piers and 514 columns topped by a
unique system of double-tiered arches
that carried a wooden roof (later re-
placed by vaults). The two-story sys-
tem was the builders’ response to the
need to raise the roof to an acceptable
height using short columns that had
been employed earlier in other struc-
tures. The lower arches are horseshoe-
shaped, a form perhaps adapted from earlier Near Eastern architec-
ture or of Visigothic origin (FIG. 16-10). In the West, the horseshoe
arch quickly became closely associated with Muslim architecture.
Visually, these arches seem to billow out like windblown sails, and they
contribute greatly to the light and airy effect of the Córdoba mosque’s
interior.
The caliph al-Hakam II (r. 961–976) undertook major renova-
tions to the mosque. His builders expanded the prayer hall and
added a series of domes. They also erected the elaborate maqsura
(FIG. 13-12), the area reserved for the caliph and connected to his
palace by a corridor in the qibla wall. The Córdoba maqsura is a
prime example of Islamic experimentation with highly decorative,
multilobed arches. The builders created rich and varied abstract
patterns and further enhanced the magnificent effect of the com-
plex arches by sheathing the walls with marbles and mosaics. The
mosaicists and even the tesserae were brought to Spain from Constan-
tinople by al-Hakam II, who wished to emulate the great mosaic-
clad monuments his Umayyad predecessors had erected in Jeru-
salem (FIG. 13-3) and Damascus (FIG. 13-4).
The same desire for decorative effect also inspired the design of
the dome (FIG. 13-13) that covers the area in front of the mihrab.
One of the four domes built during the 10th century to emphasize
the axis leading to the mihrab, the dome rests on an octagonal base
of arcuated squinches. Crisscrossing ribs form an intricate pattern
centered on two squares set at 45-degree angles to each other. The
mosaics are the work of the same Byzantine artists responsible for
the maqsura’s decoration.
13-12Maqsura of the Great
Mosque, Córdoba, Spain, 961–965.
The maqsura of the Córdoba mosque
was reserved for the caliph and con-
nected to his palace. Its design is a
prime example of Islamic experimen-
tation with highly decorative multi-
lobed arches.13-13Dome in front of the mihrab of the Great Mosque, Córdoba,
Spain, 961–965.
The dome in front of the Córdoba mihrab rests on an octagonal base
of arcuated squinches. Crisscrossing ribs form an intricate decorative
pattern. Byzantine artists fashioned the mosaic ornament.
Early Islamic Art 349