Tell Chuera in North Syria. This design plan yields a closer resemblance to the west and megaron buildings.
The dome is a remarkable engineering and architectural innovation, perhaps made even more so by the fact that those who first employed it lacked the knowledge and technology advantages of today. By considering how a dome supports itself and its various loads as well as the stresses under which it is subjected, and the structures that allow for this to happen, it is not difficult to determine that the domes of antiquity, such as the Pantheon and Hagia Sophia were incredible structural feats in their own rights.
The poem begins with a mythical tone, “In Xanadu did Kubla Khan/ A stately pleasure dome decree.” The poem does not give specifics to nature of the construction of the palace. It just states that Khan decreed the palace be built and then begins describing the palace. The poem’s method of creating a vision of the “pleasure dome” is similar to the biblical tale of the creation of the garden of Eden. As Eden was created by the word of God, the “pleasure dome” created was by the power of Kubla Khan’s “decree”. The use of the word “decree” implies that it was Khan’s will that created the pleasure dome.
I think a gigantic funerary mosque of white marble, built in Agra by order of the Mogul emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his favorite wife, the Taj Mahal is the most perfect jewel of Moslem art in India and is one of the universally admired architectures of the world’s heritage. Not only see the beautiful Taj Mahal from the video, I also knew the history of itself and its country. A white marble tomb sums up many of the formal themes that have played through Islamic architecture. The video did talk a lot of how much Shah Jahan himself and his father loved art and made many gorgeous artworks. Taj Mahal’s refined style is a conspicuous contrast to the Hindu architecture of pre-Islamic India, with its thick walls, arches, and heavy supports. Even though Taj Mahal is the symbol of grief and sadness, it still has it beauty looks from marble and sand stone.