Everything you need to know about Islamic mosque and its elements.

1. ISLAMIC MOSQUE
SUBMITTED BY
VAIBHAV MUDGAL
B.Arch 3rd Year
Ideal School of Architecture

2. Introduction
• A Mosque/Masjid is a place of worship for the followers of islam.
• Most of the mosques have a particular architectural features which in todays time
has become a identity which are elaborated Domes, Minarets & Prayer halls.
• The mosque played a major role in the spread of education in Muslim world and
this has been its main characteristics throughout the history.
• Since the earliest days mosque has been a centre of muslim community, a place
of prayer only.
• In a mosque there are strict restriction on the uses of the area formally
demarcated as mosque.

3. • Mecca is considered to be the first mosque ever built.
• It is situated in Hejaz, Saudi Arabia.
• The Mosque is built around the house of Prophet
Muhammad

4. The Architectural Features of a Mosque
• The architecture of a mosque is shaped most strongly by the regional traditions
of the time and place where it was built. As a result, style, layout, and decoration
can vary greatly.
• Nevertheless, because of the common function of the mosque as a place of
congregational prayer, certain architectural features appear in mosques all over
the world which are mentioned down below:
• Prayer Hall
• Sahn
• Mihareb
• Minaret
• Qubba

5. Prayer Hall
• The large central area for prayer is called a musalla. No furniture is needed, as
worshippers sit, kneel, and bow directly on the floor,a few chairs or benches to
assist elderly or disabled worshippers.

6. Sahn (courtyard)
• The most fundamental necessity of congregational mosque architecture is that it
be able to hold the entire male population of a city or town. In many mosques
prayer hall is adjoined to an open courtyard, called a sahn. Within the courtyard
one often finds a fountain, its waters both a welcome respite in hot lands, and
important for the ablutions (ritual cleansing) done before prayer.
Fountain
Open Courtyard

7. Mihrab (niche)
• Another essential element of a mosque is a mihrab—a niche in the wall that
indicates the direction of Mecca, towards which all Muslims pray.
• The direction of Mecca is called the qibla,and so the wall
in which the mihrab is set is called the qibla wall.
• No matter where a mosque is, its mihrab indicates
the direction of Mecca (or as near that direction
as science and geography were able to place it).
Therefore, a mihrab in India will be to the west.

8. Minaret (tower)
• One of the most visible aspects of mosque architecture is the minaret, a tower
adjacent or attached to a mosque, from which the call to prayer is announced.
The Mosque of Jama Masjid
in Delhi having Minarets.

9. • Minarets take many different forms—from the famous spiral minaret of Samarra,
to the tall, pencil minarets of Ottoman Turkey. Not solely functional in nature, the
minaret serves as a powerful visual reminder of the presence of Islam.
The Sultan Ahmed
Mosque or Blue
Mosque in Turkey.

10. Qubba (dome)
• Most mosques also feature one or more domes, called qubba in Arabic.
• While not a ritual requirement like the mihrab, a dome does possess significance
within the mosque—as a symbolic representation of the vault of heaven.
• Some mosque types incorporate multiple domes.
The Sultan Ahmed
Mosque showing multiple
domes.

11. • The interior decoration of a dome often emphasizes this symbolism,
using intricate geometric, stellate, or vegetal motifs to create
breathtaking patterns meant to awe and inspire.

12. Some Famous Mosque Around the world
Al-Masjid an-Nabawi – Medina, Saudi Arabia

13. Sultan Ahmed Mosque or Blue Mosque-Turkey

14. Biblography
• https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/art-islam/beginners-
guide-islamic/a/introduction-to-mosque-architecture
• Picture-en.wikipedia.org
• defence.pk
• Transworldexpedition
• http://www.metmuseum.org/learn/for-educators/publications-for-
educators/art-of-the-islamic-world/unit-one/the-mosque
• http://religions.iloveindia.com/mosques/

15. THANK YOU