Publication Date
3rd - 4th century AH / 9th - 10th century AD
Type
Other
Language
Undetermined
Digital
Yes
Manuscript
No
Library
Museum With No Frontiers
Record ID
monument;ISL;ma;Mon01;1;ar
Library Location
The landmark is located in the heart of the city, on the bank of Adwa Al-Qarawiyyin, Fez, Medina, Morocco
Date
3rd - 4th century AH / 9th - 10th century AD
Notes
The mosque was originally a simple mosque, with an area of one hundred meters, and consisting of four naves parallel to the qibla wall, a courtyard, a mihrab, and a minaret. The Almoravids expanded it in the AH 5th century / AD 11th century, and enriched it with elements inspired by the Andalusian decorative register popular at the time, such as plaster sculpture, domes decorated with muqarnas, carved marble capitals, and floral decorative elements. Engineering, writing, etc. The mihrab and the domes in front of it date back to that period, and the whole was decorated with Kufic inscriptions and floral arrangements reminiscent of Islamic art in Spain. During the Almohad period, AH 6th-7th century / AD 12th-13th century, the Al-Qarawiyyin Mosque once again witnessed the addition of new decorative elements and utilitarian elements, such as toilets in the north of the building, and an underground storeroom on the northeastern side, used to store oil, mats, and other special materials. In the mosque. In order to support the mosque’s water structures, a basin was built and water was brought to it from one of the city’s springs (Ain Fermal). As for lighting, the large chandelier of the polygonal dome was used in the axial passage, in addition to the bells imported from Andalusia, which were transformed into chandeliers distributed along the central nave. The mosque reached its peak during the Marinid period (7th - 9th century AH / 13th - 15th century AD), with its 270 supports, which formed 16 naves, each containing 21 arches. With fifteen large doors designated for men, two small doors for women, and a large chandelier weighing 1,763 pounds and composed of 509 lamps, the building could now accommodate 22,700 people in the corridors. Unlike the majority of mosques in the Islamic West, the tiles of the Al-Qarawiyyin Mosque are not perpendicular to the qibla wall, but parallel to it, which suggests that its origin reflects an Eastern influence (this influence is likely due to Umayyad Mosque in Damascus). The minaret, which dates back to the era of the first mosque, was built of carved stone, and the stone was later painted with carefully polished gypsum and lime mortar. The Saadians (who ruled from the 10th to the 12th centuries AH/16th to 17th centuries AD) are credited with building the two magnificent wings of the courtyard, which are inspired by the Alhambra palace in Granada, in terms of organization, decoration, and architectural elements. During the era of the Alawite state, the chandeliers, walls and jambs were restored. The Al-Qarawiyyin Mosque was also a real university, which played an essential role in spreading knowledge and qualifying the intellectual elite. The Marinid state provided the mosque with two libraries and organized the institution and educational programs with 140 teaching chairs distributed within the facility or in schools.
Sample Text
Mohamed Mezzine “Al-Qarawiyyin Mosque” in Discover Islamic Art. Museum Without Borders, 2026. 2026. https://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=monument;ISL;ma;Mon01;1;ar
