Islamic architecture

Jaunpur
Jaunpur was a province of Delhi sultanate located just 58 km. southeast of the varanasi.
The city of jaunpur was established by Firojshah of Tugalak , was ruled by
the Sharqi dynasty
The most acclaimed ruler of this dynasty was Ibrahim Shah. The last ruler Hussain
Shah was overthrown by Bahlul Lodi, and Jaunpur sultanate was permanently annexed
to Delhi sultanate by Sikandar Lodi
Being known for its mosques. The famous mosque of Jaunpur are Atala Mosque,Jama
Mosque( Bari Mosque),Laldarwaja Mosque
Characteristics of architecture in Jaunpur

With Sharqis in Jaunpur the

militaristic style of architecture
flourished and main features became
Central pylons, Buttresses, Pointed
Arches
Pillared halls, Jalis,Hindu style of
decorations
 Jama masjid
The Jama Masjid, built in 1470 by the last of the Sharqis. Its foundation had
been laid at the time of Ibrahim Shah's rule and its construction was
completed in various phases. It was finished during the reign of Hussain
Shah. This mosque is very artistic and attractive. The eastern gateway was
destroyed by Sikandar Lodi. The outer boundary of the mosque is around
98 m on the east west and 94 m on the north-south side.
The decorations, its engravings in the Egyptian style, the curves of its
arches, the uniqueness of the Lotus, sunflower and rose motifs.
The mosque sits atop a six-metre
plinth, and the flight of steps leading
up to it is steep, underlining your
increasing proximity to heaven as
you ascend.
The courtyard of the Jami Masjid is
spacious, plain, silent, with a central
fountain with a square plan of 210 ft on
each side surrounded by cloisters on 3 sides
and a sanctuary on the west
The prayer hall is centred around a square
sanctuary covered by a dome that measures
11.4 meters in diameter windows pierced
into the dome’s drum illuminate the
interiors.
Center of each cloister is an entrance hall coverd
by a dome and they are all 2 storied.
In the centre of the sanctuary facade is a pylon 85
feet and 77feet wife at the base
On both sides of the nave are pillared side aisles
with an upper storey . This has its opening filled in
with stone jalis to provide a private area for the
royal ladies beyond the side aisles on the both sides
are 2 great vaulted halls each 40ft wide 45 ft high
ATALA MASJID
Atala Masjid or Atala Mosque is a 15th-
century mosque in Jaunpur, Uttar Pradesh, 
India.

The Jaunpur Atala Masjid was built by 

Sultan Ibrahim (1402–1436), Sharqi Sultan of
Jaunpur on foundations laid during the reign
of Tughluq Sultan Firuz Shah III (1351–1388).
Construction started in 1377 and was
completed in 1408.

The mosque was built on the site of the

Atala Devi temple whose materials along
with those of other temples were used in its
construction.
HISTORY OF ATALA MASJID
Atala masjid was the first mosque to be
built after the independence of Jaunpur
from the Islamic caliphate in India, the
Atala Mosque was given royal treatment
setting up a new monumentality to the
traditional jami'. The majestic pylons of
the portal of its main prayer room, the
three unequal domes above its roof and
the large court with its two storey
porticoes, all expressed a new grandeur
never seen before, adding more mystery
to the skill and imagination of the
medieval Muslim architect.
PLAN OF ATALA MASJID
The mosque has a square plan consisting
of three main sections. The sanctuary is a
long rectangular prayer hall of three aisles
deep running from north to south. The
hall is ordered around a central iwan
which is a square area containing the main
mihrab and carrying the largest dome of
the mosque.

The mosque consists of a square

courtyard of 177' side with cloisters on 3
sides and the sanctuary on the fourth
(western) side. Entire mosque is a square
of 258' side.
CLOISTERS
Cloister means a covered walkway in a convent,
monastery, college, or cathedral, typically with
a colonnade open to a quadrangle on one side.

In atala masjid the cloisters are spacious, being

42' across and divided into 5 aisles.
The cloisters rise up to 2 storeys.
Two aisles of the lower storey are formed into a
series of cells with a pillared verandah facing
the street to provide accommodation to visitors
and merchants.
There are 3 entrance gateways, one in the
centre of each cloister, with the northern and
southern ones surmounted by domes.
SANCTUARY
In the centre of the sanctuary facade, the
entrance to the nave is articulated by a lofty
pylon, 75' high and 55' wide at the base.
The pylon houses an 11' deep arched recess
which contains the entrance doorway to the
sanctuary nave and the windows which light it.
This arched pylon is the main theme of the
structure (and the style as a whole), being
repeated by smaller pylons on either side of the
central one and also on the gateways in the
cloisters.
The interior of the sanctuary consists of a
central nave of 35' X 30' with pillared transepts
on either side. The nave is roofed high up by a
hemispherical dome.
SANCTUARY
The interior nave is vertically divided into three parts. The first level consists of 3 mihrabs and
a high pulpit with arched openings to the transepts forming the sides of the room. The
second level consists of 8 decorated arches, out of which 4 are squinches, turning the room
into an octagon. The third level has a bracket in each corner turning the room into a 16 sided
structure. Each side contains an arch, thus creating an arcaded triforium which supports the
dome.
The dome is 57' high on the inside and constructed by means of circular courses of stone. The
exterior is covered with a layer of cement to give it a spherical curve.
Each transept is a pillared hall with an octagonal bay in the centre roofed by a smaller dome.
The transept at both ends becomes two storied, the upper compartment surrounded by
perforated screens forming a zenanachamber for women.
EXTERIOR OF ATALA MASJID

The rear wall of the sanctuary is worth

studying for its treatment.
Since the qibla resolves itself into an
expansive wall with no openings, architects
face a problem regarding the design of the
exterior.
The great plane of this wall is relieved by 3
projections, each corresponding to one of
the principal compartments of the interior
and coinciding with the domes.
Each projection has a tapering turret on its
corner, with a larger replica in each corner
of the building itself.