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C O L L E C T E D PA P E R S I N I S L A M I C A R T
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S E R I E S E D I TO R : R O B E R T H I L L E N B R A N D
THE PRODUCTION OF
MEANING IN
ISLAMIC ARCHITECTURE
AND ORNAMENT
Collected Papers in Islamic Art
Series Editor: Professor Robert Hillenbrand
Series titles include:
Studies in Islamic Painting, Epigraphy and Decorative Arts

Bernard O’Kane
Studies in Persian Architecture
Bernard O’Kane
Studies in Arab Architecture
Bernard O’Kane
The Production of Meaning in Islamic Architecture and Ornament
Yasser Tabbaa
edinburghuniversitypress.com/series/cpia
THE PRODUCTION
OF MEANING
IN ISLAMIC
ARCHITECTURE
AND ORNAMENT
Yasser Tabbaa
Edinburgh University Press is one of the leading university presses
in the UK. We publish academic books and journals in our selected
subject areas across the humanities and social sciences, combining
cutting-edge scholarship with high editorial and production values to
produce academic works of lasting importance. For more information
visit our website: edinburghuniversitypress.com
© Yasser Tabbaa, 2021
Cover image: Yasser Tabbaa Archive, courtesy of Aga Khan

Documentation Center, MIT Libraries (AKDC@MIT)
Cover design: www.hayesdesign.co.uk
Edinburgh University Press Ltd

The Tun – Holyrood Road
12 (2f) Jackson’s Entry
Edinburgh EH8 8PJ
Typeset in Trump Medieval by

Servis Filmsetting Ltd, Stockport, Cheshire,
and printed and bound in Malta by Melita Press
A CIP record for this book is available from the British Library
ISBN 978 1 4744 8218 9 (hardback)

ISBN 978 1 4744 8220 2 (webready PDF)
ISBN 978 1 4744 8221 9 (epub)
The right of Yasser Tabbaa to be identified as author of this work has

been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents
Act 1988 and the Copyright and Related Rights Regulations 2003
(SI No. 2498).
Published with the support of the University of Edinburgh Scholarly

Publishing Initiatives Fund.
Contents
List of Figuresvii
Preface xxii
PART I SYRIA
CHAPTER 1 Monuments with a Message: Propagation of

Jihåd under NËr al-DÈn (1146–1174) 3
CHAPTER 2 Survivals and Archaisms in the Architecture of
Northern Syria, c. 1080–1150 26
CHAPTER 3 Circles of Power: Palace, Citadel and City in
Ayyubid Aleppo 46
CHAPTER 4 Îayfa KhåtËn, Regent Queen and Architectural
Patron75
CHAPTER 5 Defending Ayyubid Aleppo: The Fortifications of
Al-Ûåhir GhåzÈ (1186–1216) 94
CHAPTER 6 Originality and Innovation in Syrian Woodwork
of the Twelfth and Thirteenth Centuries 105
PART II IRAQ
CHAPTER 7 The Mosque of NËr al-DÈn in Mosul, 1170–1172 129

CHAPTER 8 The Resurgence of the Baghdad Caliphate 158
CHAPTER 9 The Politics of Patronage in Medieval Mosul:
NËr al-DÈn, Badr al-DÈn and the Question of the
SunnÈ Revival 179
PART III DOMES
CHAPTER 10 The Muqarnas Dome: Its Origin and Meaning 201

CHAPTER 11 The Muqarnas Domes and Vaults of Cairo 224
CHAPTER 12 Andalusian Roots and ʿAbbasid Homage in the
Qubbat al-Barudiyyin in Marrakech 235
vi THE PRODUCTION OF MEANING IN ISLAMIC ARCHITECTURE
PART IV WRITING
CHAPTER 13 The Transformation of Arabic Writing: Part 1,

Qurʾånic Calligraphy 259
CHAPTER 14 The Transformation of Arabic Writing: Part 2,
the Public Text 310
CHAPTER 15 Canonicity and Control: The Sociopolitical
Underpinnings of Ibn Muqla’s Reform 354
PART V GARDENS
CHAPTER 16 The Medieval Islamic Garden: Typology and

Hydraulics369
CHAPTER 17 Control and Abandon: Images of Water in
Arabic Gardens and Garden Poetry 404
CHAPTER 18 Eternal Hunting Fields: The Frescos at Qusayr
ʿAmra as a Pastoralist Interpretation of the
Paradise Garden 424
PART VI SHRINES
CHAPTER 19 Invented Pieties: The Rediscovery and

Rebuilding of the Shrine of Sayyida Ruqayya in
Damascus, 1975–2006 439
CHAPTER 20 Glorifying the Imamate: Architecture and
Ritual in the Shiʿi Shrines of Syria 462
CHAPTER 21 The Functional Aspects of Medieval Islamic
Hospitals477
Index500
Figures
1.1 Aleppo. Qastal al-Shuʾaybiyya, 545/1150, façade 8

1.2 Aleppo. Qastal al-Shuʾaybiyya, 545/1150, detail of
entablature9
1.3 Hama. Mosque of NËr al-DÈn. Façade inscription,
558/1163, detail 11
1.4 Hama. Mosque of NËr al-DÈn, Minbar. Inscription on
back of chair, 559/1164 14
1.5 Mosul. Great Mosque of NËr al-DÈn, 1170–2.
Inscriptions on columns 17
1.6 Aleppo. Madrasa al-Hallåwiyya. Western apse 18
1.7 Aleppo. Qastal al-Shuʾaybiyya. Plan and elevation
(Herzfeld)18
1.8 Hama. Mosque of NËr al-DÈn. Fragment of Qurʾånic
frieze19
1.9 Hama. Mosque of NËr al-DÈn. Minbar, 559/1164 20
1.10 Jerusalem. Aqsa Mosque. Minbar of NËr al-DÈn,
564/11621
1.11 Jerusalem. Aqsa Mosque. Minbar of NËr al-DÈn, detail 21
1.12 Damascus. Minaret on Båb Sharqi 22
2.1 Split. Palace of Diocletian. Reconstruction of Porta
Aurea, c. ad 30028
2.2 Cordoba. Great Mosque. Gate on the eastern façade,
98729
2.3 Samarra. Jawsaq al-Khaqani. Bab al-ʿAmma, c. 836–7 29
2.4 Aleppo. Great Mosque. Domed fountain in courtyard,
96530
2.5 Aleppo. Great Mosque. Minaret. 109031
2.6 Aleppo. Great Mosque. Minaret. Detail of lower
shaft32
2.7 Syria. Church at Qalb Lozeh, mid-sixth century.
Façade and western flank 33
2.8 Cairo. Bab al-Nasr, 1087–8. Detail of tower 33
2.9 Aleppo. Minaret of the Great Mosque, 1090, from
south34
2.10 Cairo. Bab Zuwayla, 1092 35
viii THE PRODUCTION OF MEANING IN ISLAMIC ARCHITECTURE
2.11 Aleppo. Minaret of the Great Mosque, 1090, detail 36

2.12 Turkey, Dunaysir (Kiziltepe). Great Mosque, 1204.
Detail of arched opening in façade 37
2.13 Turkey, Hisn Keyfa (Hasankeif). Mosque of Süleyman
Pasha. Minaret, 1406 37
2.14 Turkey, Mardin. Traditional residence, late
nineteenth(?) century. Upper storey windows 38
2.15 Aleppo. Qastal al-Shuʿaybiyya. 1150–1 39
2.16 Aleppo. Qastal al-Shuaʿybiyya. Profile of the
entablature40
2.17 Turkey, Harran. Great Mosque. Fragment of
entablature, 1174. Urfa Museum 42
3.1 Aleppo, Citadel entrance, from Madrasa al-Sultaniyya 49
3.2 Aleppo, Citadel. Portal of Ayyubid Palace, c. 1200 52
3.3 Aleppo, Citadel, Ayyubid Palace, main courtyard, early
thirteenth century 53
3.4 Aleppo, Matbakh al-ʿAjami, iwån, early thirteenth
century57
3.5 Aleppo, Citadel. Distant view from south-west 59
3.6 Aleppo, Citadel. Mosque, 1214, from south 60
3.7 Aleppo, Citadel. Maqam Ibrahim, 1168, from north 60
3.8 Aleppo, Madrasa al-Sultaniyya, completed 1221. Plan 61
3.9 Aleppo, Madrasa al-Sultaniyya. Mausoleum of al-Zahir
Ghazi with entrance block in background 61
3.10 Aleppo, Citadel and Southern Quarter 62
3.11 Aleppo, Citadel. Opening to tunnel between palace and
dår al-ʿadl63
3.12 Aleppo, Bab al-Maqam. Ayyubid with late Mamluk
repairs63
3.13 Aleppo, Citadel. Entrance block, thirteenth–fifteenth
centuries64
3.14 Aleppo, Citadel. Gate of Serpents, c. 1195 and later 64
3.15 Aleppo, Citadel. The Ayyubid palace, c. 1190–1230.
Portal65
3.16 Qalʿat Sahyun. Ayyubid palace, c. 1200–30 65
3.17 Aleppo, Citadel. The Ayyubid palace, 1190–1230. Plan 66
3.18 Hiraqlah (Raqqa), ‘Victory Monument’ of Harun
al-Rashid (786–809). Plan 67
3.19 Samarra, Balkuwara Palace, 854–9. Plan of central unit 67
3.20 Raqqa, Qasr al-Banat, c. 1168. Plan 68
3.21 Aleppo, Matbakh al-ʿAjami, first half of thirteenth
century. Plan and section, present condition 68
3.22 Aleppo, Citadel. Ayyubid palace, central courtyard 69
4.1 Aleppo, Madrasa al-Firdaws, 1235–6, aerial view from
east81
4.2 Aleppo, reconstructed plan of central and southern
city82
figures ix
4.3 Aleppo, Khånqåh al-Faråfra: foundation inscription 83
4.4 Aleppo, Madrasa al-Firdaws: exterior inscription: titles
of Îayfa KhåtËn83
4.5 Aleppo, Khånqåh al-Faråfra: plan 84
4.6 Aleppo, Madrasa al-Firdaws, 1235, courtyard, from north 85
4.7 Aleppo, Madrasa al-Firdaws: plan with applied grid 86
4.8 Aleppo, Madrasa al-Firdaws: exterior iwån87
4.9 Aleppo, Madrasa al-Firdaws, 1235, inscription in
courtyard87
4.10 Aleppo, Madrasa al-Firdaws, 1235, mi˙råb88
4.11 Aleppo, Madrasa al-Firdaws, courtyard inscription 88
4.12 Aleppo, Khanqah al-Farafra, 1237, courtyard from above 89
5.1 Citadel of Aleppo: ramp and entry block, early
5.2 Qalʾat Najm, early thirteenth century, view from the
Euphrates99
5.3 Map: al-Zahir GhåzÈ’s Domain 100
5.4 Map: al-Zahir GhåzÈ’s Domain, maximum extent 101
5.5 Qalʾat al-Mu∂Èq (near Afamiya/Apamaea) 101
5.6 Citadel of Aleppo: model 101
5.7 Citadel of Aleppo: entrance block and glacis 101
5.8 Citadel of Aleppo: machicolation 101
5.9 Qalʾat Najm 101
5.10 Citadel of Aleppo: plan of entrance block; Qalʾat Najm:
plan of entrance block 102
5.11 Citadel of Aleppo: plan of Ayyubid palace 102
5.12 Qalʾat Najm: plan of Ayyubid palace 102
5.13 Qalʾat Ía˙yËn: portal of Ayyubid palace 102
5.14 Qalʾat Najm: fragment from large Ayyubid inscription 103
5.15 Qalʾat Najm: mosque 103
6.1 Fatimid banister, twelfth century. Damascus Museum 108
6.2 Damascus: cenotaph of Sayyida Få†ima, eleventh
century, in floriated KËfic108
6.3 Wooden mi˙råb from shrine of Sayyida NafÈsa,
540/1145109
6.4 Portal of BÈmåristån al-NËrÈ, Damascus, 549/1154 110
6.5 Drawing for a door in Cizre 110
6.6 Aleppo, mi˙råb previously at Maqåm IbråhÈm,
563/1167111
6.7 Analysis of geometric pattern on windows previously
at Maqåm IbråhÈm, c. 1200 112
6.8 Minbar at NËrÈ Mosque in Hama, dated 563/1168.
Detail and analysis of pattern on the backrest 112
6.9 Minbar of NËr al-DÈn (1168–76). Side panel with
signature of one of the artisans 112
6.10 Minbar of NËr al-DÈn. Detail and analysis of pattern
on side panel 113
x THE PRODUCTION OF MEANING IN ISLAMIC ARCHITECTURE
6.11 Minbar of NËr al-DÈn. Detail and analysis of inside of

door113
6.12 Casket of Imåm al-Óusayn, Cairo, 1170–80 114
6.13 Casket of Imåm al-ShåfiʿÈ, Cairo, 574/1178 114
6.14 Minbar at Jåmiʿ al-Óanåbila in Íåli˙iyya, Damascus.
Foundation inscription 114
6.15 Minbar at Jåmiʿ al-Óanåbila in Damascus. Side panel
and analysis of pattern 115
6.16 Aleppo. Madrasa al-Hallåwiyya, mi˙råb116
6.17 Mi˙råb in the Madrasa al-Óallåwiyya. Detail and
analysis of geometric pattern at side panel 117
6.18 Mi˙råb in the Madrasa al-Óallåwiyya. Detail and
analysis of geometric pattern in the hood 117
6.19 Detail of mi˙råb in Madrasa al-Hallawiyya, 634/1237 117
6.20 Casket of Fakhr al-KhawåtÈn, wife of Sultan Qillij
Arslån IV (r. 1249–67) 118
6.21 Casket for Fakhr al-KhawåtÈn. Analysis of geometric
pattern118
6.22 Syrian woodworkers in the twelfth–thirteenth
centuries (table) 119
7.1 Mosul, Mosque Al-NËrÈ, minaret 134
7.2 Mosul, Mosque Al-NËrÈ, mi˙råb, dated 543/1148 139
7.3 Mosul, Mosque Al-NËrÈ, 1172, inscribed capital 142
7.4 Mosul, Mosque Al-NËrÈ: dome and portico from
courtyard, present condition 144
7.5 Mosul, Mosque Al-NËrÈ: prayer hall interior from
north-east, present condition 144
7.6 Mosul, Mosque Al-NËrÈ: exterior from north-west,
condition c. 1930 145
7.7 Mosul, Mosque Al-NËrÈ: exterior from south-east,
7.8 Mosul, Mosque Al-NËrÈ: prayer hall interior from east,
7.9 Mosul, Mosque Al-NËrÈ: type 2 column placed against
type 1 column, condition c. 1930 146
7.10 Mosul, Mosque Al-NËrÈ: mi˙råb, dated Jumada I,
543/September–October 1148, condition c. 1930 146
7.11 Mosul, Mosque Al-NËrÈ: mi˙råb, after restoration 147
7.12 Mosul: capital from Mår JurjÈs; capital from Mår
A˙udemmeh147
7.13 Mosul, Mosque Al-NËrÈ: plan in c. 1915 148
7.14 Mosul, Mosque Al-NËrÈ: reconstruction of plan of first
mosque148
7.15 Mosul, Mosque Al-NËrÈ: maqßËra dome from below 149
7.16 Mår Behnåm near Mosul: ribbed vault over the Chapel
of the Virgin 149
figures xi
7.17 Mosul, Mosque Al-NËrÈ: reconstruction of plan of first
mosque150
7.18 Mosul, Mosque Al-NËrÈ: a. Capital inscribed with
part of Qurʾån 2:255. b. Capital inscribed with part of
Qurʾån 9:18 150
7.19 Mosul, Mosque Al-NËrÈ: a. Capital inscribed with
part of Qurʾån 24:36. b. Capital inscribed with part of
Qurʾån 24:37 151
7.20 Iraqi Museum, Baghdad: two inscription bands with
Qurʾån 2: 148–9, previously at the Mosque Al-NËrÈ in
Mosul151
7.21 Mosul, Mosque Al-NËrÈ: large stucco panel above
the mi˙råb, condition c. 1930, currently at the Iraqi
Museum, Baghdad 152
7.22 Mosul, Mosque Al-NËrÈ: minaret, 1170–2 152
7.23 Mosul, Mosque Al-NËrÈ: uppermost portion of
minaret152
8.1 Baghdad. Dhafariya (Wastani) Gate, 1221, from north 162
8.2 Baghdad. conical dome of ʿUmar al-Suhrawardi, early
8.3 Baghdad. Madrasa al-Mustansiriyya, completed
631/1233, courtyard from east 166
8.4 Baghdad. Madrasa Mustansiriyya, 631/1233, courtyard
from east 168
8.5 Baghdad. ʿAbbasid Palace c. 1200, muqarnas
vaulted portico 171
9.1 Sanctuary façade, as rebuilt in 1945, at the Mosque
al-Nuri. 1172 and later, Mosul, Iraq 182
9.2 Interior, as rebuilt in 1945, in the Mosque al-Nuri.
568/1172 and later, Mosul, Iraq 182
9.3 Exterior from the south-east of the Mosque al-Nuri.
568/1172 and later, Mosul, Iraq; exterior from the
north-west of the Mosque al-Nuri. 1172 and later,
Mosul, Iraq 183
9.4 Reconstructed plan of the sanctuary of the Mosque
al-Nuri. 568/1172 and later, Mosul, Iraq 184
9.5 Interior, c. 1920, of the Mosque al-Nuri. 1172 and later,
Mosul, Iraq 185
9.6 Inscribed marble panel from the Mosque al-Nuri.
Undated, Mosul, now in the Iraqi Museum 186
9.7 Stucco panel from the Mosque al-Nuri. Mid-thirteenth
century, Mosul, now in the Iraqi Museum 186
9.8 Minaret of the Mosque al-Nuri. 568/1172, Mosul, Iraq 187
9.9 View of Mosul from citadel (north), with shrine of
Imam Yahya b. al-Qasim to left 187
9.10 Mosul. Shrine of Imam Yahya b. al-Qasim – Mosul,
1239188
xii THE PRODUCTION OF MEANING IN ISLAMIC ARCHITECTURE

1239, dome 189
9.12 Mosul. Exterior from the north-west of Mashhad
Yahya b. al-Qasim. 637/1239 190
9.13 Mosul. Exterior with inscription frieze of Mashhad
9.14 Mosul. Interior, marble ornament and inscriptions of
Mashhad Yahya b. al-Qasim. 637/1239 190
1239, interior inscription 191
9.16 Mosul. Interior and corner mi˙råb of the Mashhad
9.17 Mosul. Muqarnas vault of Mashhad Yahya b. al-Qasim.
637/1239192
9.18 Mosul. Exterior of Mashhad Imam ʿAwn al-DÈn.
646/1248193
9.19 Mosul. Portal of Mashhad Imam ʿAwn al-DÈn.
646/1248193
9.20 Mosul. Portal detail of Mashhad Imam ʿAwn al-DÈn.
646/1248193
9.21 Mosul. Muqarnas vault of Mashhad Imam ʿAwn
al-DÈn. 646/1248 193
10.1 Al-Dawr. Shrine of Imam al-Dawr (1075–90).
Exterior203
10.2 Al-Dawr. Shrine of Imam al-Dawr. Detail of squinch 203
10.3 Al-Dawr. Shrine of Imam al-Dawr. Interior of dome 204
10.4 ‘Flood of Baghdad’, from a dispersed Turcoman
manuscript (1468) 204
10.5 View of Baghdad. Matrakçi, Beyan-i Menåzil-i Sefer-i
ʿIråkeyn (1537)205
10.6 Fez. Mosque of al-Qarawiyyin. Muqarnas vault,
1132–42206
10.7 Damascus. Bimåristån al-Nuri (1154). Dome over the
vestibule207
10.8 Damascus. Bimåristån al-Nuri. Vault over niche 207
10.9 Muqarnas domes in Iraq and Syria 208
10.10 Damascus. Madrasa al-Nuriyya al-Kubra (1172).
Mausoleum of NËr al-DÈn. Exterior 209
10.11 Damascus. Madrasa al-Nuriyya al-Kubra. Dome over
mausoleum. Interior 212
10.12 Damascus. Madrasa al-Nuriyya al-Kubra. Dome over
mausoleum. Detail of corner 213
10.13 Baghdad. Shrine of Zumurrud Khatun (1180–1220).
Exterior214
10.14 Baghdad. Shrine of Zumurrud Khatun. Springing of
dome215
10.15 Baghdad. Shrine of Zumurrud Khatun. Interior 215
figures xiii
10.16 Shatt al-Nil. Shrine at al-Najmi. Exterior 216
10.17 Shatt al-Nil. Shrine at al-Najmi. Detail of muqarnas216
10.18 Mosul. Shrine of Imam ʿAwn al-DÈn (1245). Exterior 217
10.19 Mosul. Shrine of Imam ʿAwn al-DÈn. Interior of dome 218
10.20 Mosul. Shrine of Imam ʿAwn al-DÈn. Upper zone of
dome218
11.1 The dome in the shrine of al-Faraj ibn Barquq, Cairo
(1405)225
11.2 Isfahan, Great Mosque, North Dome, 1086, transition
zone226
11.3 Cairo, Shrine of Sitt Ruqayya, 1135, transition zone 227
11.4 Samarra. Shrine of Imam Dur (1088), interior 228
11.5 Marrakesh. Qubbat al Barudiyyin (1117), dome
interior229
11.6 Fez. Great Mosque of al-Qarwiyyin. Almoravid
rebuilding of the axial nave (1134–43): muqarnas
vault230
11.7 Aleppo. Madrasa al Zahiriyya (c. 1200), portal vault 230
11.8 Damascus, Bimåristån al-Nuri (1154), vault over
vestibule231
11.9 Cairo. Shrine of Imam Shafi (1210) 231
11.10 Cairo. Madrasa of Sultan Hassan (1356), portal vault 232
11.11 Cairo. Mosque of al-Muʿayyad (1420) 232
11.12 Madrasa of Sultan Hassan (1356), vault on vestibule 233
12.1 Qubbat al-Barudiyyin in Marrakech, 1117, exterior
view (photo Tabbaa) 236
12.2 Map of Marrakech under the Almoravids 238
12.3 Plan of the Qubba, showing location of the cistern and
the mosque of ʿAli b. Yusuf 239
12.4 Marrakesh. Qubbat al-Barudiyyin, 1117, exterior view
from south 241
12.5 Qubbat al-Barudiyyin, plan 242
12.6 Qubbat al-Barudiyyin, interior view of the dome 242
12.7 Geometric proportions in the plan of Qubbat
al-Barudiyyin243
12.8 Qubbat al-Barudiyyin, section 245
12.9 Qubbat al-Barudiyyin, detail of an interior corner 246
12.10 Mausoleum of Imam Dur, near Samarra, c. 1090,
interior view 246
12.11 Marrakesh. Qubbat al-Barudiyyin, 1117, detail of
transition zone 247
12.12 Qubbat al-Barudiyyin, view of interior ornament 247
12.13 Qubbat al-Barudiyyin, detail of inscription 248
12.14 Qubbat al-Barudiyyin, detail of upper exterior 249
13.1 Papyrus fragment, Egypt, third/ninth century 263
13.2 Qurʾån page in KËfic script, ninth century. Ink on
vellum264
xiv THE PRODUCTION OF MEANING IN ISLAMIC ARCHITECTURE
13.3 Page of Qurʾån, Iraq/Iran, third/ninth century 264

13.4 Reconstruction of the method of Ibn Muqla: letters
alif, låm, sÈn, dål, ßåd 265
13.5 Tentative reconstruction of Arabic letter forms
according to Ibn Muqla 268
13.6 Qurʾån fragment on paper, Iran, twelfth century 268
13.7 Juzʾ of Qurʾån on vellum, Iran, Shaʿbån 292/June 905,
signed A˙mad ibn Abiʾl-Qåsim al-KhåyqånÈ269
13.8 Large fragment (first quarter) of Qurʾån, Iran, other
parts of same ms. dated 361/972 271
13.9 Verse count. Dublin, The Chester Beatty Library, 1434,
ff. 1b and 2a 272
13.10 Semi-KËfic Qurʾån on paper, Iran, 388/998 273
13.11 Colophon, dated 388/998, signed Mu˙ammad ibn
ʿAlÈ ibn al-Óusayn al-Íaffår274
13.12 Semi-KËfic Qurʾån fragment on vellum, late tenth
century, Iraq or Iran 274
13.13 Verse count. London, British Library, 11,735, f. 4b 275
13.14 Semi-KËfic Qurʾån on vellum, Iraq or Iran, late tenth
century275
13.15 Verse count. Istanbul, Topkapı Saray Library, R-38,
f. 317b 276
13.16 Semi-KËfic Qurʾån on paper, Iraq/Iran, 394/1004–5 276
13.17 Colophon, dated 394/1004–5, signed Abu Bakr ʿAbd
al-Malik ibn Zarʿah ibn Mu˙ammad al-RËzbåri277
13.18 Fragment from a semi-KËfic Qurʾån on paper, Iran or
Afghanistan, mid-eleventh century 278
13.19 Fragment of a semi-KËfic Qurʾån on paper, Iraq or Iran,
eleventh century 278
13.20 Qurʾån of Ibn al-Bawwåb, Baghdad, 391/1000–1, signed
ʿAlÈ ibn Hilål Ibn al-Bawwåb279
13.21 Qurʾån of Ibn al-Bawwåb280
13.24 Small cursive Qurʾån on paper, Baghdad?, dated
402/1011, signed Saʿd ibn Mu˙ammad ibn Saʿd
al-KarkhÈ282
13.25 Qurʾån in large gold naskh on paper, possibly Iran;
possibly made for a Íulay˙id prince in Yemen, dated
419/1026, signed Al-Óasan ibn ʿAbdallah284
13.26 Heading of sËra 21 (Al-Anbiyåʾ) in thuluth, 419/1026284
13.27 Maghribi KËfic Qurʾån on vellum, North Africa,
eleventh century, sËras 99–104 285
13.28 Qurʾån in small naskh script on brownish paper, Iraq
or Iran, dated Jumada I 427/March 1036, calligrapher:
Abuʾl-Qåsim SaʿÈd . . . ibn TilmÈdh al-JawharÈ,
illuminator: Abu ManßËr ibn Nåfiʿ ibn ʿAbdallah286
figures xv
or Iran, dated 21 Rajab 428/10 May 1037 287
or Iran, 1037 287
13.31 Qurʾån in small naskh script on thick buff paper,
Baghdad?, early eleventh century, colophon falsely
signed in the name of Ibn al-Bawwåb288
13.32 Qurʾån in small naskh, Baghdad?, early eleventh
century289
13.33 Fifth volume of Qurʾån in tawqÈʿ, pen on paper,
Bust (Iran), dated 505/1111–12, signed ʿUthmån ibn
Mu˙ammad290
13.34 Colophon of Bust Qurʾån, 1111–12 291
13.35 Qurʾån in naskh on paper, Hamadhan (Iran), dated
559/1164, signed Ma˙mËd ibn al-Óusayn al-Katib
al-KirmånÈ292
13.36 Qurʾån in naskh on paper, Hamadhan, 1164 293
13.37 Qurʾån in naskh and mu˙aqqaq with thuluth and
Eastern KËfic headings, Iraq or Iran, dated 15 Jumada I,
582/3 August 1186, signed ʿAbd al-Ra˙mån . . . al-Kåtib
al-MalikÈ ʿZarrin Qalamʾ294
ff.2a and 1b 294
13.39 Large section of a Qurʾån in naksh, Iraq or Iran, dated
Mu˙arram 592/December 1195, signed AbË NaʿÈm ibn
Óamza al-BaihaqÈ295
f. 3a 295
13.41 Qurʾån in naskh on paper, Iraq or Iran, datable by waqf
to c. 597/1200, signed by calligrapher Mu˙ammad ibn
A˙mad al-Jabali and illuminator ʿAbd al-Ra˙mån ibn
Mu˙ammad al-ÍËfÈ296
13.42 Verse count in floriated KËfic contained within
circular medallions 296
13.43 Page from the ‘Blue Qurʾån’, gold on blue parchment,
North Africa, tenth century 299
13.44 Qurʾån of Ibn al-Bawwab, dated 392/999–1000. Naskh
text and thuluth chapter headings 301
14.1 Cairo. Mosque al-Hakim, 990 and later, floriated KËfic
inscription on south-eastern tower 314
14.2 Óijåz (Arabia). Gravestone, 250/864. Museum of
Islamic Art, Cairo 316
14.3 Cairo. Nilometer: ÊËlËnid inscription (Qurʾån, 2:256),
247/861316
14.4 Cairo. Mosque al-Azhar: alphabet of inscription in the
maqsËra, 361/972 318
xvi THE PRODUCTION OF MEANING IN ISLAMIC ARCHITECTURE
14.5 Cairo. Mosque al-Óåkim: inscriptions in the maqsËra,

late tenth century 319
14.6 Cairo. Mosque al-Óåkim: inscription on casing of
north-west minaret, 403/1013 320
14.7 Damascus. Cenotaph of Få†ima: inscription on
northern face, 439/1037 320
14.8 Aleppo. Minaret of the Great Mosque: uppermost
inscription, 483/1090 320
14.9 Khuråsån (Iran). Left: Samanid dirham minted at
Balkh, 292/905. Right: Samanid dinar minted at
Nisabur, 340/951 322
14.10 Ghazna (Afghanistan). Cursive inscription on
cenotaph of Ma˙mËd ibn SebËktekin,
420/1030322
14.11 Ghazna (Afganistan). Fragment of inscription with
name of IbråhÈm, 1059–99; Fragment of inscription
with name of YamÈn al-Dawla, late eleventh–early
twelfth century 324
14.12 Isfahan. Masjid-i JåmÈ: fragment of inscription on north
face of south dome, 478/1086–8 325
14.13 Western Iran. Marble gravestone, 549/1154 326
14.14 Aleppo. Minaret of the Great Mosque: inscription on
the third zone, 483/1090 329
14.15 Aleppo. Madrasa al-Óallåwiyya, 543/1149: inscriptions
on the portal 330
14.16 Damascus. Bimåristån al-Nuri, 549/1154, foundation
inscription331
14.17 Óama (Syria). Mosque of NËr al-DÈn: inscription on
back of minbar332
14.18 Aleppo. Maqåm IbråhÈm in the citadel: inscription of
NËr al-DÈn, 563/1168 332
14.19 Aleppo. Maqåm IbråhÈm in the citadel: inscription of
IsmåʾÈl, 575/1180 332
14.20 Aleppo. Citadel, Lion’s Gate: inscription of al- Ûåhir
GhåzÈ, 606/1210 333
14.21 Aleppo. Mosque in the citadel: inscription of al-Ûåhir
GhåzÈ, 610/1213 333
14.22 Aleppo. Madrasa al-Firdaws, 633/1235–6: inscription in
courtyard334
14.23 Mosul. Mosque al-NËrÈ: mi˙råb, 543/1148.
Originally in the now destroyed Umayyad mosque in
Mosul335
14.24 Mosul. Mosque al-NËrÈ: inscriptions on capitals,
1170–2336
14.25 Mosul. Mashhad of Imåm ʿAwn al-DÈn, 646/1248:
portal to the masjid336
figures xvii
14.26 Mosul. Mashhad of Imåm ʿAwn al DÈn, 646/1248:
portal to the masjid, detail of inscription 337
14.27 Mosul. Shrine of Imam ʿAwn al-Din, 1242, detail of
thuluth inscription on portal 337
14.28 Tlemcen (Algeria). Great Mosque: inscription on the
mi˙råb dome, 530/1136 337
14.29 Fez. Mosque of al-QarawiyyÈn: inscriptions in the cells
of the mi˙råb dome, 531/1137 338
14.30 Fez. Mosque of al-QarawiyyÈn: foundation inscriptions
above the mi˙råb, 531/1137 339
14.31 Cairo. Citadel: inscription of Íalå˙ al-DÈn on the
Mudarraj Gate, 579/1183 341
14.32 Cairo. Fragmentary inscription of Íalå˙ al-DÈn,
583/1187342
14.33 Cairo. Madrasa of al-Íali˙ Najm al-DÈn AyyËb,
641/1243: foundation inscription above the portal 344
15.1 Al-Aßmaʿi, TaʿrÈkh mulËk al-ʿArab, 243/957 354
15.2 New Testament, Timothy 4:1f. Jerusalem 902 358
15.3 Al-Siråfi, Kitåb akhbår al-na˙wiyyÈn al-baßriyyÈn,
calligrapher ʿAlÈ b. Shådhån al-RåzÈ, Iraq/Iran, dated
986359
15.4 Qurʾån, Iran (other part of same ms. at the University
Library in Istanbul [A6758] is dated 361/972),
calligrapher ʿAlÈ b. Shådhin al-RåzÈ361
16.1 Khirbat al-Mafjar, reconstruction drawing of fountain,
c. 735 370
16.2 Samarra, Balkuwåra Palace, 849–59, plan 372
16.3 Samarra, stone fountain, originally in the Great
Mosque, 849–52, now in Khån Murjån, Baghdad 373
16.4 MadÈnat al-Zahråʾ, 936–81, central palace complex,
plan374
16.5 MadÈnat al-Zahråʾ, view of Salon Rico (953–7) from
north-west374
16.6 Spain. Madinat al-Zahraʾ, 936 and later, ‘Dar al-Jund’,
from south 375
16.7 MadÈnat al-Zahråʾ, Salon Rico, from garden 376
16.8 MadÈnat al-Zahråʾ, pools seen through arches of Salon
Rico377
16.9 LashkarÈ Båzår, south palace, eleventh–twelfth
century, plan 377
16.10 LashkarÈ Båzår, south palace; I: external iwån, present
condition; II: eleventh-century plan of fountain 378
16.11 Qalʾat BanÈ Óammåd, 1015–1152, plan of main
palace379
16.12 Qalʾat BanÈ Óammåd, marble slab of a shådirwån,
eleventh century 380
16.13 Palermo, La Ziza, 1166–85, aerial view 380
xviii THE PRODUCTION OF MEANING IN ISLAMIC ARCHITECTURE
16.15 Palermo, La Ziza, view of salsabÈl381

16.15 Palermo, Capella Palatina, 1154–66, painting in the
ceiling381
16.16 Mardin, Qasr al-Firdaws, 1239–60, plan and section of
central iwån382
16.17 Mardin, Qasr al-Firdaws, 1239–60, main iwån from
south383
16.18 Mardin, Qasr al-Firdaws, view of cistern 384
16.19 Fus†å† (old Cairo), House VI, eleventh–twelfth century,
plan384
16.20 Diyarbakir, palace in the citadel, early thirteenth
century, plan 385
16.21 Diyarbakir, palace in the citadel, detail of pool 385
16.22 Qalʾat ÍahyËn, Ayyubid palace, late twelfth century 386
16.23 Qalʾat ÍahyËn, Ayyubid palace, courtyard 386
16.24 Seville, garden in the patio of Qasr al-Mubårak, twelfth
century387
16.25 Granada, Alhambra, fourteenth century, exterior
towers388
16.26 Story of Bayå∂ and Riyå∂, Bayå∂ lying unconscious by
a noria, Spain, thirteenth century, ms. ar. 368, fol. 19 r,
Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana 390
16.27 Drawing of a såqiya in Spain 391
16.28 Water-elevating mechanism, al-JazarÈ, Maʾrifat
al-Hiyal, 1354, Suleymaniye Library, Istanbul, 3606 392
16.29 Granada, Alhambra, lion fountain at the pool of the
Partal, thirteenth century 393
16.30 Granada, Alhambra, plan of main units 395
16.31 Granada. The Alhambra Palace: Courtyard of the
Myrtle, 1333–54, from south 396
16.32 Granada, Alhambra, Court of the Lions, 1354–9 396
16.33 Granada, Alhambra, Fountain of the Lions, eleventh
and fourteenth centuries 397
17.1 Damascus. Great Mosque, 705–15, the ‘Barada Panel’ 408
17.2 ‘Barada Panel’ mosaics in the Great Mosque of
Damascus, Syria; 705–15 408
17.3 Ground plan of Balkuwara Palace, Samarra, Iraq;
c. 850410
17.4 View of Madinat al-Zahra, Spain; 926 412
17.5 A saqiya or water-raising device 414
17.6 (facing page) SalsabÈl fountain in the Zisa Palace,
Palermo, Sicily; 1189 415
17.7 Plan and section of the Qasr al-Firdaws east of Mardin,
Turkey; 1239–60 416
17.8 View of main iwån in the Qasr al-Firdaws east of
Mardin, Turkey; 1239–60 416
17.9 SalsabÈl in the Ayyubid Palace, Aleppo, Syria; c. 1200417
figures xix
17.10 Fountain in the Court of the Lions, Alhambra Palace,
Granada, Spain; fourteenth century; detail of the
fountain in the Court of the Lions, Alhambra Palace,
Granada, Spain; fourteenth century 420
18.1 Jordan. Qusayr ʿAmra, 743–5, main hall from north-east 425
18.2 Great Mosque of Damascus (705–15) ‘Barada’ mosaic 426
18.3 Jordan. Qusayr ʿAmra, 743–5, the Hunt fresco 428
18.4 Qusayr ʿAmra – iwån with enthroned prince 428
18.5 Qusayr ʿAmra – frescos on west wall 429
18.6 Qusayr ʿAmra – detail of onagers 430
18.7 Qusayr ʿAmra – reconstruction of frescos on west 430
18.8 Taq-e Bostan, fifth century ad431
18.9 Taq-e Bostan Royal Boar Hunt, fifth century ad432
19.1 Aleppo. Mashhad al-Husayn, 1183–96, courtyard from
south-west442
19.2 Damascus. Shrine of Sayyida Ruqayya, rebuilt
1988–95, main courtyard 444
19.3 Damascus. The Madrasa al-Muqaddamiyya, courtyard
(now destroyed) 445
19.4 Damascus. Shrine of Sayyida Ruqayya and unknown
dome, 1978 446
19.5 Coloured cadastral map of region around Sayyida
Ruqayya446
19.6 Darayya. Shrine of Sayyida Sukaina bint ʿAlÈ
(condition in early 2006) 447
19.7 Damascus. Shrine of Sayyida Zaynab, exterior 447
19.8 Damascus. Bab Saghir cemetery, double shrine of
Få†ima and Sukaina bint al-Óusayn448
19.9 Raqqa. Model of the shrine complex of ʿAmmår
b. Yåsir, Uways al-QaranÈ and Ubayy b. Kaʿb448
19.10 Aleppo. Mashhad al-Óusayn, c. 1910 449
19.11 Damascus. Map of walled city 449
19.12 Damascus. Shrine of Sayyida Ruqayya, aerial view 450
19.13 Damascus. Shrine of Sayyida Ruqayya, street view 450
19.14 Damascus. Shrine of Sayyida Ruqayya, plan of first
expansion451
19.15 Damascus: Shrine of Sayyida Ruqayya, plan of second
expansion451
19.16 Damascus. Shrine of Sayyida Ruqayya, courtyard 452
19.17 Damascus. Shrine of Sayyida Ruqayya, central hall 452
19.18 Damascus. Shrine of Sayyida Ruqayya, cenotaph 453
19.19 Damascus. Shrine of Sayyida Ruqayya, dome 453
19.20 Damascus. Shrine of Sayyida Ruqayy, inscriptions on
door to cenotaph 454
19.21 Damascus. Shrine of Sayyida Ruqayya, inscription on
domeʾs drum 454
xx THE PRODUCTION OF MEANING IN ISLAMIC ARCHITECTURE
19.22 Damascus. Shrine of Sayyida Ruqayya, hadith

inscriptions455
19.23 Damascus. Shrine of Sayyida Ruqayya, hadith
inscriptions455
19.24 Letter signed by President Hafez Assad 456
20.1 Damascus. Shrine of Sayyida Zaynab, rebuilt 1980s,
façade from north 463
20.2 Shrine of Sayyida Zaynab, south of Damascus 463
20.3 Women touching the grille of the cenotaph at Sayyida
Zaynab’s shrine 464
20.4 Damascus. Shrine of Sayyida Zaynab, worshippers at
the cenotaph 464
20.5 Chart of the main tenets of Ithna ʿAshari Shiʿism465
20.6 Ground plan of shrine of Imam ʿAli, Najaf 467
20.7 Men at the cenotaph of the shrine of Sayyida Zaynab 468
20.8 Inscriptions on the shrine of Sayyida Ruqayya,
Damascus469
20.9 Qurʾånic verse 28:5 from sËra al-Qaßaß inscribed in a
frieze on the shrine of Sayyida Zaynab 470
20.10 Detail of a hadith referring to Imam ʿAli, inscribed on
courtyard tiles at the shrine of Sayyida Ruqayya 471
20.11 Detail of a hadith referring to the succession of the
Twelve Imams, inscribed on tiles near the cenotaph
inside the shrine of Sayyida Ruqayya 471
20.12 Najaf. Shrine of Imam ʿAli, main iwån and dome, from
north-east472
20.13 Mirror-glass mosaic work (åʾÈna-kårÈ) in the dome of
the shrine of Sayyida Ruqayya 473
20.14 Dome with mirror-glass mosaic at the shrine of
Sukaina bint al-Husayn, Darayya, Syria 473
21.1 Damascus. Bimåristån al-Nuri, 1154, façade 483
21.2 Damascus. Bimåristån al-Nuri, 1154, courtyard, from
south-east484
21.3 Ground plan of Bimåristån al-Nuri (1154), Damascus 485
21.4 Eastern iwån of Bimåristån al-Nuri, Damascus 486
21.5 Façade of Bimåristån of Arghun al-Kamili (c. 1285),
Aleppo486
21.6 First courtyard of Bimåristån of Arghun al-Kamili,
Aleppo486
21.7 Exterior view of Darushifaʾ (or çifte Medrese)
al-Ghiyathiyyya (1205), Kayseri 487
21.8 Plan of the complex of Qalawun (1285) 489
21.9 View from one of the chambers of the insane at
Bimåristån of Arghun al-Kamili (c. 1285), Aleppo 490
Preface
A series of chance encounters with prominent scholars, all dating to

1973–4, prompted my turn to the study of Islamic art and architec-
ture shortly after I had graduated with a BA in Anthropology. The
first was reading the pivotal article by Oleg Grabar on the Dome of
the Rock, which I came upon in the small library of the Department
of Antiquities in Saudi Arabia, where I was working at the time.
The second was meeting Michael Meinecke in Riyadh, who sub-
sequently invited me to visit Cairo and stay at the Deutsches
Archaologische Institut. My two-week exploration of the highlights
of Cairo’s Islamic monuments and my introduction to Meinecke’s
research methodology had a lasting impact on me. An extended
stay in Baghdad on a UNESCO fellowship introduced me to Iraq’s
little-known Islamic monuments and brought me into contact
with its renowned and generous scholars, in particular Fuad Safar.
Finally, an accidental meeting in Riyadh with R. Bailey Winder,
then Dean of Arts and Science at New York University, confirmed
my new academic direction and helped me gain admission to the
Institute of Fine Arts of NYU. There I studied Islamic art with
Richard Ettinghausen, who would die in 1980, two years before I got
my PhD. So, quite fortuitously, four notable scholars of Islamic and
Middle Eastern art and history would play a decisive role in shaping
my future in Islamic art. My entire career is a small gift to their
precious memory.
I was drawn from the start, even in graduate seminars, to topics
that arrived at an interpretation through investigative fieldwork,
in continuity with my earlier anthropological training and also a
necessary adaptation to the thinly researched conditions of medieval
Islamic art at the time. Extensive travel to historical and archeo-
logical sites from Iran to Spain, which I undertook regularly from
1973 until fairly recently, grounded my textual knowledge of Islamic
architecture and brought me into contact with scholars in these
countries. The photographs, slides and negatives that I took; the
drawings I made or improved upon; and the field notes I wrote – all
these provided me with materials for my dissertation and several
other projects.
xxii THE PRODUCTION OF MEANING IN ISLAMIC ARCHITECTURE
For better or worse, I was a solitary traveller, a one-person expedi-

tion, and that too has coloured my scholarly output. I was never
drawn to popular topics and crowded areas of research in which one’s
contribution tends to be more critical and theoretical than originally
interpretive. Rather than adding to the numerous studies on such
popular topics as the Dome of the Rock or the Alhambra, I chose to
work on issues and sites that had been relatively untouched since
the first decades of the twentieth century. The architectural patron-
age of Nur al-Din (1146–74) proved ideal for a dissertation topic: it
was little studied; it encompassed all Syria plus Mosul; and it proved
an excellent vehicle for linking architecture with social and reli-
gious history. Although influenced by the social historical approach
employed by Grabar in his seminal The Formation of Islamic Art,
the dissertation and much of my work did not shy away from engag-
ing religious and sectarian factors into the discussion of architectural
patronage.
Although it remains unpublished, my dissertation on Nur al-Din
opened up several venues for research, including the counter-
Crusade, transformations in calligraphy and ornament, the Ayyubid
architecture of Aleppo, and even the rise of medieval hospitals. My
first published article dealt with the resonance of Nur al-Din’s jihåd
propaganda in his architecture, mosque furnishings and inscriptions,
culminating in the pulpit that he endowed for the Aqsa Mosque in
Jerusalem. Regrettably, the sources available to me at the time did
not allow for expanding on this theme along the same lines that it
had been developed for Crusader studies, although much remains to
be done in this area of research.
Examining architectural, ornamental and epigraphic changes
through the lens of sectarian transformation, the so-called Sunni
revival of the eleventh and twelfth centuries, quickly encompassed
much of my scholarly output. In these studies I tried to strike a
balance between historical and archeological investigation and sym-
bolic interpretation, between studying monuments in their histori-
cal moment and also against the slower moving forces of sectarian
transformation and technological innovation. Reading broadly in
Islamic theology and philosophy and in modern semiotics and decon-
struction provided me with interpretive tools that proved effective in
understanding the various dimensions of an especially contentious
period of Islamic history. Rejecting the ahistorical essentialism of
perennialist thought, I sought instead to investigate the production
of meaning and symbolic charge in architectural, calligraphic and
ornamental forms within the context of parallel dislocations in the
political and sectarian realms.
Central to this process was reasserting the role of the Baghdad
caliphate as the source of legitimation for the many arriviste dynas-
ties ruling the Islamic world in this period and, perhaps more
speculatively, as the innovator of ornamental forms, including the
preface xxiii
muqarnas; calligraphic styles, such as the proportioned script (al-
khatt al-mansub) of Ibn Muqla and Ibn al-Bawwab; and institutions,
including the madrasa and the bimaristan. None of these archi-
tectural and ornamental forms represented immanent manifesta-
tion of a timeless Islamic spirit, as proponents of perennialism had
proposed. They were rather created or monumentalised within a
symbiotic relationship of a centre, the ʿAbbasid caliphate, possess-
ing legitimacy but lacking power and a periphery of new dynasties
possessing power but needing ʿAbbasid legitimation. These incipient
symbolic forms, I argued, quickly spread throughout much of the
Islamic world as signs of symbolic allegiance to the safeguard of the
Sunni Islamic world.
My work on the muqarnas dome began in a formalist and typo-
logical study of about a dozen such domes in Iraq and Damascus
and progressed to other similar domes in North Africa and Spain.
This led me to question the significance of the most salient features
of these domes – geometric division and unsupported projection –
features that distinguish them from earlier hemispherical domes
and that, I argued, reflected an entirely different conception of the
dome and its referent, heaven. Reading these formal and expressive
features in conjunction with the contemporary theosophy of occa-
sionalism, I argued that the muqarnas dome was developed as an
architectural manifestation of this pervasive theosophy, whose main
proponent was none other than the Baghdad caliphate. These find-
ings would later contribute to a better understanding of the unique
early twelfth-century Qubbat al-Barudiyyin in Marrakech, whose
blended forms and unusual inscriptions reflected its rootedness in
Cordoba and its assimilation of ʿAbbasid symbolic forms.
My work on the transformation of Arabic writing, in Qurʾåns and
in public inscriptions, was guided by a similar progression from an
analytical study of numerous examples, to abstracting their innova-
tive features in relation to what had preceded them, to an inter-
pretation along contemporaneous sectarian and political lines. The
conversion of Qurʾånic writing from ambiguously majestic Kufic
scripts to the elegantly legible scripts developed by Ibn Muqla (d.
940) and Ibn al-Bawwab (d. 1022) was one of the most pivotal and
least studied phenomena in Islamic art. This two-phase adoption
of proportioned cursive scripts in place of the earlier Kufic scripts
produced an entirely new Qurʾånic codex whose uncompromising
clarity and legibility, I argued, reflected a specifically exoteric/zahir
view of the scriptures, in conformity with contemporary ʿAbbasid
theology and as a challenge to its divergent Fatimid counterpart.
The architectural implications of these calligraphic reforms reso-
nated widely in epigraphy, particularly public inscriptions, which,
starting in the late eleventh century underwent a fitful and then quite
decisive change from Kufic to cursive. Thus, in Syria Nur al-Din
mandated this conversion in the middle of the twelfth century, most
xxiv THE PRODUCTION OF MEANING IN ISLAMIC ARCHITECTURE
likely in continuity with Qurʾånic practice and in opposition to the

Fatimids, who had championed the floriated Kufic script, one of the
most ambiguous calligraphic scripts. Subsuming the esoteric/batin
within the exoteric/zahir, the new public inscriptions embodied and
projected the exoteric and inclusive doctrines of the Sunni revival.
My turn to the Ayyubid architecture of Aleppo in the 1990s was
prompted by its natural continuity with the earlier Zangid period,
its excellent state of preservation and also by my deep appreciation
of its subtlety and sobriety. The military and palatial architecture
of Aleppo, best exemplified by its mighty citadel, demonstrates fili-
ations with Baghdad and Samarra but presents solutions unique to
medieval Aleppo. Thus, the foundation of a tribunal (dar al-‘adl) at
the foot of the citadel continues earlier ʿAbbasid practice, but the
Ayyubid institution, though still an appendage of royal power, is
separate from the palace and better integrated with the city and its
population. Likewise, the Ayyubid citadel palace, with its cruciform
plan and playful water fountain, recalls the ninth-century palaces of
Samarra but at a greatly reduced scale, necessitated by its restricted
location and the diminished resources of its founders.
I have dealt more thoroughly in my book, Constructions of Power
and Piety in Medieval Aleppo (1997), with the religious architecture
of Aleppo, highlighting in particular issues of patronage and the
sectarian dialogue between its Sunni madrasas and Shiʿi shrines.
Regarding patronage, the Ayyubid period is especially notable for the
patronage of its women of the court, in particular that of the notable
regent queen Dayfa Khatun (r. 1237–44). Her two most important
buildings, Khanqah (Sufi convent) al-Farafra and Madrasa al-Firdaws,
signal her support of Sufis, in particular women Sufis, and her deploy-
ment of Sufi transcendental piety as an alternative to Shiʿi rituals,
which were quite prevalent in Aleppo at the time.
My main interest in Mosul was at first restricted to the Mosque
al-Nuri (1170–2), which I had examined in my dissertation as the
only monument founded by Nur al-Din outside his sovereign
domain. Utilising contemporary sources and hitherto unpublished
photographs from the early twentieth century, this article attempted
a reconstruction of the original mosque and a new chronology for its
main phases. It remains the only scholarly study in English of this
mosque, which was completely destroyed in recent years.
The symposium The Art of the Seljuqs, held in 2016 at the
Metropolitan Museum of Art, presented me with an opportunity to
return to the study of medieval Mosul, which, sadly, no longer exists
in any recognisable form. Comparing the architectural patronage
of of Nur al-Din and Badr al-Din Luʾluʾ (1234–59) highlights their
contrasting religious and sectarian policies, with Nur al-Din strictly
adhering to Sunnism, while undermining Shiʿism and Christianity,
and Badr al-Din promoting Christianity and embracing Shiʿism as an
instrument against a particularly militant Sufi movement that had
preface xxv
threatened his sovereignty. This comparison expands the parameters
of the Sunni Revival and highlights the mediation of regional politi-
cal forces in sectarian issues.
In some respects, even my work on Islamic gardens was informed
by the relationship between the Baghdad caliphate and the outlying
dynasties, although much mediated by poetry in this case. Garden
forms, hydraulic machines and decorative fountains, I argued, found
their way from Samarra and Baghdad to North Africa and the Iberian
Peninsula, a translation that may have been facilitated and given
meaning through contemporaneous poetic descriptions. The dimi-
nution of gardens and the increasing elaboration of pools and foun-
tains, seen in both the eastern and western Islamic world, resonated
through both architectural forms and poetic metaphors.
A critical revision of the essentialism and ahistoricism of the
Islamic paradise garden paradigm led me recently to emphasise the
hunt as the central attribute of what might be called the pastoral-
ist garden. Re-examining Umayyad hunt imagery, particularly the
extensive hunt cycles at Qusayr ʿAmra (c. 740), directed me to con-
clude that these hunt frescoes embodied an entirely variant vision
of paradise, one that rejected the tedium of the enclosed garden and
embraced a more active paradise, with hunt at its centre. This is also
an area worthy of further investigation.
Finally, my recent and still unfinished work on Shiʿi shrines began
with a single monument in Damascus, Sayyida Ruqayya, whose
encroachment upon the site of medieval monuments I had observed
over several years. The massive expansion of this shrine in recent
years and its enormous popularity among Shiʿi pilgrims, a process
repeated in many other Shiʿi shrines in Syria, led me to study it both
historically and as a contemporary monument made alive through
ritual. This in turn led to me to study Shiʿi shrines in general from
a phenomenological perspective, linking Shiʿi core beliefs and ritual
practices with the main architectural and design features of these
shrines.
My dear colleague Robert Hillenbrand, a keen observer and pro-
moter of the historiography of Islamic art, has kindly and persis-
tently urged me to compile this selection of articles in the hope that
this book would make them more accessible to a new readership. I
would therefore wish that these new readers would engage with my
often quite controversial articles, critique them, and perhaps better
link them with contemporary scholarship. I would also hope that
the republication of these articles would propel me to expand on my
views on the role of difference, disjunction and controversy, both
sectarian and political, in the production of meaning of Islamic art.
I believed then, as I do now, that these dynamic interactions and
dissonant voices, far more than an essentialist adherence to tawhid
or a postmodernist appeal to the commonalities of piety and sacred
space, contributed to the unending transformations in Islamic art.
PART I SYRIA
CHAPTER ONE
Monuments with a Message:

Propagation of Jihād under Nūr
al-Dı̄n (1146–1174)
The jihād (holy war) of NËr al-DÈn against the Crusaders was
conducted militarily on the battlefield and ideologically on the home
front. Militarily, his period marked the actual beginning of a sys-
tematic Muslim counter-crusade which began with his takeover of
Edessa and culminated in the conquest of Jerusalem under Saladin.1
The ideological battle, on the other hand, manifested itself most
explicitly in contemporary literature, primarily poetry, but also in
official letters and juridical treatises on jihåd. This literary evidence
has been thoroughly examined by Emmanuel Sivan in a book which
discusses ideology and propaganda in the Muslim reaction to the
Crusades.2 An equally important, if perhaps less explicit, aspect of
the propagation of jihåd is also evident in the inscriptions and some
monuments of NËr al-DÈn and later heroes of the Muslim counter-
crusade. A study by Nikita Elisséeff on the titulature of NËr al-DÈn
from his inscriptions dealt, in part, with the jihåd titles of these
inscriptions and the monuments which bore them.3
Here I am concerned with the inscriptions and certain monu-
ments of NËr al-DÈn whose function, it will be shown, was to spread
the spirit of jihåd against the Crusaders and declare the triumph of
Islam in Syria and JazÈra. When surveying the corpus of the inscrip-
tions of NËr al-DÈn, I was struck by the fact that those inscriptions of
the greatest significance for jihåd generally occurred on monuments
which themselves convey a similar message, although in a more
subtle manner. In other words, the various jihåd titles and epithets
in these inscriptions served to reinforce the jihåd message of the
monument on which they were inscribed. For this reason, it was
thought preferable to study these inscriptions not separately, as has
generally been done, but in conjunction with the monuments on
which they occur. Furthermore, in the hope of connecting these
monuments with the actual jihåd of NËr al-DÈn – while obviating
Yasser Tabbaa (1986), ‘Monuments with a Message: Propagation of Jihad

under Nur al-Din’, in V. Goss and C. Vézar-Bornstein (eds), The Meeting of
Two Worlds: Cultural Exchange Between East and West during the Period
of the Crusades, Kalamazoo, MI: Medieval Institute Publications, 223–41.
4 THE PRODUCTION OF MEANING IN ISLAMIC ARCHITECTURE
the need to refer to historical sources – it was thought advisable to

begin the discussion of each monument with a brief summary of the
historical circumstances which occurred immediately before it was
built.
The special importance of the inscriptions of NËr al-DÈn can best
be understood when contrasted with those of his father Zangi. The
contrast between Zangi’s rather indifferent attitude to jihåd against
the Franks and NËr al-DÈn’s total dedication to it is clearly evidenced
by the great difference in their respective protocols. Zangi possessed
a set of titles which were among the longest in medieval protocols.
They included four Persian titles – isfahsilår (commander of the
army), shahriyår (protector of a province), pahlavån jåhån (guardian
of the world) and khusro, Iran; two Persian-derived titles – al-sayyid
al-kabÈr (the great lord) and shams al-ma’åli (the sun of heaven);
and five Turkish titles – alp ghåzi (invader hero), agh arslån (white
lion), inanj qutlugh (loyal fortunate), tughrultekÈn (falcon prince)
and atåbek (tutor of the Saljuq crown-prince).4 Zangi’s protocol also
laid special emphasis on attributes of legitimacy and sovereignty
as bestowed by the Caliphate and the Sultanate. Out of the thirty-
one epithets and attributes in his most complete inscription in the
mashhad (shrine) Imam Muhassin in Aleppo 1143, eighteen concern
these two matters. The ubiquity of foreign titles and the emphasis on
legitimacy and sovereignty are clear indications of Zangi’s Turkish-
Persian orientation and his rank as atåbek of the Saljuq sultan.
Finally, one notices the absence of the title al-mujåhid (fighter in the
Holy War) from all Zangi’s inscriptions. It seems that even after his
victory at Edessa in 1144, Zangi did not merit the most important
title of the Holy War.5
Only the very earliest inscription of NËr al-DÈn, in the mashhad
al-Muhassin (dated 1146, a few months after his accession to rule)
may have contained any Turkish titles.6 It is fragmentary and largely
derived from Zangi’s inscription which stands a few feet away from it
on the same wall. The little that is preserved from it follows Zangi’s
titulature very closely, and it is quite possible that it once contained
the title atåbek as well as other Turkish titles. Its epigraphic style
(dry, somewhat crude KËfic) is also derived from Zangi’s inscrip-
tion. Executed only a few months after NËr al-DÈn’s accession, this
inscription (in style and content) reveals NËr al-DÈn’s dependence on
the dominating figure of Zangi.
Beginning with his second inscription at the portal of the madrasa
(theological college) al-Hallåwiyya, dated February/March 1149, NËr
al-DÈn’s protocol begins a process of total change. Turkish titles
disappear first, to be followed by all Persian and Persian-derived
titles as well as most titles of sovereignty and legitimacy. These
are replaced by purely Arabic titles which emphasise NËr al-DÈn’s
dedication to jihåd as well as to the affirmation of SunnÈ orthodoxy
and the establishment of justice.
monuments with a message 5
This remarkable change in the titulature was preceded by a
number of decisive battles which NËr al-DÈn fought in the first
few years of his reign (1146–50) against the Frankish colonies of
north-western Syria: Edessa, Antioch and Tripoli. In 1146, he re-
conquered Edessa (which had rebelled after Zangi’s death) and mas-
sacred much of its Christian population. He followed that, in 1147
and 1148, with the capture of most of Antioch’s possessions east of
the Orontes river. Finally, in 1148, he succeeded, with the help of
his brother Sayf al-DÈn Ghåzi of Mosul, in repulsing the remnants
of the Second Crusade which had besieged Damascus.7 According to
Marshal Baldwin, ‘the one thing that the Muslims feared the most,
a powerful expedition from Europe, had arrived and been repulsed’.8
Ibn al-ʾAdÈm, the thirteenth-century historian of Aleppo, said: ‘From
this point on NËr al-DÈn dedicated his will to jihåd.’9
The madrasa al-Hallåwiyya with its innovative inscription was,
therefore, built at the first peak of the jihåd of NËr al-DÈn. This
madrasa (originally the Byzantine cathedral of St Helena) was one
of four churches which had been converted to Muslim usage by
the judge Ibn al-Khashshåb in 1124, in retaliation for a particularly
pernicious Frankish siege of Aleppo.10 It does not seem, however,
that Ibn-Khashshåb’s conversion entailed any structural modifica-
tion or addition to these churches: there is no mention in the sources
of such activity, and the two remaining converted churches (the
madrasas of al-Hallåwiyya and al-Muqaddamiyya) bear no inscrip-
tions which pre-date the period of NËr al-DÈn. It would seem, then,
that the conversion entailed little more than the destruction or
removal of obvious elements or insignia of the Christian faith (altars
and crosses, for example) and the addition of a mi˙råb.
Of the four converted churches, the cathedral of St Helena was, by
far, the largest and most important. At the time of the Muslim con-
quest of Aleppo, it was the main centre of worship for the city, and
its property extended to the present courtyard of the Great Mosque.
Following its confiscation by Ibn al-Khashshåb, it became known as
masjid al-Sarråjin (mosque of the saddle makers), possibly after the
branch of the bazaar in which it was located.11
NËr al-DÈn completed Ibn al-Khashshåb’s act by giving the con-
verted church a new physical appearance as an important madrasa
of the city and the first to be built in almost forty years. The build-
ing of a madrasa at such a close proximity to the Great Mosque
was designed, in part, to undermine the prominence of the Shiʿi
majority of the City which had previously resisted the building of
the first madrasa of the city, al-Zajjåjiya.12 An equally important
purpose of the al-Hallåwiyya, however, was to show the subjugation
of Christianity and the triumph of Islam in the city which had had
to bear the brunt of Frankish attacks for half a century. This militant
intent of the building will be made clearer when we examine its
interior and the inscription of NËr al-DÈn at its entrance.
The cathedral, as correctly reconstructed by M. Ecochard, was of

the centrally planned tetraconche type common in north and south
Syria in the early Christian period (Figure 1.6).13 It is not certain how
much of the Byzantine structure existed at the time of NËr al-DÈn,
but judging from the good state of preservation of the western apse,
one may postulate that the main apse and two side apses were at least
partly preserved. These parts may have been demolished either by
the mob which was led by Ibn al-Khashshåb or later by NËr al-DÈn.
However, the fact that the colonnade and entablature of the western
apse were left intact suggests that the destruction of the other parts,
particularly the eastern apse, was not the act of a mob but a deliberate
act which was most likely carried out under NËr al-DÈn.
While the total destruction of a particular church in this period
could reasonably be interpreted as a misguided act of vengeance,
the selective destruction of the cathedral of St Helena and the
incorporation of important parts of it in an otherwise new Islamic
building demands a different interpretation. Under other historical
circumstances, one might postulate that the purpose behind this
unusual endeavour was NËr al-DÈn’s desire to connect himself with
the ancient heritage of Aleppo, but this is highly unlikely in the
wake of his major victories against the Franks. I would suggest, then,
that the primary intent of preserving these Christian remains was to
symbolically assert NËr al-DÈn’s subjugation of and victory over the
Christians.
Not surprisingly, the inscription of NËr al-DÈn at the portal of the
madrasa al-Hallåwiyya displays important developments in the titu-
lature of the sovereign, especially in the realm of jihåd.14 All Turkish
titles, including atåbek, are dropped.15 Atåbek was Zangi’s title par
excellence and one which was retained by his descendants in Mosul
to the time of Badr al-Din Luʾluʾ.16 Its deletion by NËr al-DÈn at this
early stage is a clear indication that he no longer considered himself
an atåbek of the Saljuq sultan but an independent sovereign of an
Arab state.
By far the most important development exhibited in this inscrip-
tion, however, is the use of the title al-mujåhid, for the first time
in the protocol of NËr al-DÈn. The title may have been bestowed on
him by the ʿAbbasid caliph in appreciation of his valiant effort in
saving Damascus from the Second Crusade. This epithet appears in
sixteen out of thirty-eight preserved inscriptions of NËr al-DÈn and
may, therefore, be considered his most important title after al-’ådil
(the just).
Emboldened by his success against the Second Crusade, NËr
al-DÈn continued his aggressive raids in middle and northern Syria.
On 29 June 1149, his troops – aided by Anar of Damascus – fought
against Raymond of Antioch in Innab, just east of the lower valley
of the Orontes river. The Antiochene forces suffered a disastrous
defeat, and Raymond himself perished in the battle. NËr al-DÈn then
took Apamea and, according to Baldwin, ‘advanced toward Antioch
ravaging the country-side as far as the coast where he exultantly
bathed in the Mediterranean’.17 The moral implications of this battle
were even greater. Gibb said:
This, the most spectacular of NËr al-DÈn’s victories over the

Franks, and coming at this early stage in his career, seems to have
been the turning point in his own conception of his own mission
and in the history of Muslim Syria. In the eyes of all Islam, he
had become the champion of the faith and he now consciously set
himself to fulfill the duties of this role.18
In 1150, NËr al-DÈn built the qastal and madrasa al-Shuʾaybiyya

in Aleppo, a small monument of great significance for the propaga-
tion of jihåd. This building, of which only the qastal (fountain)
remains (now attached to a mosque of later construction), is located
inside the Antioch gate, at the bifurcation of the main east–west
branch of the bazaar. This is the spot where once stood the mosque
of ʿUmar, the first mosque built by the Muslims upon taking Aleppo
in the year 637. The tradition, on which all sources agree, states that
the Muslims, led by ʿUmar, entered Aleppo from the Antioch gate.
The spot where they put down their arms became the location of
the first mosque of the city.19 The little mosque served the congre-
gational needs of the early Muslim community until the building of
the Great Mosque by al-WalÈd (c. 715), when it must have become
a simple masjid with a great tradition. Around the beginning of the
tenth century, the masjid was renovated by a certain Aleppan Shiʿi
named Abu-l-Hasan al-Ghadåiri. It was venerated throughout the
intervening period and became a favourite spot for meditation by
various ascetics.20
Under NËr al-DÈn, a totally new building was erected which exists
today in an advanced state of ruin. Only the façade is original; the
interior is modern and without interest. Herzfeld’s reconstructed
drawing shows the original elevation without all the later additions
(Figure 1.7). It consists of a projecting portal, open on three sides
through pointed arches and with a fountain to its right. A heavy
entablature of classical appearance crowns the façade. It consists, in
the antique tradition, of architrave, frieze, and a tripartite cornice
with dentil, fascia on brackets and sima. Instead of Roman orna-
ment, a profusion of KËfic inscriptions and arabesque scrolls cover
all parts of the entablature. A fragmentary historical inscription,
partly concealed by a modern roof, mentions the name of Caliph
ʿUmar ibn al-Kha††åb and gives the date of the building. NËr al-DÈn’s
name and titles (which would be of special interest here) are, unfor-
tunately, concealed by the new additions.
Opinions have been divided on whether the entablature was
indeed antique (re-used and re-decorated in a contemporary fashion)
Figure 1.1 Aleppo. Qastal al-Shuʾaybiyya, 545/1150, façade (photo: Yasser

Tabbaa)
or whether it was totally made in the middle of the twelfth century.

Sauvaget considered the entablature antique and even proposed that
it was part of a Roman monumental arch which existed on the same
spot as the later mosque: ‘Cette mosquée n’était rien que l’arch
monumental erigée en tête de l’avenue à colonnades que les Arabes,
Figure 1.2 Aleppo. Qastal al-Shuʾaybiyya, 545/1150, detail of entablature

(photo: Yasser Tabbaa)
se l’étant approprié, transformèrent en lieu de culte en murant ses

baies.’21 He presented three pieces of evidence for this assertion: the
existence of military emblems – ‘emblemes guerriers’ – on the frieze,
a certain text by Ibn Shaddåd about ‘un arc portant une inscription
grècque’, and the classical appearance of the entablature.22 The so-
called military emblems simply do not exist, and Sauvaget may
have mistaken the large foliated KËfic script for them. As for the
statement of Ibn Shaddåd, it refers not to the present edifice but
simply to a Greek inscription which was discovered on the Antioch
gate itself.23
The classical appearance of the entablature presents a slightly
more difficult problem. When examined closely, however, one
notices that although the entablature has the same components as a
classical entablature, it displays many discrepancies: the architrave
projects at an angle; the frieze is a cavetto instead of a flat surface;
and the corners are left undecorated, possibly because the medieval
architect was not certain as to how to continue the ornament around
the corner. Furthermore, the blocks which make up the entablature
are in perfect accord with one another and with the arches below,
whose pointed profile can only be medieval.24
Herzfeld, who made a detailed study of this entablature, also
concluded that it was medieval. He added, however, that it was
not the result of spontaneous imitation of an antique architecture
but, rather, the product of ‘an uninterrupted antique tradition’.25
To prove his point he compared the entablature of al-Shuʾaybiyya
with those of the gates of Cairo (built in 1087) and the minaret of
the Great Mosque of Aleppo (built in 1089).26 There are, indeed,
general similarities among these monuments, as in the use of KËfic

inscriptions on friezes and cornices supported by brackets. But that
is where the similarity stops, for, whereas the gates of Cairo and
the minaret of the Great Mosque of Aleppo are vaguely related to
antique architecture, the qastal al Shuʾaybiyya is a close and deliber-
ate imitation of a classical entablature. In this respect, it is not part
of ‘an uninterrupted antique tradition’ but a rare example of purpose-
ful imitation.27
The use of a projecting portal with a classical-looking entablature
may have been intended to express military power in much the same
way as a triumphal arch. Projecting portals, with or without clas-
sical entablatures, have been used in several Islamic monuments,
ranging in date from the Umayyad to the Fatimid period and even
later. The military intent of such portals is unmistakable in the
Umayyad desert palaces, in the Ribåt (garrison) of Susa, and even
in the mosque of al-Håkim in Cairo.28 In terms of intent, then,
the projecting portal of the qastal al-Shuʾaybiyya is related to such
Islamic examples. In terms of its form, however, this monument
harks back to Roman architecture. It is possible that NËr al-DÈn saw
and admired the magnificent Roman ruins in Apamea, which he had
only very recently conquered, and wanted to express his military
victories against the Crusaders with the same vocabulary.
The mention of the Caliph ʿUmar ibn al-Kha††åb in the inscription
can be interpreted as an allusion either to his founding of the first
mosque in Aleppo or to his capture of the city.29 The first interpreta-
tion would emphasise the pietistic intent of the monument, to show
NËr al-DÈn’s care and reverence of the mosque of ʿUmar. This was,
indeed, one of the intents of the building, but not the main one. An
allusion to ʿUmar’s capture of Aleppo would, on the other hand, be
more consistent with historical circumstances (NËr al-DÈn’s major
victory) and the expressive intent of the building from (military
triumph). I would suggest, then, that the qastal al-Shuʾaybiyya was
primarily intended as a victory monument whose message was to
connect the jihåd of Nur al-DÈn against the Crusaders with the jihåd
of ʿUmar against the Byzantines. Its location at a heavily travelled
spot and the inclusion of a fountain in its façade ensured that many
people would see the monument and understand its message.
It may be added that this interpretation is in complete harmony
with the character of NËr al-DÈn, for he is said to have taken great
interest in reading about the Prophet and the Companion Caliphs
and in emulating their deeds. In fact, he is often compared to the two
ʿUmars, ʿUmar ibn al-Kha††åb and ʿUmar bin ʿAbd al-ʾAzÈz.30
The ten-year period which followed NËr al-DÈn’s capture of
Damascus in 1154 was not eventful in terms of jihåd. He had suc-
ceeded in fulfilling his primary ambitions and now dedicated his
energy to the stabilisation of the internal situation. Towards the end
of this period, in 1163, he made a last try at opening a sea outlet for
Figure 1.3 Hama. Mosque of NËr al-DÈn. Façade inscription, 558/1163,

detail (photo: Yasser Tabbaa)
his kingdom, but suffered a disastrous defeat in al-Buqayʾ, near Krak

des Chevaliers. This defeat, we are told, greatly disturbed him and
led him to abandon all luxuries of life for the sake of worship and
fighting for the faith.31
Between 1163 and 1164, NËr al-DÈn built a Friday mosque in
Hama, the second such mosque in the city. The historical and
Qurʾanic inscriptions of this building and the minbar (pulpit) inside
it can be connected to NËr al-DÈn’s new asceticism and dedication
to the Holy War. The dedicatory inscription is over seven metres
long and executed in large and clear thuluth script.32 It begins with
the normal Basmala (pronouncement of the name of God) but
proceeds into the Shahåda (declaration of faith), which is rare in
historical inscriptions and found in only two other inscriptions of
NËr al-DÈn, both in Hama.33 The title al-mujåhid is used, as well
as a number of composite epithets of jihåd: keeper of the outposts,
saviour of the public, vanquisher of the rebels, killer of the infidels
and polytheists.
The length and size of the inscription, the Shahåda and the
emphasis on jihåd leave no doubt as to its propagandistic intent. It
would also seem that the use of the Muslim declaration of faith here
and in two other inscriptions in Hama was directed at the Christian
population, which may have been quite large at that time.34
The Qurʾanic inscription in the sanctuary corroborates this inter-
pretation. A small fragment of this inscription, done in a technique
peculiar to the period of NËr al-DÈn,35 is still preserved on the east-
ernmost pier of the qibla wall (Figure 1.8). By a happy coincidence, it
contains the end of one Qurʾånic verse and the beginning of another:
(IX. 23–4), so that we can be sure that the original inscription
extended some length to both sides. In fact, for the sake of symmetry,
we may assume that the inscription started on the other side of the
mi˙råb with verses 20–2. These verses urge the believers to sacrifice
their homes and possessions for God, exhort them to abandon the
infidels even if they be their fathers and friends, and threaten that if
family and friends are more important to them than jihåd, then they
must await God’s punishment. In short, the messages are austerity,
intoleration of non-Muslims, and jihåd.
The mosque contains a minbar with an inscription of NËr al-DÈn

dated 1169 (Figure 1.9). According to the research of Becker and
Sauvaget,36 the minbar was less a pulpit and more of a throne in the
early Islamic period, which symbolised the secular authority of the
caliph or his local governor. Neither author took his study beyond
the Umayyad period, so the function of the minbar in later periods
remains uncertain. There is little doubt, however, that it underwent
a gradual loss of its religious function over the next few centuries.
The actual process of this change remains to be studied, in order to
determine the actual and symbolic function of the minbar in various
places and times. In the absence of such a study, there are certain
indications in the sources that, at least up to the twelfth century,
the minbars of the main cities of Islam were still associated with
caliphal and princely sovereignty. In the year 1110, for example, a
delegation of Aleppan notables and learned men went to Baghdad
to protest against the Frankish attacks on Aleppo. Ibn al-Qalånißi
described the measures they undertook to publicise their grievances:
the delegation went to the Jåmiʾ al-Sultan in Baghdad where they

cried for help, brought down the khatib [speaker of the sermon]
from the minbar, and broke it [the minbar]. They cried and wailed
for what Islam had suffered at the hands of the Franks . . . And they
prevented the congregation from prayer, while the servants and
military commanders [muqaddams] tried to calm them down by
promises that the Sultan would send soldiers to help them defeat
the Franks and the infidels. They returned the following Friday to
the Jåmi’ al-Khalifa where they did the same thing . . .37 [emphasis
added]
The act of breaking the minbars of the Sultan’s and Caliph’s mosque
during the Friday sermon must have had the symbolic connotation
that the Sultan and the Caliph, by failing to defend Islamic lands
against the infidels, no longer deserved to be honoured every Friday
on the minbars of Baghdad. Breaking their minbars was tantamount
to challenging their political authority over the lands of Islam.
There are other indications of the political significance of the
minbar during the times of NËr al-DÈn and Saladin. Under NËr
al-DÈn, the minbar served, among other functions, as the podium
from which his sovereignty was affirmed and his ideology of jihåd
was expounded. NËr al-DÈn took great interest in what was being
said on his behalf on the minbars of his cities, as a letter to his vizier
Ibn al-Qaysaråni clearly states. The letter and Ibn al-Qaysaråni’s
reply describe the general topics that the khatÈbs discussed in the
Friday sermon. In his reply, NËr al-DÈn urges his vizier not to allow
the khatÈbs to indulge in their usual hyperboles about his great-
ness but, rather, to emphasise his sovereignty, humility before God,
justice and, especially, jihåd.38 These topics are, in essence, expanded
ersions of the titulary of NËr al-DÈn as it appears, for example, on
v
his minbar in Hama. Under Saladin, the secular function of the
minbar seems to have been further emphasised, as indicated by Ibn
Jubayr’s detailed description of the khutba (Friday sermon) ceremony
in that period.39
We may conclude, then, that the minbar built by NËr al-DÈn for
his mosque in Hama and another which he commissioned for the
Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem bore the message of his sovereignty and
dedication to jihåd. This assertion is perfectly consistent with the
inscriptions on the Hama minbar. The minbar contains two his-
torical inscriptions on long friezes which border the two balustrades;
the left inscription has, however, been removed and is now preserved
above the entrance. This is essentially an abbreviated version of the
main inscription of the building, with emphasis on jihåd and justice.
The right inscription is somewhat different, with emphasis on piety
and humility. The cornice bears a Qurʾånic inscription which speaks
about the wonder of God’s creation of the Heavens, and the back
of the chair has the Shahåda in two lines of large thuluth within
cartouches. Thus, the minbar, in its inherent political significance
and in the meaning of its inscriptions, repeats and re-affirms the
messages of the historical and Qurʾanic inscriptions of the mosque.
The minbar which NËr al-DÈn commissioned for the Aqsa mosque
of Jerusalem puts forth his most eloquent statement of jihåd (Figure
1.10). Finished in 1169, it was an outstanding monument in every
respect until it was completely burnt on its eighth centennial by
a Christian fanatic. Aesthetically, it was one of the most splendid
minbars ever built.40 Ibn Jubayr, who saw the minbar in 1182 when
it was temporarily kept in the Great Mosque of Aleppo, was quite
impressed by it:
The qarbasa craft has exhausted its resources in this minbar, for
I have not seen in any other country a minbar which resembles
its shape and the uniqueness of its manufacture . . . It rises like an
enormous crown above the mihrab until it reaches the ceiling.
Its top part is arched and open with balconies. It is all inlaid with
ivory and ebony, and this inlay work continues to the mihrab and
beyond to the qibla wall without any apparent division, so that
the eyes enjoy one of the most beautiful sights in the world.41
The beauty of the minbar was matched by its great significance and
forceful message, which are evident in its historical and Qurʾånic
inscriptions and the unusual circumstances of its commission.42
From the year 1164, NËr al-DÈn focused his diplomatic and mili-
tary efforts on the conquest of Egypt as a source of revenue to finance
his war against the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem and as an ideal place
to launch unconstricted attacks against the Holy City.43 Indeed,
by 1168 he had Egypt under his control, and his dream to restore
Figure 1.4 Hama. Mosque of NËr al-DÈn, Minbar. Inscription on back of

chair, 559/1164 (photo: Yasser Tabbaa)
Jerusalem to Islam was a distinct possibility. It was around this time

that NËr al-DÈn commissioned the minbar, with the apparent inten-
tion of placing it in the Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem. Needless to say,
he was not able to fulfil his dream, and the minbar was kept in the
Great Mosque of Aleppo in the meantime.
The main historical inscription extended on a band bordering the
four sides of the left balustrade (Figure 1.11). The superb thuluth
script was made more legible by having it painted in white:44
(1) Basmala . . . Has ordered its making the slave, (2) the needy to
His mercy, the thankful for His Grace, the defender against the
enemies of His faith, al-Malik al ʿAdil NËr al-DÈn, the pillar of
Islam and the Muslims, the helper of the oppressed against the
oppressors, Abu-l-Qåsim MahmËd ibn Zanki ibn Åq Sunqur (3)
the helper (to victory) of the Commander of the Faithful. May
God make his victories glorious and preserve his power; may He
raise his signs and spread in the two sides of the earth his stand-
ards and emblems; may He strengthen the supporters of his reign
and humiliate those ungrateful of his favor; may He grant him
conquest at his own hands and delight his eyes with victory and
closeness to Him. At Your mercy O God of the Worlds. In the
months of the year 564.
This is the richest of all NËr al-DÈn’s inscriptions in proclamations

of the victory of Islam and defeat of the infidels. While it contains
a number of standard epithets (or formules banales) such as ‘the
needy for His mercy’ and ‘the pillar of Islam and the Muslims’,
the inscription also contains a number of unusual formulas and
eulogies which seem to refer to the actual situation, namely NËr al-
DÈn’s wish to conquer Jerusalem. The rare epithet ‘the thankful for
His Grace’ seems to have a subtle optative meaning: NËr al-DÈn is
thanking God for the benefits which He will grant him in the future.
Much more suggestive, however, is the eulogy fataha lahu wa-’alå
yadaihi (that God may grant him conquest and make it happen at
his own hands). NËr al-DÈn not only wishes for a Muslim conquest,
he also asks God to bestow the honour of conquest upon him. The
last eulogy, wa-aqarra bin naßri waz-zulfa ‘ayna˙u (that God may
delight his eyes with victory and closeness to Him), adds a moral and
religious tone to NËr al-DÈn’s plea for conquest, for he hopes that
this conquest will bring him closer to God.45
Such a long series of emotional invocations is extremely uncom-
mon in historical inscriptions, which rarely transcend the banal.
How is one to explain such immediate sentiments; indeed, how
is one to interpret the significance of a minbar built for Jerusalem
when that city was still firmly in the hands of the Franks and was to
remain so for twenty more years? One may glean answers to these
inquiries from the statements of two contemporary historians, ʿImåd
al-DÈn al-Ißfahåni and Ibn al-AthÈr. The first author wrote:
After Jerusalem had been seized, Saladin gave the order . . . to place
in the Aqsa mosque an inaugural (rasmi) minbar for the first day,
as prescribed by religious law. But, in time a more splendid minbar
was needed . . . Saladin then recalled that al-Malik al-ʾÅdil NËr
al-DÈn had had one made for Jerusalem more than twenty years
before the capture of the city . . . He wrote to Aleppo to claim it and
have it transported to Jerusalem, thereby using it for the purpose
for which it had been made . . . It is said that God had revealed
in advance (alhama) to NËr al-DÈn . . . that Jerusalem would be
captured after him . . . for he is one of His intimate confidants and
servants honoured to receive His revelations. There was in Aleppo
a carpenter (najjår) called al-AkhtarÈni who had no equal in the
excellence of his craft. NËr al-DÈn ordered him to build a minbar
for the Sacred House of God (Jerusalem), for which he was advised
to employ all his skills . . . He, therefore, brought together many
artisans, made an excellent design for the minbar, and dedicated
several years to complete his work . . . In the meantime, it was
said everywhere: ‘This is an impossible thing; this is an illogical
opinion . . . Sooner to the sky that than Jerusalem should return
to Islam . . . And the Franks, who will control them . . . becoming
day after day more numerous . . . Were we not forced to share with
them the majority of the provinces of the Hawran? Have they not
opposed faith by heresy and have they not day after day defeated
the Muslim princes? See to what degree of degradation we have
fallen.’ But he [NËr al-DÈn] who possessed the force of certitude and
who knew that God will confirm the victory of the true religion:
‘Patience’, said he . . . for he had foreseen with the light of divina-
tion that the conquest will be soon and that God will grant his
request [concerning the minbar] only after this conquest . . . As it
happened, the blessing which he received from God was extended

to Islam after him and sealed by the conquest of Saladin . . . The
minbar had stayed in its place in the Great Mosque of Aleppo . . .
until the present day, when Saladin ordered the fulfillment of the
vow [nadhr] of NËr al-DÈn and had the minbar transported to the
place for which it was destined in Jerusalem.46
Van Berchem described ʿImåd al-DÈn’s statement as ‘a living com-

mentary on the inscriptions of the minbar’.47 Indeed, everything in
it is in perfect accord, not only with the inscriptions of the minbar
but also with the signature of the master carpenter al-AkhtarÈnÈ,
which appears on the minbar along with four other signatures. There
is, however, one important discrepancy, the author’s claim that NËr
al-DÈn knew with certainty that God would not grant him the con-
quest of Jerusalem but was, rather, saving this favour for Saladin. This
is highly unlikely for a number of reasons. First, relations between
NËr al-DÈn and Saladin were already quite strained by the year 1168
(when the minbar was commissioned), primarily because of their
differences with regard to jihåd policy and the possession of Egypt.48
Far from considering Saladin his successor and, therefore, worthy
of the honour of having the minbar taken to Jerusalem, NËr al-DÈn
rather thought of him as a disobedient officer, even a rival. Second,
if the minbar was, indeed, not destined to be placed in the Aqsa
mosque until the death of NËr al-DÈn, then why the pleas and eulo-
gies and why ask God to grant victory to a dead person? Fortunately,
ʿImåd al-DÈn himself gave the answer when he, perhaps unwittingly,
described the minbar as a nadhr, or ex-voto. The minbar was, then,
intended by NËr al-DÈn and understood in his time as an ex-voto for
obtaining the capture of Jerusalem.49
Ibn al-AthÈr, the official historian of the Zangid dynasty of Mosul,
repeated ʿImåd al-DÈn’s account of the minbar, but with one major
difference: rather than re-stating the author’s convoluted story about
NËr al-DÈn’s intentions, he quoted NËr al-DÈn as saying ‘we have
made this [the minbar] to set up in Jerusalem’.50 While Ibn al-AthÈr
has sometimes been rightfully accused of partiality to the Zangids
against Saladin, this is one instance, I believe, when he was in the
right. On the other hand, it is ʿImåd al-DÈn, the official historian
of Saladin, who in this case may have twisted the facts to suit the
orders of his patron.
Ismåʾil, NËr al-DÈn’s young son and successor, added his own
inscription to the minbar,51 stating that the minbar was finished
under him. There are reasons, however, to doubt that Ismåʾil had
any work performed on the minbar, with the exception of adding his
own inscription. The minbar is dated 1169, and there is every reason
to believe that it was finished by that date or, at the very latest, by
the death of NËr al-DÈn in 1174. It is known, for example, that the
minbar was already placed in the Great Mosque of Aleppo during
the lifetime of NËr al-DÈn, a strong indication that it was, indeed,
finished. This suggests that Ismåʾil’s inscription served a symbolic
function only, to connect him with this ex-voto, in the hope that
God would grant him the favour He had denied his father.52
As it happened, it was neither father nor son but Saladin who
conquered Jerusalem in 1187. In the same year, while inspecting the
works to restore the Muslim shrines of Jerusalem to their original
use, he ordered that a minbar be built for the Aqsa mosque. It would
seem certain that he knew about NËr al-DÈn’s minbar, but for reasons
of sovereignty, he wanted to have his own. When he was reminded
(according to Ibn al-AthÈr’s version of the story) that NËr al-DÈn had
already had one specifically made for the Aqsa mosque, he, perhaps
unwillingly, had the minbar brought to Jerusalem and placed in the
Aqsa mosque. By this act, Saladin fulfilled NËr al-DÈn’s vision and
symbolically asserted his sovereignty over Jerusalem, thirteen years
after his death. Saladin had to settle for building the mi˙råb. He
made sure, however, to have it inscribed with the statement that
Jerusalem was re-conquered at his own hands (ʿalå yadayhi).53
If the minbar symbolised the sovereignty of a Muslim ruler over
a particular city, the minaret was, perhaps, the most visible symbol
of Islam. As such, the minaret served to assert the presence of Islam
in a city or a particular locale, in addition to its function as a tower
from which to call for the prayer.54 Between the years 1165 and
1170, NË al-DÈn had a number of minarets built: on the gates of the
Damascus enclosure (Figure 1.12), in Raqqa, Qalʾat Jaʾbar, Mosul, and
perhaps also in Maʾrrat al-Nuʾman.55 The symbolic, propagandistic
intent is particularly evident in the otherwise useless minarets of
the Damascus enclosure. These minarets were originally associated
with tiny mosques – all disappeared now – which would not normally
have any minarets at all. It would seem, then, that these minarets,
of which only the one at Bab Sharqi (Figure 1.12) could date from
the time of NËr al-DÈn, served to re-affirm the Islamic character of
Damascus and its function as the centre of the jihåd of NËr al-DÈn.
Figure 1.5 Mosul. Great Mosque of NËr al-DÈn, 1170–2. Inscriptions on

columns (photo: Yasser Tabbaa)
Figure 1.6 Aleppo. Madrasa al-Hallåwiyya. Western apse (photo: Yasser

Tabbaa)
Figure 1.7 Aleppo. Qastal al-Shuʾaybiyya. Plan and elevation (Herzfeld)

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The Production of Meaning in Islamic

Architecture and Ornament 1st Edition

The Tender Detail Ornament and Sentimentality in the

Synagogues in the Islamic World Architecture Design and

The Grammar of Ornament A Visual Reference of Form and

Architecture of the Islamic West North Africa and the

The Encoded Cirebon Mask Materiality Flow and Meaning

Building Meaning An Architecture Studio Primer on

The Psychology of Meaning in Life 1st Edition Tatjana

Money & and the Meaning of Life 1st Edition Jacob

Series titles include:

Studies in Islamic Painting, Epigraphy and Decorative Arts

© Yasser Tabbaa, 2021

Cover image: Yasser Tabbaa Archive, courtesy of Aga Khan

Edinburgh University Press Ltd

Typeset in Trump Medieval by

ISBN 978 1 4744 8218 9 (hardback)

The right of Yasser Tabbaa to be identified as author of this work has

Published with the support of the University of Edinburgh Scholarly

CHAPTER 1 Monuments with a Message: Propagation of

CHAPTER 7 The Mosque of NËr al-DÈn in Mosul, 1170–1172 129

PART III DOMES

CHAPTER 10 The Muqarnas Dome: Its Origin and Meaning 201

CHAPTER 13 The Transformation of Arabic Writing: Part 1,

CHAPTER 16 The Medieval Islamic Garden: Typology and

CHAPTER 19 Invented Pieties: The Rediscovery and

1.1 Aleppo. Qastal al-Shuʾaybiyya, 545/1150, façade 8

2.11 Aleppo. Minaret of the Great Mosque, 1090, detail 36

6.11 Minbar of NËr al-DÈn. Detail and analysis of inside of

9.11 Mosul. Shrine of Imam Yahya b. al-Qasim – Mosul,

13.3 Page of Qurʾån, Iraq/Iran, third/ninth century 264

14.5 Cairo. Mosque al-Óåkim: inscriptions in the maqsËra,

16.15 Palermo, La Ziza, view of salsabÈl381

19.22 Damascus. Shrine of Sayyida Ruqayya, hadith

A series of chance encounters with prominent scholars, all dating to

For better or worse, I was a solitary traveller, a one-person expedi-

likely in continuity with Qurʾånic practice and in opposition to the

Monuments with a Message:

Yasser Tabbaa (1986), ‘Monuments with a Message: Propagation of Jihad

the need to refer to historical sources – it was thought advisable to

The cathedral, as correctly reconstructed by M. Ecochard, was of

This, the most spectacular of NËr al-DÈn’s victories over the

In 1150, NËr al-DÈn built the qastal and madrasa al-Shuʾaybiyya

Figure 1.1 Aleppo. Qastal al-Shuʾaybiyya, 545/1150, façade (photo: Yasser

or whether it was totally made in the middle of the twelfth century.

Figure 1.2 Aleppo. Qastal al-Shuʾaybiyya, 545/1150, detail of entablature

se l’étant approprié, transformèrent en lieu de culte en murant ses

general ­similarities among these monuments, as in the use of KËfic

Figure 1.3 Hama. Mosque of NËr al-DÈn. Façade inscription, 558/1163,

his kingdom, but suffered a disastrous defeat in al-Buqayʾ, near Krak

The mosque contains a minbar with an inscription of NËr al-DÈn

the delegation went to the Jåmiʾ al-Sultan in Baghdad where they

Figure 1.4 Hama. Mosque of NËr al-DÈn, Minbar. Inscription on back of

Jerusalem to Islam was a distinct possibility. It was around this time

This is the richest of all NËr al-DÈn’s inscriptions in proclamations

happened, the blessing which he received from God was extended

Van Berchem described ʿImåd al-DÈn’s statement as ‘a living com-

Figure 1.5 Mosul. Great Mosque of NËr al-DÈn, 1170–2. Inscriptions on

Figure 1.6 Aleppo. Madrasa al-Hallåwiyya. Western apse (photo: Yasser

Figure 1.7 Aleppo. Qastal al-Shuʾaybiyya. Plan and elevation (Herzfeld)

To protect the Project Gutenberg™ mission of promoting the

Section 1. General Terms of Use and

1.B. “Project Gutenberg” is a registered trademark. It may only

CHAPTER 1 Monuments with a Message: Propagation of

CHAPTER 7 The Mosque of NËr al-DÈn in Mosul, 1170–1172 129

CHAPTER 10 The Muqarnas Dome: Its Origin and Meaning 201

CHAPTER 13 The Transformation of Arabic Writing: Part 1,

CHAPTER 16 The Medieval Islamic Garden: Typology and

CHAPTER 19 Invented Pieties: The Rediscovery and

1.1 Aleppo. Qastal al-Shuʾaybiyya, 545/1150, façade 8

2.11 Aleppo. Minaret of the Great Mosque, 1090, detail 36

13.3 Page of Qurʾån, Iraq/Iran, third/ninth century 264

16.15 Palermo, La Ziza, view of salsabÈl381

general similarities among these monuments, as in the use of KËfic