Publication Date
425 AH / 1033 AD
Type
Other
Language
Undetermined
Digital
Yes
Manuscript
No
Library
Museum With No Frontiers
Record ID
monument;ISL;dz;Mon01;19;ar
Library Location
Annaba, Algeria
Date
425 AH / 1033 AD
Notes
Sidi Bou Merouane Mosque is located on the high rise of the old city. The prayer hall was built on a rock, but the balcony that surrounded it on the eastern and northern sides covers two levels of vaults that are believed to predate the construction of the mosque. The courtyard of the mosque has undergone so many changes that it is currently impossible to know what state it was in in the first place. On the other hand, comparing the current shape of the minaret with the drawings found in ancient lithographs is sufficient to form an idea of the repairs it witnessed. Rachid Bourouiba, in his book “Algeria’s Contributions to Arab-Islamic Architecture” refers to a small prayer hall that can be entered through a minaret: “The only edifice, as far as we know, that includes a tower with a prayer hall is the Burj Khalaf in Sousse (…). Since Burj Khalaf is not a minaret, we can say that it is a mosque by Sidi Bou Marwan. It is the only mosque that includes a prayer hall in its minaret. The prayer hall (19.21 x 19.64 metres) was divided into nine naves and seven bays. There are old columns that are used as supports for decorative columns, while the column capitals represent pallets and cupolas. Small pillars support semicircular arches. The conversion of the prayer hall into a hospital hall led to changes, as two rows of columns were joined in supports with a square base, and the construction of an upper hall led to the destruction of two domes: the first was rising in the middle of the portico opposite the hall, and the second was above the front of the mihrab.
Sample Text
Ali Lafer “Sidi Bou Merouane Mosque” in Discover Islamic Art. Museum Without Borders, 2026. 2026. https://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=monument;ISL;dz;Mon01;19;ar
