The Dome of the Rock isn't a house of worship, however a Muslim shrine. just like the Ka'ba in Mecca, it's engineered over a sacred stone. This stone is believed to be the place from that the Prophet Muhammad ascended into heaven throughout his Night Journey to heaven.
The Dome of the Rock is that the oldest Moslem monument that stands nowadays and positively one amongst the foremost lovely. It conjointly boasts the oldest extant mihrab (niche indicating the direction of Mecca) within the world.
The extraordinary visual impact of the Dome of the Rock is partially thanks to the mathematical rhythm of its proportions. All the essential dimensions square measure associated with the middle circle that surrounds the sacred stone. as an example, every outer wall is sixty seven feet long, that specifically|is strictly|is precisely} the dome's diameter and exactly its height from the bottom of the drum.
The same principles were utilized in Byzantine churches of European nation, Syria, and Palestine, however none compare to the combination of set up and elevation seen within the Dome of the Rock.
The great golden dome that crowns the Dome of the Rock was originally made from gold, however was replaced with copper then atomic number 13. The atomic number 13 is currently lined with gold foil, a donation from the late King Hussein of Jordan. [6]
The dome is flat-topped by a full phase of the moon decoration that evokes the acquainted crescent moon image of Islam. it's aligned in order that if you may scrutinize it, you'd be trying straight towards Mecca.
The beautiful motley Turkish tiles that adorn the shrine's exterior square measure devoted copies of the Persian tiles that Suleiman the splendid supplemental in 1545 to switch the broken originals. The lower 1/2 the outside is white marble.
The Arabic inscription round the octangular a part of the Dome of the Rock square measure verses from the Qur'an. The inscription dates from the renovation below Suleiman. The covered space just under the golden dome is that the drum. Its glazed tiles were created in Turkey, and its Arabic inscription tells of the Night Journey of Muhammad as represented within the Qur'an (surah 17).
Inside the shrine, associate degree arched wall referred to as the polygonal {shape} arcade or inner polygonal shape follows the outside shape. associate degree open house between this and therefore the central circle forms the inner mobile round the Rock, carpeted in lush red. the world between the inner polygonal shape and outer octogan (exterior wall) forms a smaller, outer mobile, carpeted in inexperienced. the 2 ambulatories recall the ritual circular movement of pilgrims round the Ka'ba in Mecca.
The cupola, the inside of the good golden dome, options elaborate floral decorations in red and gold, furthermore as numerous inscriptions. the most inscription within the cupola commemorates grand Turk, United Nations agency sponsored extenstive restoration work on the building.
The mosaics of the inside feature each realistic and conventionalised illustrations of vegetation and connected themes (Muslim law forbids the representation of living beings in art). The mosaics evoke associate degree exotic garden, maybe the gardens of Paradise. wealthy jewellery is additionally pictured in abundance, together with breastplates, necklaces, and a Persian crown with options gathered at the bottom. The kaliph Omar had conquered Persia in 637, and therefore the mosaics symbolize the Persian crowns he sent to hold in Mecca.
The foundation inscription may be a monumental 240-meter long line of Kufic script running on the highest of each side of the octangular arcade within the Dome of the Rock. On the outer facet of the arcade, the inscription quotes Quranic verses glorifying God.
On the jap facet, associate degree inscription offers credit for the building's construction to the Abbasid kaliph al-Mamun within the year seventy two AH (691 AD). However, al-Mamun reigned from 813-33 AD, therefore the inscription clearly represents associate degree Abbasid effort to say credit for the accomplishment of the previous family line.
Much of the inscription on the inner facet of the octangular arcade exhorts Christians to depart from error of the Trinity and acknowledge the reality of Islam:
The columns supporting the inner polygonal shape and therefore the center circle square measure of various sizes; they were recycled from previous structures. The crosses on some show them to own been taken from churches. The sculpted ceilings on either facet of the inner polygonal shape weren't a part of 1st|the initial} design; they first appeared within the ordinal century and are fixed up since then. The Mamluk star is that the dominant motif.
The small, flat mihrab (niche showing the direction of Mecca) belongs to the initial building, and is that the oldest mihrab preserved within the Moslem world. The picket screen round the sacred rock was given by the Ayyubid swayer al-Aziz in 1198. The Crusaders protected the rock from relic-snatching pilgrims by erection a wrought-iron screen between the columns of the circle; it remained in situ till 1960 and is currently on show within the Moslem repository.
The sacred rock that's the central focus of the shrine may be a giant, ancient rock which will have once stood within the center of Solomon's Temple. For Jews, it's the rock on that Ibrahim ready to sacrifice patriarch. For Muslims, it's the rock from that Muhammad's winged horse leapt into the sky, in the course of the Archangel archangel, on the "Night Journey" into heaven (Qur'an 17). The rock is claimed up-to-date the horse's imprint. Muslim tradition holds that associate degree angel can come back to the rock to sound the trumpet decision of the day of reckoning|day} at the tip of the world.
The container next to the rock dates from the Ottoman amount and contains a hair of Muhammad's beard.
The cavity to a lower place the rock, accessible by a steps close to the south entrance, is understood as Bir el-Arwah, the "Well of Souls." it's same that here the voices of the dead mingle with the falling waters of the lower rivers of paradise as they drop into eternity.
Another legend says that the dead meet here doubly a month to hope. In earlier days, those that prayed here when having walked round the rock got a certificate entitling them admission to paradise; it absolutely was to be buried with them.
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