Islamic – Flashcards

Tribute to triumph of Islam and coming of new religion to city. Dome rising out of high platform. Noble Enclosure, not a building, as it encloses a giant rock inside for protection. Dominates skyline of Jerusalem. Erected on traditional site thought to be the site of Adam's burial, Abraham's preparation for Isaac's sacrifice, and the Temple of Solomon that the Romans destroyed. Also the rock from which Muhammad ascended to heaven. Borrowed from Christian/Byzantium architecture. Domed architecture with two shells. Originally completely covered in vivid mosaics. No difference between interior and exterior design.

Originally a Byzantine church, converted to mosque. Kept precinct walls for the foundation but demolished most of the original church. Masonry blocks, columns, and capitals done in Greco-Roman tradition. Courtyard surrounded by pier arcades like Roman aqueducts. Minarets were modifications of Roman square towers. Two at the Southern corners and one centered at the North side. Hypostyle halls filled with colonnades. Main entrance arch. Mihrab dome. Interior had extensive mosaics. Courtyard arcades had mosaics in between piers. Depicted a conch shell niche supporting an arcaded pavilion, with flowering rooftop flanked by other structures shown in Classical perspective. Temples, clusters of houses, trees, rivers, surrounded by exterior border of stylized vegetation. No zoomorphic forms. Inscription describes mosaic as image of paradise. No humans.

Symbol of authority over new land. Displayed wealth. High walls all around for privacy and protection from nomads, like a Roman fortress. 25 towers, but no parapet walkways. Entered from large portal on the South side. Complex included mosque for everyone to pray. Official audience hall with ceremonial rooms attached. Giant open courtyard. Also had elaborate bathing facilities with heating. Decorative brick work. Carved stone, not stucco.

Triangles formed from elaborate moldings. Very geometrical. Extravagant rosette inside each triangle. Densely carved and filled with curvilinear vegetal designs. Zoomorphic forms included birds in trees and lions drinking. Each triangle had a different design.

More formal layout of typical mosque. Included hypostyle halls, entrance dome, long nave, and mihrab dome. 8 columned aisles framed nave on either side. One 3-story tall square minaret. Slightly skewed parallelogram shape overall. Buttresses on walls alleviate weight. Series of arcaded entrances.

Square forecourt of sun-dried bricks. 10 acres of land. Columns formed into palm tree trunks held up wooden roof. 165ft tall minaret known as a malwiya, or "snail shell." Would have been linked to mosque by bridge. Spiral stairway led to the top with the slope gradient gradually steepening. Announced presence of Islam in the Tigris Valley.

Monumental tombs of baked brick. Each brick individually formed to create vivid patterning and intricate design. Cube with slightly sloped sides, narrower at the top. Covered by dome, making dome on cube a basic unit Islam tombs. Engaged columns. Blind arcades run along all 4 sides. Inside walls as elaborate as exterior. Dome rests on archiweighted brick squinches.

Known as "the jewel," was expanded several times. Hypostyle hall has red/white stone, creating a dramatic effect. 46 piers and 514 columns which were tiered and topped by double tiered arches holding up wooden roof. Multi-lobed scalloped arches made of light sandstone/dark granite were less dense and created more open space. Octagonal dome highly decorated, held up by 8 arches in the squinch design. Flower petal look is very organic. Criss-crossing ribs create intricate pattern, make it lightweight. Maqsura was reserved for caliph and was attached to his palace through a corridor. Different arches were scalloped and multi-lobed. Engaged column to pier. Varied patterns. Covered in mosaics.

In the basin of the bathhouse. Vibrant colors and 31 different abstract designs. Meant to resemble tapestry or rug covering floor. Floral and geometric designs. Filled with medallions with intricate designs inside as well. Mirrors ceiling.

Glazed tilework, each tile slightly curved to create dome shape. Delicate spiraling pattern doesn't overpower dome. Turquoise color. Darker at the base and lighter at the top.

Named for courtyard fountain of marble lions carrying water basin on backs. Free-standing stone sculpture, which was unusual for Islamic art. Intricate design supposed to mimic lush gardens. Meant to conjure images of paradise. Stucco/stone carving design on walls dematerializes them, creates fantasy lace-like design. Domed ceiling designed to look like an elaborate star with stucco design all the way around.

Honeycomb stucco design. 5000 maqarnas (tiers of stalactite-like prismatic forms) defy mass/solidity, catch/reflect sunlight and form beautiful abstract patterns. Dome symbolizes paradise, mimics starry night skies. Walls inscribed with verses by the court poet. Compares ceiling to heavenly spheres where the orbits revolve.

Theological college devoted to teaching of Islamic law. Included multiple colleges, mosque, mausoleum, orphanage, hospital, stores, and baths. Multiple iwans with the largest on the South side that served as the mosque. Open central courtyard with monumental fountains. Four separate colleges between iwans. Behind qibla wall was supposedly the sultan's mausoleum in a dome covering a cube structure, so people were praying toward sultan. Sultan's sons were buried there. Maqarnas on exterior walls. Lots of marble. Very austere exterior. Characterized by massiveness, geometric clarity.

Mihrab can be seen from any spot in the mosque. Very open space. Massive dome with four slender pencil-shaped minarets that are over 200ft tall and dominate skyline. Mosque is main item in complex. Other elements include libraries, schools, shops, bathhouses, mausoleums, etc. Utilitarian buildings grouped around mosque, axially aligned. Very organized, including shrubbery. Porticos surrounding building. Height surpasses Hagia Sophia. Interior space has mihran abcessed into apse-like cove. Brightly colored, fusion of octagon, square, dome. 8 massive dome supports. Half domes on the sides. Fluid geometric shapes. Clear and legible forms like mathematical equations. 1:2 ratios. Regarded as climax Ottoman architecture.

Known for large front facade in front of hypostyle hall. Four iwans opening into courtyard. 2-story arcade on each side. Blue tile.

Curved Cuerdaseca tiles cover walls, arches, vaults. Intricate vegetal designs.

Most famous mausoleum. Metaphor for paradise and throne of God. Built as a memorial for ruler's wife. Massive but weightless. Long pond/lake lined by trees makes the building look like it floats. Cream colored marble. Walls seem translucent. Sweeping upward movement with squinch dome, everything pushing inward and upward. Less bulky/heavy. Minarets stabilize entire design. Perfectly symmetrical. Finest play of light and shadow. Walls inlaid with jewels everywhere.

25 million knots. Wool and silk. Design focused on central sunburst medallion inside dome. Surrounded by 16 pendants. Rich blue background, designs meant to look like they're floating. Two funerary lamps are supposed to reflect ceiling. Different sizes meant to seem optically symmetrical. Alludes to heavenly dome. Floating lotus blossoms. No human/zoomorphic figures.

Miniature from manuscript by romantic poet Nizami. Ink and color on gold paper. Depicts school in mosque, deals more with everyday interactions instead of religious ideas. Turbaned teacher seated on carpet with rod in hand, listening to youth reading. Other young people studying in the proper pose with one knee up and the other crossed. Criss-cross/v-shaped podium as reading stands. Lots of action and activity. In foreground, one boy pulls another's ear and two play ball. Laila and Majnun are main characters in the center, shy and turning their heads in opposite directions, flirting. Figures are lively. Flat, no volume, modeling, shadows, or source of light. Simple outlines filled in with solid colors. 2D space, perspective is off as viewer sees exterior and interior simultaneously. Muezzin at the top. Lines don't converged. Everything is patterned/designed.