Damascus Omayyad Mosque 706-715 - History of Islamic Architecture (sitios de interés)

Descripción del sitio

This marker is part of an extended History of Islamic Architecture

Damascus
The Great Omayyad Mosque
706-715

During Roman times the site was a temple of Jupiter which was in the Byzantine era converted into a Christian church dedicated to John the Baptist. The Muslim conquest of Damascus in 636 did not affect the church, as the site was shared by Muslim and Christian worshippers. The Umayyad caliph Al-Walid I purchased the site and demolished the church. He built the present mosque between 706 and 715 with the help of 200 skilled Byzantine workers: e.g., the mosaics in the overlong (136 x 37 m) prayer hall. Most of this interior decoration was lost in a great fire in 1893. The mosaics on the outside are of recent date.
The building is a simple solution for the Islamic need for a space in which all could face Mekka and see the quibbla. It has been copied in a number of places (e.g. the Great Mosque of Diyarbakir, Turkey). Another early scheme to achieve the same goal is the Mesquita in Cordoba, Spain.



Interior



Photo kaizergallery.com




Floor plan from Archnet.org

Mapa del lugar de interés Damascus Omayyad Mosque 706-715

Panorámica interactiva con Google Street View