Early Mosques Research Articles

A Critical Assessment of Heinz Halm’s Views on the Fatimid Caliph of Egypt al-Hākim bi-Amr Allāh

Al-Hākim bi-Amr Allāh (reign 996–1021), the sixth Fatimid caliph in North Africa, is one of the most controversial characters in the history of Islam, who has engendered different and sometimes conflicting views of historians. Adopting a descriptive–analytical method, the present study aimed to assess the views of Heinz Halm, the contemporary Ismaili era researcher, on al-Hākim. Although al-Hākim has gone down the history as a brutal, wicked-minded man, Halm in The Fatimids and Their Traditions of Learning (1997) refers to al-Hākim as a highly-respected person among Egyptians, as a person who had a stable character with consistency in religious policies. Moreover, Halm depicts al-Hākim as totally opposed to the Druze who emerged, as a religious sect, with a belief in al-Hākim’s divinity. The results of the study showed that Halm, drawing eclectically on historical sources, reports, and statements to depict al-Hākim’s character as justified and sound, had foregrounded, marginalized, and eliminated historical data about al-Hākim.

Masjid : Sejarah Singkat, Komponen dan Konteks Regional

Abstract. The mosque is a public building and one of the architectural forms of Islamic culture. There have been numerous studies discussing mosques, including historical studies, analyses of stylistic forms, thermal comfort, circulation, and other aspects. Due to the multitude of research variations, this article aims to re-explore the foundational knowledge of mosques. It begins by delving into the origins of mosques and their brief history, the initial mosque prototypes, their relationship with the building's components, and the evolution of their architecture in relation to regional contexts. This research falls within the realm of qualitative research, employing data collection techniques from several literature sources. The findings indicate that the history and prototypes of early mosques (influenced by pre-Islamic styles) played a significant role in the overall architectural development of mosques worldwide. However, regional contexts introduce new dimensions to the appearance and impression of mosques. What remains unchangeable is the foundation of Islamic religion, which serves as the primary reference in determining policies related to the architectural development of mosques.

Early Mosques that have Never Been (Found): Literary Sources Versus Physical Remains

Abstract Mosques are one main type of evidence to represent early Islam in the archaeological record. Dating mosques is crucial for pinpointing the earliest presence of the Muslim faith in a region and to test certain historical narratives known from the literary sources. Scholars, however, sometimes date medieval mosques in excavations and surveys relying on literary sources. Following these texts has led to dating several mosque remains to the seventh or eighth century. In contrast, archaeologically independent dating tools support only later or indefinite dates for these ancient structures. This article presents four sites that consist of a mosque each of which has been dated to the seventh or eighth century: Fusṭāṭ, Jerusalem, Wāsiṭ, and Ramla. Through these case studies, supplemented by similar examples, I demonstrate the gap between the literary sources and the material evidence. Interpreting relevant epigraphical data, as well as excavation results from many more sites, suggests that the spread of mosques beyond the Arabian Peninsula and Greater Syria occurred only in the ninth century. The literary sources, therefore, cannot be read at face value and can certainly not form the basis for interpreting and dating physical remains.

Hausa vernacular architectural style of early Mosque buildings: A case stuy of Yandoka Street Moswue, JOS

This paper investigates the impact of modern and contemporary trends on an eighty-seven years’ old mosque in Jos built in the typical Hausa Vernacular Architectural style, as well as the extent to which its vernacular features have been lost and/or retained. The study focused on selected architectural features which do not essentially affects the performance of the primary mosque's functions. A qualitative survey was adopted using case study approach and complemented with content analysis of related literature reviewed to extract information on the challenges of restoration and preservation or conservation of the key features of traditional Hausa Architecture on the Mosque buildings in the study area of Jos, Plateau State, Nigeria from the randomly selected traditional/indigenous builders and practicing architects. The Yandoka Street Mosque was purposively selected as a case study, because of its historical antecedence, religious and communal attachment, as well as its socio-political and cultural relevance in the study area. Information was collected using the unobtrusive observation method and were descriptively presented in the form of layout plan, material deduction, construction techniques and technology adopted for the mosque’s construction. Findings shows that, the influence of the identified key factors have become a threatening phenomenon to the survival of the preservation and conservation historical values and heritages of Hausa mosque architectural style. The paper advocates preservation and conservation of the original mosque architectural style from the point of view of sustainability and made recommendations towards the preservation, development and execution of strategies for branding, national identity and protection of value systems for the public good

Exterior vs. interior in early Maghribi mosques

AbstractEarly Islamic religious architecture in North Africa displays a marked change from earlier Classical and Christian buildings in their general neglect of exteriors in favour of interior (i.e., courtyard) façades. This feature may be due partly to the nature of Islamic worship, as it was common to virtually all early mosques, yet builders in the central and eastern lands of Islam soon began to adopt such exteriorizing features as domes, towers, and colourful decoration. Maghribi builders, however, maintained their preference for modest exteriors for many centuries, mostly focusing decoration on interior façades and spaces, and differentiating it from much Islamic architecture elsewhere.

Energy efficiency compliance towards benchmarking for intermittent use religious buildings

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to assess the level of energy efficiency (EE) practices and worshippers’ comfort experience towards energy consumption of a selected energy retrofitted mosque. This study identifies whether the work was done on ad hoc or planned basis and to gauge the success level of the retrofit work.Design/methodology/approachMixed method was used in this study. A selected mosques with a capacity of more than 1,000 worshippers under the Class A of classification places of assembly with operating hour ranging from 45 to 65 h and the penarafan hijau jabatan kerja raya (pHJKR) rating tool as a benchmarking for EE assessment is used. A total of 45 respondents were involved in this study to obtain their perception on comfort experience in mosque. Meanwhile, energy audit and walk-through surveys were conducted to obtain data on energy consumption. To identify whether the work was done on ad hoc or planned basis and to gauge the success level of the retrofit work, pHJKR rating tool and efficiency standard MS1525:2019 are used for benchmarking in keeping with sustainability guidelines.FindingsThe results of this study indicated that the EE score achieved by the mosque is good while there are still rooms for improvement to increase the higher score to the pHJKR’s EE benchmarking tool.Research limitations/implicationsEE is one of the most important agenda under sustainable development initiatives. Part of the initial government strategy is to encourage the use public buildings in demonstrating initiatives for sustainable development to justify high capital resources investment. Mosque buildings have huge potential for this purpose because as religious public buildings for the majority Muslim community, their operations are fully funded from public funds. Selection of mosques is also driven by its unique intermittent energy consumption pattern, while early mosques adopted natural ventilation, modern mosques are often designed with mechanical ventilation (air conditioning).Practical implicationsAn encouragement on government initiative towards sustainable development can be escalating by producing exemplary building for intermittent use pattern categories by mosque as a model.Social implicationsSustainable development especially in EE becomes normal practices and energy and impact towards environment possibly be saved.Originality/valueSustainable development especially in EE becomes normal practices and energy and impact towards environment possibly be saved. This research is based on supportive national agenda by assessing EE measure for development of energy management in intermittent use buildings (mosque).

Eski-Crimea: Introduction to the Historical Topography of the City of the Crimean Khanate

The paper addresses the main points of the development history of a Crimean Khanate town of Eski-Crimea (Old Crimea), and a graphic reconstruction of its general plan for the last quarter of the 18th century – the final stage of the state’s existence. The reconstruction of the historical topography of the late medieval town was carried out on the basis of three arrays of sources – written, cartographic and archaeological. All essential elements of the historical topography of the late medieval town were recreated. The plan of the quarter development and the street network was reconstructed. Town mosques, a bathhouse, fountains which supplied the townspeople with water, hotels – caravanserais, and shopping arcades were localized. The location of the town market and an early mosque built in 1263 was determined. It is suggested that the area around them marks the early region from where the town began to expand and where it is possible to find the earliest cultural layers associated with the emergence of the town. By the final stage of the existence of Crimean Khanate, the area of urban development in Eski-Crimea was about 29 hectares.

Christian-Muslim contacts across the Mediterranean: Byzantine glass mosaics in the Great Umayyad Mosque of Córdoba (Spain)

Glass mosaic decorations were used throughout the medieval Mediterranean as a powerful medium to convey religious and political agendas, yet we know next to nothing about the source of the materials and the transmission of the necessary technical know-how. Mosaics are generally considered a Byzantine art form, not least due to their prominence in Byzantine church architecture and because medieval Islamic textual sources assert that the glass tesserae of some of the most important early mosques were of Byzantine origin. This article provides solid analytical evidence that glass used in the tenth-century mosaics of the Great Umayyad Mosque of Córdoba (Spain) came from Byzantium. Most of the tesserae have high boron contents, for which the only compositional match are Byzantine glasses made with raw materials from Asia Minor. In addition, some of the glass has a chemical fingerprint that suggests that it was prepared by mixing local raw materials with imported high boron glass, indicative of local mosaic glassmaking. Our study thus illustrates the value of analytical studies in re-assessing long-held assumptions about the making of mosaics as well as the movement of materials and people across cultural barriers. The presence of Byzantine materials and craftsmen in Córdoba demonstrates that Muslims and Christians were interacting the length of the Mediterranean, corroborating the close diplomatic ties between the Caliphate of Córdoba and the Byzantine Empire during the tenth century. Our findings further underscore the importance of glass in trade and diplomatic exchange, reflecting its cultural and economic value in the medieval world.

How Accurately Could Early (622-900 C.E.) Muslims Determine the Direction of Prayers (Qibla)?

Debate has arisen over the ability of Muslim architects in the first two centuries of Islam to determine true qiblas accurately. Some believe that they had such a capability, while others think not. The argument could be more complex—perhaps some architects could, while others could not; perhaps their accuracy changed over time or over greater distances from qibla targets. Here, we investigated how the accurate qiblas of 60 mosques or related structures were, using data from Daniel Gibson’s books and websites. Contrasts were drawn between theories that the qiblas of early mosques were—or were not—generally accurate. If one were to assume that Mecca was the only qibla, qiblas would not appear to have been accurate. However, if one were to assume that qiblas changed, it would be found that qiblas were accurate to plus or minus two degrees in over half of the cases and accurate within plus or minus five degrees in over 80% of cases. Accuracy was not related to distance but did appear to improve over historical time, while distance from the target cities and historical time were positively associated. The average qibla accuracy had a near zero error, with random variations on either side of that zero error. The overall distribution was not normal—kurtotic—because a greater accuracy was found than would have been expected with a normal distribution; however, the pattern deviated more from a uniform distribution than it did from a normal distribution. To try to synthesize the competing theories, we analyzed data for only 14 of the 60 mosques, those presumed to face towards Mecca, and we found fairly high degrees of qibla accuracy with nearly 43% of qiblas within two degrees of accuracy and nearly 80% within five degrees of accuracy. Comparing the accuracy of Meccan qiblas with other qiblas of the same century, we found no significant differences in azimuth errors. While some architects were more accurate than others, early Muslim architects seemed, in general, quite capable of placing qiblas with reasonable accuracy, even though their accuracy may have improved slightly over the first two centuries of Islam.

Nancy Shatzman Steinhardt. China’s Early Mosques

China’s Early Mosques is one of the latest additions to the Edinburgh Studies in Islamic Art and among the most unique publications in the field of so-called “Islamic architecture” in recent years. While the history of Middle Eastern (i.e. Iran, Turkey and the Arab world) architecture since the seventh century remains the focal point in this field of research, Steinhardt enters the field from East Asia. As a study of Chinese architectural history, too, China’s Early Mosques is far too unique ...

An Historiographical Analysis of the Arabic Accounts of Early Mosques: With Special Reference to Those at Madina, Baṣra and Kūfa

An Historiographical Analysis of the Arabic Accounts of Early Mosques: With Special Reference to Those at Madina, Baṣra and Kūfa

China’s Early Mosques by Nancy Shatzman Steinhardt

China’s Early Mosques by Nancy Shatzman Steinhardt

China's Early Mosques. By NancyShatzman Steinhardt. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2015. Pp. 368; 60 b&w and 140 color illustrations, 8 maps. Paper, $160.00.

Religious Studies ReviewVolume 43, Issue 4 p. 417-417 Short Reviews of Recent Publications: Islam China's Early Mosques. By Nancy Shatzman Steinhardt. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2015. Pp. 368; 60 b&w and 140 color illustrations, 8 maps. Paper, $160.00. Kristian Petersen, Kristian Petersen University of NebraskaSearch for more papers by this author Kristian Petersen, Kristian Petersen University of NebraskaSearch for more papers by this author First published: 08 December 2017 https://doi.org/10.1111/rsr.13289Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Volume43, Issue4Special Issue: Oxford Handbook Series—Works in Religious Studies (Part 1)December 2017Pages 417-417 RelatedInformation

The Astronomical Orientation of Ancient Greek Theatres in Relation to the Topography and the Greek Mythology

The study of the astronomical orientation of monuments in Greece has been strengthened over the last decade by the development and application of contemporary methods of measurement and analysis. The study has highlighted important findings related to monuments from the Antiquity up to the modern era. This study includes monuments of the classical antiquity, early Christian basilicas, Byzantine temples and mosques. However, an equally important Monument category is the ancient theatres. These monuments due to both their size and usefulness became the subject of study in this paper. This paper presents the results of a systematic research concerning the determination of the astronomical orientation of six ancient theatres in Greece. At the same time, the interpretation of their orientation and their possible relation to the mythology, the position and movement of constellations and the topography of their site is also studied. The geometric data produced with modern accurate methods of measurement and analysis certainly contributes to a more thorough study and interpretation of the placement and orientation of such large ancient constructions. This systematic research is carried out for six of the most important theatres in Greece. These are the ancient theatres of Dionysus, Delphi, Epidaurus, Ancient Epidaurus, Argos and Sicyon.

Review: China's Early Mosques, by Nancy Shatzman Steinhardt

Nancy Shatzman Steinhardt China's Early Mosques Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2015, 368 pp., 8 maps, 140 color and 60 b/w illus. $160/£95, ISBN 9780748670413 This well-illustrated book is a most welcome addition to art and architectural history studies, especially in the fields of Islamic and Chinese art. I know this because I have had the opportunity to use the volume on several occasions. In one case, as I was preparing for a trip to Xinjiang, I found the book indispensable not only for my preparation to visit this area of Central Asian China but also for the accurate information it provided. Before the publication of China's Early Mosques , I had visited important early Muslim sites in southeast and north-central China, but until I read Nancy Shatzman Steinhardt's text, I had great difficulty sorting fact from fiction about the monuments I saw. There is absolutely no other book in English or any European language that covers China's mosques. Further, in addition to being unique, it is lucidly written, shedding light on a topic that might otherwise seem bewildering to the non-Islamic, non-China specialist. This volume will remain the standard work on Chinese mosques well into the future. Chapter 1 opens the book with an introduction to Islam in China, with its population of about 23 million Muslims, the majority of whom are Hui (about 10 million), followed by Uyghurs (about 8.4 million); the rest are largely members of other Turkic-speaking ethnic groups. The written record and material remains provide considerable evidence of trade between China and both South Asia …

The Early Mosque Revisited: Introduction of the Minbar and Maqṣūra

As the mosque evolved in response to the contested authority of Islam’s early rulers, the dependency of this authority upon the public audience in the mosque gave rise to a series of changes that occurred within the qibla of the mosque. By considering the congregational mosques at Kufa, Basra, Damascus, Wasit, and Madina between 630 and 715, and revisiting the development of their qibla spaces, three changes are presented as embodiments of this shift. This includes the development of the minbar as a platform for the khuṭba (Friday sermon) and of the enclosure screen (maqṣūra) in front of the qibla for the caliph, as well as the provision of direct access to the dār al-imāra via the qibla wall. By situating these developments within the context of contested religious and political authority in early Islam, this study challenges paradigms of formal influence in the interpretation of mosque architecture.

The Byzantine-Islamic Transition in Palestine: An Archaeological Approach

The Byzantine-Islamic Transition in Palestine: An Archaeological Approach

Archaeology and Acrimony: Gertrude Bell, Ernst Herzfeld and the Study of Pre-Modern Mesopotamia

Letters sent from the German scholar Ernst Herzfeld to Gertrude Bell between 1909 and 1912 provide valuable information about the scholarship of these remarkable characters as they explored issues pertaining to the development of early Islamic art and architecture in Mesopotamia. Through a spirited and often fractious exchange of ideas about a range of artistic and architectural topics that included vaulting techniques, the design of early mosques and palace forms, one can track the impact each had upon the other's scholarship, and the degree to which their respective views shaped one another's conclusions about important Islamic period sites such as Samarra and Ukhaidir.

An Early Islamic Mosque in Palmyra

This article presents the results of preliminary investigations on a mosque that was recently rediscovered in the centre of Palmyra. The general organization of the mosque, the way in which it reuses a pre-existing Roman building, its situation south of the Tetrapylon and the data at hand on the later periods in Palmyra all point to an Umayyad date for the structure. This new element of early Islamic Palmyra will be described. This in turn will lead to some considerations on its context, in particular in relation with the Umayyad suq already known in Palmyra and more generally on caliphal involvements in the large scale programmes of urban development or urban creation.

The Umayyad congregational mosque of Jarash in Jordan and its relationship to early mosques

The early mosque at Jarash is reconstructed by archaeological excavation and survey and attributed to a wave of urban renewal in the reign of caliph Hisham (AD 724-743).