ARTHIST 101D Lecture Notes - Lecture 26: Durham Cathedral, Abbasid Caliphate, Glossary Of Architecture
10 May 2018
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Lecture 26: From Islam to Romanesque
April 14, 2015
The Great Mosque of Damascus (705-715)
Mosques are not just for prayer and liturgy but also for hanging out
Entrance reserved for caliph
Minarets: a tall slender tower, typically part of a mosque, with a balcony from which a muezzin
calls Muslims to prayer
Qibla side: towards Mecca
Roman features: Recycling building materials to save labor and time such as the capitals
(reminiscent of Old St. Peters)
Arching supporting other arches
Exterior was once decorated with glass mosaic pieces – destroyed in a fire
Muslim builder translated the Roman traditions into more lasting materials
o Glass rather than painted plaster
Kairouan, Tunisia, the Great Mosque (836+)
Constructed by Abbasid dynasty
Theory that the minaret in the mosque is inspired by ancient Roman ports
Hypostyle halls and parallel naves
Samarra, Iraq – Minaret (848-852)
Roman feature: baked brick
Cordoba, the great mosque (1000)
Entrance portal of Hakam II (961-965)
Islamic arches – Horseshoe arches (arch that comes down farther than a semicircle), interlaced
arches that create pointed arches, cusped arches (kind of like a flower shape)
Abstract geometric decoration carved in relief from stucco
Polychrome (multi-colored) exterior ornament
Alternating bands of masonry, capitals supporting big impost blocks
Arches on top of arches (upper arches are supported by an elongated impost block)
Cordoba maqsura: central plan domes reinforced by ribs
o Maqsura is a enclosure in the mosque that was originally meant for the sultan during public
prayers (usually made of openwork screen)
Lecture 26: Ottonian and Romanesque
Toledo captured 1085 (in Sicily the Normans also stated conquest of Muslim Sicily in 1060s)
Durham Cathedral (1093)
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Mosques are not just for prayer and liturgy but also for hanging out. Minarets: a tall slender tower, typically part of a mosque, with a balcony from which a muezzin calls muslims to prayer. Roman features: recycling building materials to save labor and time such as the capitals (reminiscent of old st. peters) Exterior was once decorated with glass mosaic pieces destroyed in a fire. Muslim builder translated the roman traditions into more lasting materials: glass rather than painted plaster. Theory that the minaret in the mosque is inspired by ancient roman ports. Islamic arches horseshoe arches (arch that comes down farther than a semicircle), interlaced arches that create pointed arches, cusped arches (kind of like a flower shape) Abstract geometric decoration carved in relief from stucco. Alternating bands of masonry, capitals supporting big impost blocks. Arches on top of arches (upper arches are supported by an elongated impost block)
