What are the main features of the Blue Mosque?
What are the main features of the Blue Mosque?
The mosque features two main sections: a large unified prayer hall crowned by the main dome and an equally spacious courtyard. In contrast to earlier imperial mosques in Istanbul, the monotony of the exterior stone walls is relieved through numerous windows and a blind arcade.
What is special about the design of the interior of the Blue Mosque?
Blue tiles: The mosque’s interior features about 20,000 hand-painted blue tiles in the Iznik pottery style. These Iznik tiles feature 60 unique tulip patterns. Light pours in through 260 stained glass windows. The mihrab indicates the direction of Mecca.
Why are some mosques blue?
It was constructed between 1609 and 1616 during the rule of Ahmed I. Its Külliye contains Ahmed’s tomb, a madrasah and a hospice. Hand-painted blue tiles adorn the mosque’s interior walls, and at night the mosque is bathed in blue as lights frame the mosque’s five main domes, six minarets and eight secondary domes.
What is the architecture of the Blue Mosque?
Byzantine
Blue Mosque Architecture. The architectural design of the Blue Mosque was based on the nearby Hagia Sophia complex, a 6th century C.E. Byzantine structure. The buildings were to be complementary when observed from a distance. Ornate symmetrical and geometric characteristics comprise the Blue Mosque’s complex.
What mihrab means?
Definition of mihrab : a niche or chamber in a mosque indicating the direction of Mecca.
What material is the Blue Mosque made of?
marble
What is the Blue Mosque made of emerges as a question of its structure? It is known that the mihrab and Sultan’s mahfil were made of artistically carved and sculpted marble. Crystal lightings were added to reinforce the enlightenment provided by 28 vast windows letting sunlight in.
How does the interior of Blue Mosque look?
The upper levels of the interior are dominated by blue paint. More than 200 stained glass windows with intricate designs admit natural light, today assisted by chandeliers. The decorations include verses from the Qur’an, many of them made by Seyyid Kasim Gubari, regarded as the greatest calligrapher of his time.
Who designed the Blue Mosque?
Sedefkar Mehmed AghaThe Blue Mosque / Architect
What materials is the Blue Mosque made of?
What is the Blue Mosque made of emerges as a question of its structure? It is known that the mihrab and Sultan’s mahfil were made of artistically carved and sculpted marble. Crystal lightings were added to reinforce the enlightenment provided by 28 vast windows letting sunlight in.
Why do mosques have mihrab?
A mihrab is a niche in the wall of a mosque or religious school (madrasa) that indicates the direction of Mecca (qibla), which Muslims face when praying. It is the architectural and symbolic focal point of religious buildings.
Do all mosques have a mihrab?
However, the mihrab became a significant part of all mosques, suggesting that they represent the location where the prophet, Muhammad would lead the prayer. (Gabar, 1973, p. 121) Both the flat and concave mihrabs symbolize the gate to the Divine through their iconography.
Who constructed Blue Mosque?
Sedefkar Mehmet Ağa
Construction. The construction of the mosque started in August 1609. The architect in charge was Sedefkar Mehmet Ağa, a student of the great architect Sinan. The detailed workbook of the construction consists of 8 volumes and still lies in the Topkapi Palace library.
How many tiles are in the Blue Mosque?
20,000 Iznik tiles
The most striking feature of the Blue Mosque, and the one inspiring the nickname, are the more than 20,000 Iznik tiles, ornately painted ceramic tiles carefully crafted by hand so that no two are alike, adorning the interior gallery and rising above the main entrance.
What does the mihrab represent?
What is the importance of mihrab?
The mihrab is important in archaeology because the presence of a properly aligned mihrab in a building can indicate Muslim presence in a settlement. This is especially valuable when dealing with atypical mosques, such as those built from Roman settlements or in very rural areas with limited resources.
What does the mihrab look like?
Notice the tall section in the middle that curves inward, with the pointed top. That shape tells us that this is a mihrab. In every mosque, a mihrab shaped like this shows the direction towards Mecca, the holy city for Muslims. In the mosque, people face the mihrab wall when they pray.
What are İznik tiles made from?
İznik Tiles are made on a very clean white base with hard backs and underglazed decorations in a unique technique. 70-80 percent of an İznik tile is composed of quartz and quartzite.
Why was mihrab created?
The mihrab originated in the reign of the Umayyad prince al-Walīd I (705–715), during which time the famous mosques at Medina, Jerusalem, and Damascus were built. The structure was adapted from the prayer niches common to the oratories of Coptic Christian monks.
What is mihrab made of?
Mihrab (Prayer Niche) dated A.H. 755/ A.D. 1354–55 This example from the Madrasa Imami in Isfahan is composed of a mosaic of small glazed tiles fitted together to form various patterns and inscriptions.
What is the purpose of a mihrab in a mosque?