From the eighteenth century, the French doctor and naturalist John Andrew Peyssonnel, conducting a study trip to 1724, during the reign of sovereign Al-Husayn Bey I, underlines the reputation of the mosque as a deemed centre of religious and secular studies: « The Great Mosque is dedicated to Uqba, where there is a famous college where we will study the remotest corners of this kingdom : are taught reading and writing of Arabic grammar, laws and religion. It continued to be used until 1278 when it was partially destroyed during the Hulag… Great Mosque, Damascus. The geometry analysis of the mosque was first performed at the Great Mosque of Kairouan, in Tunisia. All other trademarks and copyrights are the property of their respective owners. Paris, 1908, just create an account. Learn about its unique plan and influential design that was the model for later mosques in the region. [60] Although the shafts are of varying heights, the columns are ingeniously arranged to support fallen arches harmoniously. [39], Wall and porches on the west facade (south side), Close view of one of the entrances of the west facade, View of the middle of the southern facade, Gate of Bab Lalla Rihana (late thirteenth century), Close view of the lower part of Bab Lalla Rihana, Blind arcade decorating the upper part of Bab Lalla Rihana. All rights reserved. More info. This is the least expensive place to buy them. The Great Mosque, also known as the Sidi Oqba mosque, had its simple beginnings in 670 AD, during the time of Uqba ibn Nafi, the original founder of Kairouan. It is the oldest minaret in the Muslim world,[53][54] and it is also the world's oldest minaret still standing. $198.73 per adult. Mohamed Kerrou, « Quartiers et faubourgs de la médina de Kairouan. Medina. o non-Muslim visitors use the main gate … During this period, the Great Mosque of Kairouan was both a place of prayer and a centre for teaching Islamic sciences under the Maliki current. "Soha Gaafar et Marwa Mourad, « La Grande Mosquée de Kairouan, un maillon clé dans l'histoire de l'architecture », Lucien Golvin, « Quelques réflexions sur la Grande Mosquée de Kairouan à la période des Aghlabides », pp. Considered as the oldest example of concave mihrab, it dates in its present state to 862–863 AD.[79]. On additions and embellishments made to the building by the Aghlabid emir Abu Ibrahim, Ibn Nagi gives the following account: .mw-parser-output .templatequote{overflow:hidden;margin:1em 0;padding:0 40px}.mw-parser-output .templatequote .templatequotecite{line-height:1.5em;text-align:left;padding-left:1.6em;margin-top:0}, « He built in the mosque of Kairouan the cupola that rises over the entrance to the central nave, together with the two colonnades which flank it from both sides, and the galleries were paved by him. [49], The door giving access to the minaret is framed by a lintel and jambs made of recycled carved friezes of antique origin. Human factors including Hilalian's invasions in 449 AH (1057 AD) led to the decline of the city and halted development. Its most striking feature is the formal emphasis on the building’s T-like axis punctuated by two domes, one of which hovers over the earliest preserved ensemble of mihrab, minbar, and maqṣūrah. [58][76] The niches are covered with carved stone panels, finely adorned with characteristic geometric, vegetal and floral patterns of the Aghlabid decorative repertoire: shells, cusped arches, rosettes, vine-leaf, etc. Planing of the mosque:- o The exterior of the Great Mosque of Kairouan, with buttressed walls, is in the typically austere Aghlabid design. The horseshoe arch of the mihrab, stilted and broken at the top, rest on two columns of red marble with yellow veins, which surmounted with Byzantine style capitals that carry two crossbeams carved with floral patterns, each one is decorated with a Kufic inscription in relief. Great Mosque of Kairouan Location: In the Medina, Kairouan, Tunisia Date of the monument: Hegira 221 / AD 836 Period... 3. The oldest boards date back to the Aghlabid period (ninth century) and are decorated with scrolls and rosettes on a red background consists of squares with concave sides in which are inscribed four-petaled flowers in green and blue, and those performed by the Zirid dynasty (eleventh century) are characterised by inscriptions in black kufic writing with gold rim and the uprights of the letters end with lobed florets, all on a brown background adorned with simple floral patterns. Great mosque of kairouan 1. However, Arab geographers and historians of the Middle Ages Al-Muqaddasi and Al-Bakrirep… In addition to its spiritual prestige,[3] the Mosque of Uqba is one of the masterpieces of Islamic architecture,[4][5][6] notable among other things for the first Islamic use of the horseshoe arch. Dating back to 670 CE, The Great Mosque of Kairouan represents one of the oldest and most influential places of worship in the Muslim world. In the early twentieth century, the minbar had a painstaking restoration. [62], The central nave, a sort of triumphal alley which leads to the mihrab,[63] is significantly higher and wider than the other sixteen aisles of the prayer hall. [7] The fame of the Mosque of Uqba and of the other holy sites at Kairouan helped the city to develop and expand. [80] Above the marble cladding, the mihrab niche is crowned with a half dome-shaped vault made of manchineel bentwood. [84] This old chair of the ninth century is still in its original location, next to the mihrab. Dated from the ninth century (about 862) and erected under the reign of the sixth Aghlabid ruler Abul Ibrahim (856–863), it is made in teak wood imported from India. The maqsura, located near the minbar, consists of a fence bounding a private enclosure that allows the sovereign and his senior officials to follow the solemn prayer of Friday without mingling with the faithful. [12], During the thirteenth century, new gates were opened, the most remarkable, Bab Lalla Rihana dated from 1293, is located on the eastern wall of the enclosure. Despite the transfer of the political capital to Tunis in the 12th century, Kairouan remained the Maghreb's principal holy city. [18] In 774, a new reconstruction accompanied by modifications and embellishments[19] took place under the direction of the Abbasid governor Yazid ibn Hatim. $520.09 per adult. Among the authors who have written on the subject and whose stories have survived[31] are Al-Bakri (Andalusian geographer and historian who died in 1094 and who devoted a sufficiently detailed account of the history of the mosque in his book Description of Septentrional Africa), Al-Nuwayri (historian who died in Egypt, 1332) and Ibn Nagi (scholar and historian of Kairouan who died around 1435). The Great Mosque of Kairouan: Excellent! In the history of Art, its three-storey minaret is considered such a masterpiece and a model among the most prestigious monuments of Muslim architecture. apply these constructions to the plan of the mosque to test their hypothesis. Covered with a thick coating completely painted, the concavity of the arch is decorated with intertwined scrolls enveloping stylised five-lobed vine leaves, three-lobed florets and sharp clusters, all in yellow on midnight blue background.[81]. The Great Mosque of Cordoba. [46] Freed from its impurities, the water flows into an underground cistern supported by seven-metre-high pillars. The Great Mosque isn't close to anything in particular, but it's rich history and unique architecture are worth the long drive. Over the next 30 years, several additions and partial reconstructions were made. Irregular rectangle in plan is about 70 by 125 meters and is located slightly off center on the side! 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