White Mosque of Ramle
White Mosque | |
---|---|
المسجد الأبيض המסגד הלבן | |
Religion | |
Affiliation | Islam |
Location | |
Location | Ramla, Central District |
Country | Israel |
Geographic coordinates | 31°55′39.21″N 34°51′57.67″E / 31.9275583°N 34.8660194°E |
Architecture | |
Architect(s) | Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz |
Type | Islamic |
Style | Umayyad, Mamluk |
Completed | 717 CE (enclosure); rebuilt by 1047; second phase 1190; third phase 1268 (minaret); rebuilt 1318 and 1408[1][2] |
Specifications | |
Dome(s) | 1 |
Minaret(s) | 1 |
Minaret height | 27 metres (89 ft) |
The White Mosque (
The minaret is also known as the Tower of the Forty Martyrs.[5][6] Islamic tradition dating back to 1467 claims that forty companions of the Islamic prophet Muhammad were buried at the mosque, which influenced an erroneous[2] Western Christian tradition from the 16th century that the White Mosque was originally a church dedicated to the Forty Martyrs of Sebaste.[7][8]
History
First phase
Construction on the White Mosque was initiated by the
“The chief mosque of
Church of Saint George), and employ its columns for the building of his mosque. So the Christians pointed out where they had buried their columns. They are very thick, and tall, and beautiful. The covered portion (or main building) of the mosque is flagged with marble, and the court with other stone, all carefully laid together. The gates of the main-building are made of cypress-wood and cedar, carved in the inner parts, and very beautiful in appearance.”[11]
Reconstructions
An earthquake in January 1034 destroyed the mosque, "leaving it in a heap of ruins", along with a third of the city. In 1047, Nasir Khusraw reported that the mosque had been rebuilt.[2]
After the initial reconstruction, Saladin ordered in 1190 one of his outstanding architects, Ilyas Ibn ʿAbd Allah, to supervise what is considered the second construction phase of the mosque. Ilyas built the mosque's western side and the western enclosure wall, together with the central wudu building.[dubious ][1]
The third phase, in 1267–1268, began after the final fall of the Christian
The last restoration of the White Mosque of Ramle took place during between 1844-1918. Since then, the mosque has been mostly destroyed, except for its minaret.[13]
Architecture
Outline and prayer hall
The White Mosque's compound is rectangular, 93 by 84 meters (305 ft × 276 ft), and oriented to the cardinal points.[12] A large, open courtyard is surrounded by built structures and walls.[12]
The 12 meters (39 ft) wide prayer hall stands along the southern wall, with twelve openings northwards to the courtyard.[12] Its ceiling consists of cross-vaults supported by a central row of pillars.[12] The ceiling and the western part of the prayer hall are 12th-century additions made by Saladin, who also had a new mihrab (prayer niche) built.[12]
Much of the mosque was built in white marble with cypress and cedar wood used for the doors. Of its four facades, the eastern one is in disrepair.[4][dubious ]
Minaret (the "White Tower")
The current Mamluk-built minaret stands on the northern side of the mosque compound, is square in shape and five stories high, each adorned with window niches, and has a balcony towards the top. The minaret was probably influenced by Crusader-era Christian architecture, but it was built by the Mamluks.[4] 27 meters (89 ft) tall,[9] it is accessed via a staircase with 125 steps and contains small rooms, which could be used for resting or as study rooms.[1]
Al-Maqdisi mentions a minaret in the 10th century.[11] There is speculation about a minaret predating the Mamluk one that may have been located closer to the centre of the mosque, as remnants of a square foundation have been found there. However, this may have been just a fountain.[4][dubious ]
Courtyard and cisterns
Below the central courtyard of the mosque, there are three large and well-preserved underground cisterns with barrel-vaults carried by pillars.[1] Two cisterns (the southern and western ones) were filled by an underground water duct probably connected to the aqueduct built simultaneously with the mosque and city, which brought spring water (probably from the vicinity of Gezer to the east).[1][14] The third eastern cistern was supplied by runoff rainwater.[1] The reservoirs provided water for worshippers at the mosque and filled the pool for wudu at the center of the courtyard, of which only the foundation remains today.[12]
Archaeological excavations
Excavations conducted by the
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h Haifa University Archived 3 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine Excavation in Marcus Street Ramla; Reports and studies of the recanati Institute for maritime studies Excavations, Haifa 2007
- ^ a b c d e Pringle, 1998, pp. 182-185
- ^ Centre, UNESCO World Heritage. "White Mosque in Ramle". UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
- ^ a b c d e Al-Abyad Mosque Archnet Digital Library. Archived 2013-09-18 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Lamartine, A. de (1835). A Pilgrimage to the Holy Land. A. Waldie. p. 166.
- ^ Chateaubriand, F.-R. de (1814). Travels in Greece, Palestine, Egypt, and Barbary, During the Years 1806 and 1807. Van Winkle and Wiley. pp. 242.
- ^ George Robinson (1837). Travels in Palestine and Syria: In Two Volumes. Palestine. Colburn. p. 30.
- ^ Katia Cytryn-Silverman (2010). "The Mamluk Minarets of Ramla". Bulletin du Centre de recherche français à Jérusalem. 21.
- ^ a b White Mosque Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 26 Dec. 2008.
- al-Muqaddasi quoted in Le Strange, 1890, p.305.
- ^ al-Muqaddasi quoted in Le Strange, 1890, p.304.
- ^ Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 17 November 1999. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
- ^ "Great Mosque of Ramla, White Mosque | IRCICA". www.islamicarchitecturalheritage.com. 8 September 2020. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
- ISBN 978-965-406-281-7. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
- ^ White Mosque in Ramle, UNESCO "Tentative Lists" for World Heritage sites, submitted 30/06/2000. Accessed August 2020.
Bibliography
- Le Strange, G. (1890). Palestine Under the Moslems: A Description of Syria and the Holy Land from A.D. 650 to 1500. London: Committee of the Palestine Exploration Fund.
- ISBN 0-521-39037-0.