{"id":2738,"date":"2021-02-26T07:18:32","date_gmt":"2021-02-26T07:18:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/alqudsmalaysia-001-site4.itempurl.com\/?p=2738"},"modified":"2022-04-30T00:13:51","modified_gmt":"2022-04-30T00:13:51","slug":"domes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staging.aqsapedia.net\/staging\/2738","title":{"rendered":"Domes"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Al-Aqsa Mosque has a number of beautiful and graceful domes that adorn the courtyard of the mosque. These domes were built during the periods of Islamic rule from the Umayyad and the later eras such as Ayyubid, Mamluk and Ottoman periods. It is an expression of the interest of Muslims to have an impact and a contribution to the revival of al-Aqsa Mosque. These domes were built for various purposes, such as umbrellas for worshipers or teaching boards or for worship and retreat. The mosque contains 15 domes, as follows:<\/span><\/p>

1) The Dome of the Rock<\/strong><\/b><\/span><\/p>

The Umayyad Caliph Abdul Malek bin Marwan ordered the\u00a0building of the golden dome between 71-72 AH\/691-692 AC on\u00a0the highest spot of Al-Aqsa Mosque, in the middle of a plateau\u00a0that is 4 meters higher than the rest of the mosque\u2019s courtyards.<\/span>
The Dome of the Rock, which is the earliest existing model of\u00a0Islamic architecture, was built over what Muslims believe to be\u00a0the Rock of Ascension. It is sitting on top of an octagonal-shaped\u00a0building with four doors; the building\u2019s dimensions are 20.59\u00a0meters in length and 9.5 meters in height.<\/span><\/p>

The dome is based on\u00a0a circular drum ornamented with faience and decorated with\u00a0verses from chapter 17 (Al-Isra\u2019) of the Qur\u2019an. The dome has\u00a0a 2.5-3\u00b0 indentation in the structure of its circular pillars that\u00a0grants the person full vision of its interior including the stone\u00a0columns and pillars if he\/she stands at any of its four entrances.\u00a0A number of arched gates surround the Dome of the Rock\u2019s\u00a0plateau, but they only serve a decorative function.<\/span><\/p>

2) Dome of the Chain<\/strong><\/b><\/span><\/p>

The Umayyad Caliph Abdul Malik bin Marwan ordered the building of this dome in 72 AH\/691 AC. It is located to the east of the Dome of the Rock; although some people believe it was built as a prototype for the Dome of the Rock, yet it is smaller in size and different in shape. Historians differ over the purpose the Dome of the Chain was constructed for. Some say it was used as an exchequer, but this theory is quite unlikely because of the building\u2019s open structure that would make keeping money safe inside of it a very difficult task. Others suggest it was used as a lounge for architects and builders when they were building the Dome of the Rock itself. As for the Dome\u2019s physical characteristics, it is an open building that has eleven sides which are based on eleven marble columns, while the dome is sitting on a hexagonal drum. The faience that decorates the dome was brought to Al-Aqsa Mosque upon the Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent\u2019s orders in 969 AH\/1561 AC. During the Crusaders\u2019 occupation of Jerusalem the Dome was turned into a church called Saint James. It returned to Muslims\u2019 position after Saladin\u2019s liberation of Jerusalem in 583 AH\/1187 AC.<\/span><\/p>

3) The Dome of Ascension<\/strong><\/b><\/span><\/p>

The Dome of Ascension was built in commemoration of Prophet Mohammad\u2019s (PBUH) ascension to heaven (Al-Mi\u2019raj). It is a small octagonal dome based on 30 marble columns; the open space between the columns was later sealed using marble slabs. In the past, the dome was covered with lead sheets, but they were recently replaced by white stone plates. The Dome has a niche pointing towards the Qibla, and its main entrance is located on its northern side. What makes this Dome stand out is the smaller dome on top of it that looks like a crown. The Dome\u2019s accurate year of construction and its founder\u2019s name remain unknown; it was renovated by Prince Ezz Ad-Din Ottoman bin Ali Az-Zanjabily, the Governor of Jerusalem, during the Ayoubi King Al-Adel\u2019s reign in 597 AH\/1200 AC<\/span><\/p>

4) Dome of Moses<\/strong><\/b><\/span><\/p>

This dome is located in the middle of the Moses Platform\u00a0in the western courtyard of Al-Aqsa Mosque. It was built by\u00a0the Ayoubi King Najm Ad-Din bin Al-Malk Al-Kamel in 647 AH\/1249-1250 AC as a place of worship and a sanctuary for\u00a0clergymen and imams. It has a number of simple niches inside\u00a0and outside of it. Some historians say that it was named Dome of Moses in tribute to Prophet Moses (PBUH), while others\u00a0say it was named after a sheikh who used to lead prayers in\u00a0it. The Dome is also famous by the name the \u201cDome of the Tree\u201d because of its close location to a huge palm tree that\u00a0stood next to it in the past.<\/span><\/p>

5) Grammarian Dome<\/strong><\/b><\/span><\/p>

King Issa Al-Moatham ordered building this dome\u2019s basic\u00a0structure in 604 AH\/1207 AC and dedicated it to teaching\u00a0Arabic language and grammar in particular. In 608 AH\/1213 AC\u00a0he added\u00a0a dome on top of it. The building consists of two rooms\u00a0and a hallway in the middle that is topped with two domes: the\u00a0big silver dome lies on top of the western room, the smaller dome sits on top of the eastern room, while the hallway\u2019s roof\u00a0is \ufb02at. The dome\u2019s entrance is located on its northern side, and\u00a0is decorated with two marble columns famous by the name\u00a0of the \u201cUnthankful Son.\u201d The structure remained a school until\u00a0the 12th Century AH and has played a great role in Jerusalem\u2019s\u00a0cultural and intellectual scene and continued to be a school\u00a0for Arabic\u00a0language and grammar until the 12th Century AH.\u00a0During the past century the dome was used as\u00a0a library for\u00a0the Islamic Supreme Council, and as an architectural office for\u00a0the restoration and\u00a0reconstruction of the Dome of the Rock.\u00a0Today, it is serving as an office for the acting Supreme Judge and\u00a0as headquarters for the Shari\u2019a Appeal Court.<\/span><\/p>

6)\u00a0Suleiman\u2019s Dome<\/strong><\/b><\/span><\/p>

This dome is located in the northern part of Al-Aqsa Mosque to\u00a0the southwest of the Gate of Darkness. It is believed that it was\u00a0first built during the Umayyad era. It was rebuilt and renovated\u00a0during the Ayoubi era since it is similar in characteristics to the\u00a0Ayoubi Dome of Ascension. Some people say it was named in\u00a0tribute to Prophet Suleiman (PBUH), while others believe it was\u00a0named after its original founder, the Umayyad Caliph Suleiman\u00a0bin Abdul Malek. The dome is octagonal and based on 24 marble\u00a0columns; inside of it a small rock is displayed, believed to be a\u00a0piece taken from the Holy Rock of Ascension, which is why it\u00a0was protected by an iron fence in the past. The dome has a niche\u00a0pointing towards the Qibla, and a small entrance on the north.\u00a0Today, the building is used as headquarters for female preachers\u00a0in the Jerusalem Waqf Directorate.<\/span><\/p>

7) The Prophet\u2019s Dome and Niche<\/strong><\/b><\/span><\/p>

The Prophet\u2019s Dome is an octagonal dome located northwest of the Dome of the Rock. In 945 AH\/1538-1539AC, Mohammad Bek, the governor of Gaza and Jerusalem during the Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent\u2019s reign, built a niche on this location to mark the place where Muslims believe Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) led the prophets and angels in prayer at Al-Aqsa Mosque on the night of \u201cAl-Isra\u2019 wa Al-Mi\u2019raj.\u201d The Ottoman emperor Abdul Al-Majid bin Mahmoud II ordered the building of an octagonal dome that is based on eight marble columns over the niche.<\/span><\/p>

\u00a0<\/strong><\/b><\/span><\/p>

8) The Spirits Dome<\/strong><\/b><\/span><\/p>

This is a small octagonal dome located on the Dome of\u00a0the Rock\u2019s courtyard. It is based on eight marble columns\u00a0attached to eight arches carrying the dome\u2019s drum. The\u00a0Dome was probably built during the 10th Century AH\/16th<\/sup>\u00a0Century AC and was called the \u201cSpirits Dome\u201d because of its close location to a cave called the \u201cSpirits Cave.\u201d<\/span><\/p>

9) Al-Khadr\u2019s Dome<\/strong><\/b><\/span><\/p>

This small hexagonal dome was built in the 10th Century AH\u00a0on the Dome of the Rock Plateau, next to the northwestern\u00a0arched gate to mark the spot where Muslims believe a righteous man, who was mentioned in chapter 18 of the\u00a0Noble Qur\u2019an, Al-Khadr (PBUH), used to pray to Allah. The\u00a0dome is based on six marble columns and includes a niche built with red stone inside.<\/span><\/p>

10) Dome of Yusuf Agha<\/strong><\/b><\/span><\/p>

Yusuf Agha, an Ottoman governor of Jerusalem, built this dome to the west of Al-Qibly Mosque in 1092 AH\/1681 AC. It is a square-shaped building topped with a small dome. Today, it is used as an information office of Al-Aqsa Mosque.<\/span><\/p>

11) Yusuf’s Dome<\/strong><\/b><\/span><\/p>

The dome was built in 587 AH\/1191 AC by the Ayoubi King\u00a0Saladin; it was renovated in 1092 AH\/1681 AC during the\u00a0Ottoman Era. According to some historians it was named Yusuf Dome in commemoration of Prophet Yusuf (PBUH). Others\u00a0attribute the name to its founder Yusuf bin Ayoub, who is\u00a0famous by the nickname Saladin. The dome\u2019s structure is open\u00a0from all sides, except for the southern side which is sealed\u00a0by a wall. It is based on two stone columns and contains two\u00a0inscriptions inside, one documenting Saladin\u2019s deeds, the other,\u00a0in Turkish, recognizing its renovator as Ali bin Yusuf Agha.<\/span><\/p>

12) The<\/strong><\/b>\u00a0Lovers of the Prophet (PBUH) Dome<\/strong><\/b><\/span><\/p>

The Ottoman Sultan Mahmud II wanted to leave a landmark\u00a0that commemorates him inside Al-Aqsa Mosque, thus he built\u00a0this dome in the northern part of the mosque next to the Gate of Darkness in 1223 AH\/808 AC. The dome is made of\u00a0a square building which is open from all sides and topped with\u00a0a small dome. The building is based on four stone pillars built over a platform that is half a meter higher than the rest of Al-Aqsa\u2019s grounds. It is also known by\u00a0the name \u201cThe Lovers of the\u00a0Prophet (PBUH) Dome\u201d because Suf Sheikhs used to gather\u00a0under it for prayers and remembrance of Allah.<\/span><\/p>

13) Cradle of Issa (Jesus) Mosque<\/strong><\/b><\/span><\/p>

The Cradle of Issa Mosque (also referred to as \u201cChrist\u2019s Mosque\u201d) is a small dome built during the late Ottoman era in 1898 AC, located next to the middle of a staircase on the southeastern corner of Al-Musalla Al-Marwani. It consists of a dome which is based on four stone columns that were built over a stone basin called \u201cthe Cradle of Issa,\u201d probably built during the Abbasid or Fatimid era. In spite of the mosque\u2019s name, there is no evidence in Islamic tradition that places Jesus (PBUH) in this location. Moreover, Christian clergymen in Jerusalem have issued a statement declaring that Christians do not have any monuments or holy sites anywhere inside Al-Aqsa Mosque.<\/span><\/p>

14) Mohammadiyah Lodge Dome\/<\/strong><\/b>\u00a0Al-Khalili<\/strong><\/b><\/span><\/p>

Mohammad Bek Hafez, an Ottoman Governor of Jerusalem,\u00a0ordered the building of this dome in 1112 AH\/1700 AC. The\u00a0dome is located to the northwest of the Dome of the Rock and consists of two rooms, one at the ground level, the other\u00a0an underground basement. This dome is also known by the\u00a0name \u201cSheikh Al-Khalili Dome\u201d after a Suf Sheikh that used to lead prayers there. Today, the dome is used as an office for\u00a0Al-Aqsa Mosque\u2019s Construction Committee.<\/span><\/p>

Source:<\/strong><\/b>\u00a0Palestinian Academic Society for the Study of International Affairs, Jerusalem.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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Al-Aqsa Mosque has a number of beautiful and graceful domes that adorn the courtyard of the mosque. These domes were built during the periods of Islamic rule from the Umayyad…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1966,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"elementor_theme","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2738","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-al-aqsa-architecture"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.aqsapedia.net\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2738","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.aqsapedia.net\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.aqsapedia.net\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.aqsapedia.net\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.aqsapedia.net\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2738"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/staging.aqsapedia.net\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2738\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.aqsapedia.net\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1966"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.aqsapedia.net\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2738"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.aqsapedia.net\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2738"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.aqsapedia.net\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2738"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}