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The minarets of the Umayyad Mosque… Architectural masterpieces flying in the sky of Damascus

2021-09-25T09:33:08.981Z


Damascus, SANA- Because Damascus is the jewel of the East and the mole of the world, all the civilizations that have passed through have been keen to build edifices or rebuild with


Damascus-SANA

Because it is Damascus, the jewel of the East and the mole of the world. All the civilizations that have passed through it were keen to build edifices or rebuild some of them to confirm that it ruled one of the oldest and oldest cities in the world. Among those buildings is the Great Umayyad Mosque with its three minarets that stand as historical evidence and architectural masterpieces flying in the Fayhaa sky. These minarets became a model. Unique around the world.

The minarets of the Great Umayyad Mosque were historically associated with all Islamic eras, starting from the Islamic conquest through the Umayyad state, which started from Damascus, the Levant, to the Abbasid era, including the Fatimid period, the Tulunid period, the Ikhshidid period, the Nuri period, and then the Ayyubid state to the state of the Mamluks and then what came after it according to the documentary advisor and professor of history Islamic architecture, Dr. Muhammad Moataz Al-Sibini, who explained that the minarets played a cultural, spiritual, and religious role during the stages of this mosque. The call to prayer was raised from the top through the choir of muezzins in order to reach all the population groups that surrounded the city of Damascus.

Regarding the minaret of the bride, which is located in the middle of the northern portico of the Great Umayyad Mosque, Al-Sibini stressed that it is considered one of the oldest minarets in the world, from which the rest of the minarets emerged. The unique architectural school, indicating that it dates back to the period of the Umayyad Caliph Al-Walid bin Abdul-Malik, as it is one of the three most famous minarets of the mosque and is one of the symbols of Damascus and the beacon of its muezzins.

The Minaret of the Bride is one of the most beautiful minarets ever, with its proportions of proportions and the architectural and wooden elements used in it. In addition, historians used to describe it mythically, so they mentioned that it was gilded from the bottom of its base to the top, according to Al-Sibini, who pointed out that, like all architectural structures and archaeological monuments, they were exposed to conflicts and disasters.

Al-Sibini indicated that it was called the minaret of the bride because it was sparkling with lights and lanterns at sunset to resemble the bride who glows and lights up on her wedding night, as its light and light extended on the northern side to the Al-Amarah neighborhood, indicating that the base of the minaret dates back to the Umayyad era and bears its pattern, but the identity of the minaret was obtained by entries and restorations during the period Abbasid and the Nuri Zangid state in the year 555 AH and at the beginning of the Ayyubid period in the year 570 AH, as well as the period of the Mamluk state.

On the southeast side of the mosque is the minaret of Jesus, peace be upon him, whose construction dates back to the period of the Umayyad Caliph Al-Walid bin Abdul Malik bin Marwan, who ruled from 86 to 96 AH. And another fire in the eighth century AH during the Mamluk period, which took it away from its true essence, indicating that it is also called the White Minaret or the Minaret of Al-Nawfra because it overlooks the locality of Al-Nufara.

Regarding the minaret of Qaitbay, which is located on the western side of the mosque, Al-Sibini pointed out that it is the first minaret built in the Mamluk era in Damascus and is considered one of the most important minarets that exist because it belongs to one architectural school, unlike the other minarets that collected multiple arts, explaining that their origin is Umayyad and kept swinging between earthquake and fire and conflicts to It was renewed during the reign of Sultan Al-Ashraf Qaitbay Al-Mahmoudi in the year 893 AH.

Al-Sibini described the minaret of Qaitbay, which was subjected to an earthquake that damaged it in 1173 AH, as a brilliant verse from an architectural point of view, as it contains muqarnas and ablaq stone, in addition to the introduction of artistic architectural characteristics indicating that the Levantine school was affected by the Egyptian school, pointing out that the minaret’s cap has witnessed a massive and important restoration in our time until She returned as if the minaret built by Sultan Qaitbay.

In turn, the architectural researcher Dr. Yasser Al-Sabbagh saw that the minaret of the bride has a supporting function for the northern wall of the mosque, and its mission is close to the task of the intercepting wing in the southern wall, pointing out that its number of degrees is 195 degrees and its height is 54 meters.

Regarding the construction of the two minarets, “Issa and Qaitbay,” Al-Sabbagh explained that they were built on the basis of a pre-existing tower, where the tiles of the minaret rooms were emptied to reach the foundation of the minaret on the ground, and therefore there is a carving of the rooms located on top of each other within the defensive tower of the temple, where the ceilings and floors were dug within it to accommodate the minaret foundation for that We note that the steps of the tower are different from the main stairs of the minaret rising from the bottom to the top, pointing out that the number of steps of the Minaret of Isa is 248 steps and its height is 68 meters.

Regarding the minaret of Qaitbay, Al-Sabbagh pointed out that the building materials in the past were traditional and were burned and destroyed, and in the Mamluk era it was built entirely of stone, noting that its height is 56 meters and the number of degrees is 237, and it remained as it is until the present time and was polished in 1995.

Tarek El-Sayed-Noor Youssef

Source: sena

All news articles on 2021-09-25

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