Umayyad architecture developed in the
Umayyad Caliphate
The Umayyad Caliphate (661–750 CE; , ; ar, ٱلْخِلَافَة ٱلْأُمَوِيَّة, al-Khilāfah al-ʾUmawīyah) was the second of the four major caliphates established after the death of Muhammad. The caliphate was ruled by th ...
between 661 and 750, primarily in its heartlands of
Syria and
Palestine. It drew extensively on the architecture of older Middle Eastern and Mediterranean civilizations including the
Sassanian Empire
The Sasanian () or Sassanid Empire, officially known as the Empire of Iranians (, ) and also referred to by historians as the Neo-Persian Empire, was the History of Iran, last Iranian empire before the early Muslim conquests of the 7th-8th cen ...
and
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
, but introduced innovations in decoration and form.
Under Umayyad patronage, Islamic architecture began to mature and acquire traditions of its own, such as the introduction of
mihrabs to mosques, a trend towards
aniconism in decoration, and a greater sense of scale and monumentality compared to previous Islamic buildings.
The most important examples of Umayyad architecture are concentrated in the capital of
Damascus and the
Greater Syria region, including the
Dome of the Rock, the
Great Mosque of Damascus, and secular buildings such as the
Mshatta Palace and
Qusayr 'Amra It is not known who the woman represents, but due to the apparent classical and late Roman style of depicting her, a number of mythological persons have been suggested.
Qusayr 'Amra or Quseir Amra, ''lit.'' "small qasr of 'Amra", sometimes also na ...
.
Historical background
The Umayyad Caliphate was established in 661 after
Ali
ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib ( ar, عَلِيّ بْن أَبِي طَالِب; 600 – 661 CE) was the last of four Rightly Guided Caliphs to rule Islam (r. 656 – 661) immediately after the death of Muhammad, and he was the first Shia Imam ...
, the son-in-law of
Muhammad
Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد; 570 – 8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet divinely inspired to preach and confirm the mo ...
, was murdered in
Kufa
Kufa ( ar, الْكُوفَة ), also spelled Kufah, is a city in Iraq, about south of Baghdad, and northeast of Najaf. It is located on the banks of the Euphrates River. The estimated population in 2003 was 110,000. Currently, Kufa and Najaf a ...
.
Muawiyah I, governor of Syria, became the first Umayyad
caliph
A caliphate or khilāfah ( ar, خِلَافَة, ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with the title of caliph (; ar, خَلِيفَة , ), a person considered a political-religious successor to th ...
. The Umayyads made
Damascus their capital. Under the Umayyads the Arab empire continued to expand, eventually extending to
Central Asia
Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a subregion, region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes t ...
and the borders of
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
in the east,
Yemen
Yemen (; ar, ٱلْيَمَن, al-Yaman), officially the Republic of Yemen,, ) is a country in Western Asia. It is situated on the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula, and borders Saudi Arabia to the Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, north and ...
in the south, the Atlantic coast of what is now
Morocco
Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria t ...
and the
Iberian Peninsula
The Iberian Peninsula (),
**
* Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica''
**
**
* french: Péninsule Ibérique
* mwl, Península Eibérica
* eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, def ...
in the west. The Umayyads built new cities, often unfortified military camps that provided bases for further conquests.
Wasit
Wasit ( ar, وَاسِط, Wāsiṭ, syr, ܘܐܣܛ) is an ancient city in Wasit Governorate, south east of Kut in eastern Iraq.
History
The city was built by al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf in c. 702 CE on the west bank of the Tigris across from the hi ...
in present-day
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and K ...
was the most important of these, and included a square
Friday mosque
A congregational mosque or Friday mosque (, ''masjid jāmi‘'', or simply: , ''jāmi‘''; ), or sometimes great mosque or grand mosque (, ''jāmi‘ kabir''; ), is a mosque for hosting the Friday noon prayers known as ''jumu'ah''.*
*
*
*
*
*
*
...
with a
hypostyle roof.
The empire was tolerant of existing customs in the conquered lands, creating resentment among those looking for a more
theocratic
Theocracy is a form of government in which one or more deities are recognized as supreme ruling authorities, giving divine guidance to human intermediaries who manage the government's daily affairs.
Etymology
The word theocracy originates fr ...
state. In 747, a revolution began in
Khorasan, in the east. By 750 the Umayyads had been overthrown by the
Abbasids, who moved the capital to
Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the ...
. A branch of the Umayyad dynasty continued to rule in Iberia until 1051.
Characteristics
The Umayyads adopted the construction techniques of
Byzantine architecture and
Sasanian architecture
Sasanian architecture refers to the Persian architectural style that reached a peak in its development during the Sasanian era. In many ways the Sasanian Empire period (224–651 CE) witnessed the highest achievement of Iranian civilization, and ...
. The reuse of elements from
classical Roman and Byzantine art was particularly evident because political power and patronage was centered in Syria, formerly part of the
Byzantine (Eastern Roman) Empire.
Almost all monuments from the Umayyad period that have survived are in Syria and Palestine. They also often re-used existing buildings. There was some innovation in decoration and in types of building. A significant amount of experimentation occurred as Umayyad patrons recruited craftsmen from across the empire and architects were allowed, or even encouraged, to mix elements from different artistic traditions and to disregard traditional conventions and restraints.
Most buildings in Syria were of high quality ashlar masonry, using large tightly-joined blocks, sometimes with carving on the facade. Stone barrel vaults were only used to roof small spans. Wooden roofs were used for larger spans, with the wood in Syria brought from the forests of
Lebanon
Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to Lebanon–Syria border, the north and east and Israel to Blue ...
. These roofs usually had shallow pitches and rested on wooden trusses. Wooden domes were constructed for
Al-Aqsa Mosque
Al-Aqsa Mosque (, ), also known as Jami' Al-Aqsa () or as the Qibli Mosque ( ar, المصلى القبلي, translit=al-Muṣallā al-Qiblī, label=none), and also is a congregational mosque located in the Old City of Jerusalem. It is situate ...
and the Dome of the Rock, both in
Jerusalem
Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
. Baked brick and mud brick were used in Mesopotamia, due to lack of stone. Where brick was used in Syria, the work was in the finer Mesopotamian style rather than the more crude Byzantine style.
Umayyad architecture is distinguished by the extent and variety of decoration, including mosaics, wall painting, sculpture and carved reliefs with Islamic motifs. The Umayyads used local workers and architects. Some of their buildings cannot be distinguished from those of the previous regime. However, in many cases eastern and western elements were combined to give a distinctive new Islamic style. For example, the walls at
Qasr Mshatta are built from cut stone in the Syrian manner, the vaults are Mesopotamian in design and
Coptic and Byzantine elements appear in the decorative carving. While figural scenes were notably present in monuments like
Qusayr 'Amra It is not known who the woman represents, but due to the apparent classical and late Roman style of depicting her, a number of mythological persons have been suggested.
Qusayr 'Amra or Quseir Amra, ''lit.'' "small qasr of 'Amra", sometimes also na ...
, non-figural decoration and more abstract scenes became highly favoured, especially in religious architecture.
The
horseshoe arch
The horseshoe arch (; Spanish: "arco de herradura"), also called the Moorish arch and the keyhole arch, is an emblematic arch of Islamic architecture, especially Moorish architecture. Horseshoe arches can take rounded, pointed or lobed form.
Hi ...
appears for the first time in Umayyad architecture, later to evolve to its most advanced form in
al-Andalus
Al-Andalus translit. ; an, al-Andalus; ast, al-Ándalus; eu, al-Andalus; ber, ⴰⵏⴷⴰⵍⵓⵙ, label= Berber, translit=Andalus; ca, al-Àndalus; gl, al-Andalus; oc, Al Andalús; pt, al-Ândalus; es, al-Ándalus () was the M ...
.
Dome of the Rock
The sanctuary of the
Dome of the Rock, standing on the
Haram al-Sharif (Temple Mount) in Jerusalem, is the oldest surviving major Islamic building.
It is also an exceptional monument within the context of Umayyad and wider Islamic architecture, in terms of both its form and function.
It was not a mosque but rather a shrine or commemorative monument, likely built to honour ancient religious associations with the site such as the
creation of Adam and
Abraham's sacrifice. It acquired further layers of meaning over time and became most commonly associated with the "
Night Journey
The Israʾ and Miʿraj ( ar, الإسراء والمعراج, ') are the two parts of a Night Journey that, according to Islam, the Islamic prophet Muhammad (570–632) took during a single night around the year 621 (1 BH – 0 BH). With ...
" of Muhammad. It was also built as a visual symbol of Islamic dominance and its high dome was likely designed to compete for prominence with the dome of the nearby Christian
Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
The building followed the design of a Byzantine
martyrium.
It consists of an octagonal structure, inside of which is another octagon formed by piers and columns, and finally an inner circular ring of piers and columns at the center.
Although the exterior of the building is now covered in 16th-century
Ottoman tiles, both the exterior and interior were originally decorated with lavish mosaics, with the interior mosaics still mostly preserved today.
The mosaics are entirely
aniconic
Aniconism is the absence of artistic representations (''icons'') of the natural and supernatural worlds, or it is the absence of representations of certain figures in religions. It is a feature of various cultures, particularly of cultures which a ...
, a characteristic that would continue in later
Islamic decoration.
The imagery consists of vegetal motifs and other objects such as vases and chalices.
The building was also decorated with long inscriptions containing
Qur'anic
The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation from God. It is organized in 114 chapters (pl.: , sing. ...
inscriptions chosen to emphasize the superiority of Islam over the preceding
Abrahamic religions
The Abrahamic religions are a group of religions centered around worship of the God of Abraham. Abraham, a Hebrew patriarch, is extensively mentioned throughout Abrahamic religious scriptures such as the Bible and the Quran.
Jewish tradition ...
.
Mosques
General development
The earliest mosques were often makeshift. In Iraq, they evolved from square prayer enclosures. The ruins of two large Umayyad mosques have been found in
Samarra, Iraq. One is and the other . Both had
hypostyle designs, with roofs supported by elaborately designed columns.
In Syria, the Umayyads preserved the overall concept of a court surrounded by porticos, with a deeper sanctuary, that had been developed in Medina. Rather than make the sanctuary a hypostyle hall, as was done in Iraq, they divided it into three aisles. This may have been derived from church architecture, although all the aisles were the same width. In Syria, churches were converted to mosques by blocking up the west door and making entrances in the north wall. The direction of prayer was south towards Mecca, so the long axis of the building was at right angles to the direction of prayer.
The Umayyads introduced a
transept
A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building wi ...
that divided the prayer room along its shorter axis. They also added the
mihrab to mosque design. The
Prophet's Mosque in
Medina
Medina,, ', "the radiant city"; or , ', (), "the city" officially Al Madinah Al Munawwarah (, , Turkish: Medine-i Münevvere) and also commonly simplified as Madīnah or Madinah (, ), is the second-holiest city in Islam, and the capital of the ...
built by
al-Walid I had the first mihrab, a niche on the qibla wall, which seems to have represented the place where the Prophet stood when leading prayer. This almost immediately became a standard feature of all mosques. The ''
minbar'' also began appearing in mosques in cities or administrative centers, a throne-like structure with regal rather than religious connotations.
Great Mosque of Damascus
The
Great Mosque of Damascus was built by the caliph al-Walid I around 706–715. Some scholars have argued that the first Umayyad version of the
al-Aqsa Mosque
Al-Aqsa Mosque (, ), also known as Jami' Al-Aqsa () or as the Qibli Mosque ( ar, المصلى القبلي, translit=al-Muṣallā al-Qiblī, label=none), and also is a congregational mosque located in the Old City of Jerusalem. It is situate ...
in Jerusalem, begun by
Abd al-Malik (al-Walid's father) and now replaced by later constructions, had a layout very similar to the current Umayyad Mosque in Damascus and that it probably served as a model for the latter. The layout remains largely unchanged and some of the decoration has been preserved. The Great Mosque was built within the area of a Roman ''
temenos
A ''temenos'' ( Greek: ; plural: , ''temenē''). is a piece of land cut off and assigned as an official domain, especially to kings and chiefs, or a piece of land marked off from common uses and dedicated to a god, such as a sanctuary, holy gr ...
'' from the first century. The exterior walls of the earlier building, once a temple of Jupiter and later a church, were retained, although the southern entrances were walled up and new entrances made in the north wall. The interior was completely rebuilt.
The Damascus mosque is rectangular, , with a covered area and a courtyard surrounded by a portico. The prayer hall has three aisles parallel to the
qibla
The qibla ( ar, قِبْلَة, links=no, lit=direction, translit=qiblah) is the direction towards the Kaaba in the Sacred Mosque in Mecca, which is used by Muslims in various religious contexts, particularly the direction of prayer for the ...
wall, a common arrangement in Umayyad mosques in Syria. The court holds a small octagonal building on columns. This was the treasury of the Muslims, perhaps only symbolic, which was traditionally kept in a town's main mosque. The mosque was richly decorated with mosaics and
marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite. Marble is typically not foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the term ''marble'' refers to metamorphose ...
. A rich composition of marble paneling covered the lower walls, though only minor examples of the original marbles have survived today near the east gate. The marble window grilles in the great mosque, which diffuse the light, are worked in patterns of interlocking circles and squares, precursors to the
arabesque
The arabesque is a form of artistic decoration consisting of "surface decorations based on rhythmic linear patterns of scrolling and interlacing foliage, tendrils" or plain lines, often combined with other elements. Another definition is "Foli ...
style that would become characteristic of Islamic decoration.
Vast portions of the mosque's walls were decorated with mosaics, of which some original fragments have survived, including some that depict the houses, palaces and river valley of Damascus. Byzantine artisans were reportedly employed to create them, and their imagery reflects a late Roman style.
They reflected a wide variety of artistic styles used by mosaicists and painters since the 1st century CE, but the combined use of all these different styles in the same place was innovative at the time. Similar to the Dome of the Rock, built earlier by Abd al-Malik, vegetation and plants were the most common motif, but those of the Damascus mosque are more naturalistic. In addition to the large landscape depictions, a mosaic frieze with an intricate
vine
A vine (Latin ''vīnea'' "grapevine", "vineyard", from ''vīnum'' "wine") is any plant with a growth habit of trailing or scandent (that is, climbing) stems, lianas or runners. The word ''vine'' can also refer to such stems or runners themsel ...
motif (referred to as the ''karma'' in
Arabic
Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...
historical sources) once ran around the walls of the prayer hall, above the level of the ''mihrab''. The only notable omission is the absence of human and animal figures, which was likely a new restriction imposed by the Muslim patron. Scholars have long debated the meaning of the mosaic imagery. Some historical Muslim writers and some modern scholars have interpreted them as a representation of all the cities in the known world (or within the Umayyad Caliphate at the time), while other scholars interpret them as a depiction of
Paradise
In religion, paradise is a place of exceptional happiness and delight. Paradisiacal notions are often laden with pastoral imagery, and may be cosmogonical or eschatological or both, often compared to the miseries of human civilization: in parad ...
.
Other mosques
The Great Mosque of Damascus served as a model for later mosques. Similar layouts, scaled down, have been found in a mosque excavated in
Tiberias
Tiberias ( ; he, טְבֶרְיָה, ; ar, طبريا, Ṭabariyyā) is an Israeli city on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee. A major Jewish center during Late Antiquity, it has been considered since the 16th century one of Judaism's F ...
, on the
Sea of Galillee, and in a mosque in the palace of
Khirbat al-Minya. The plan of the
White Mosque at
Ramla
Ramla or Ramle ( he, רַמְלָה, ''Ramlā''; ar, الرملة, ''ar-Ramleh'') is a city in the Central District of Israel. Today, Ramle is one of Israel's mixed cities, with both a significant Jewish and Arab populations.
The city was f ...
differs in shape, and the prayer hall is divided into only two aisles. This may be explained by construction of underground cisterns in the Abbasid period, causing the original structure to be narrowed.
The
Mosque of Sidi Okba near
Biskra
Biskra ( ar, بسكرة ; ; Latin Vescera) is the capital city of Biskra Province, Algeria. In 2007, its population was recorded as 307,987. Biskra is located in northeastern Algeria, about 248 miles (400 km) from Algiers, 71 miles (115&n ...
(present-day
Algeria
)
, image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Algiers
, coordinates =
, largest_city = capital
, relig ...
) belongs to a large complex built around the tomb of the governor of
Ifriqiya, '
Uqba ibn Nafi
ʿUqba ibn Nāfiʿ ibn ʿAbd al-Qays al-Fihrī al-Qurashī ( ar, عقبة بن نافع بن عبد القيس الفهري القرشي, ʿUqba ibn Nāfiʿ ibn ʿAbd al-Qays al-Fihrī), also simply known as Uqba ibn Nafi, was an Arab general ser ...
' (d. 683). This mosque is one of the oldest in
North Africa
North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...
, though it has been significantly modified in later periods. Its hypostyle layout resembles the early mosques of Medina, with seven naves running parallel to the qibla wall. This type of transverse configuration of the naves is reminiscent of Umayyad or early Medina mosques.
Desert palaces
The Umayyads are known for their desert palaces, some new and some adapted from earlier forts. The largest is
Qasr al-Hayr al-Sharqi. The palaces were symbolically defended by walls, towers and gates. In some cases the outside walls carried decorative friezes. The palaces would have a bath house, a mosque, and a main castle. The entrance to the castle would usually be elaborate. Towers along the walls would often hold apartments with three or five rooms. These rooms were simple, indicating they were little more than places to sleep. The palaces often had a second floor holding formal meeting rooms and official apartments.
The fortress-like appearance was misleading. Thus
Qasr Kharana
Qasr Kharana ( ar, قصر خرّانة), sometimes Qasr al-Kharana, Kharana, Qasr al-Harrana, Qasr al-Kharanah, Kharaneh, Khauranee, or Hraneh, is one of the best-known of the desert castles located in present-day eastern Jordan, about east of ...
appears to have
arrowslit
An arrowslit (often also referred to as an arrow loop, loophole or loop hole, and sometimes a balistraria) is a narrow vertical aperture in a fortification through which an archer can launch arrows or a crossbowman can launch bolts.
The interio ...
s, but these were purely decorative. The fortress-like plan was derived from
Roman forts
In the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire, the Latin word ''castrum'', plural ''castra'', was a military-related term.
In Latin usage, the singular form ''castrum'' meant 'fort', while the plural form ''castra'' meant 'camp'. The singular and ...
built in Syria, and construction mostly followed earlier Syrian methods with some Byzantine and Mesopotamian elements. The baths derive from Roman models, but had smaller heated rooms and larger ornate rooms that would presumably have been used for entertainment. The palaces had floor mosaics and frescoes or paintings on the walls, with designs that show both eastern and western influences. One fresco in the bath of Qusayr 'Amra depicts six kings. Inscriptions below in Arabic and Greek identify the first four as the rulers of Byzantium, Spain (at that time Visigothic), Persia and Abyssinia.
Stucco sculptures were sometimes incorporated in the palace buildings.
Qasr al-Hayr al-Sharqi is about northeast of
Palmyra
Palmyra (; Palmyrene: () ''Tadmor''; ar, تَدْمُر ''Tadmur'') is an ancient city in present-day Homs Governorate, Syria. Archaeological finds date back to the Neolithic period, and documents first mention the city in the early secon ...
on the main road from
Aleppo to Iraq. A large walled enclosure was presumably used to contain domestic animals. A walled ''madina'', or city, contained a mosque, an olive oil press and six large houses. Nearby there was a bath and some simpler houses. According to an inscription dated 728, the caliph provided significant funding for its development. The settlement has a Late Antiquity Mediterranean design, but was soon modified. The ''madina'' originally had four gates, one in each wall, but three were soon walled up. The basic layout was formal, but the buildings often failed to comply with the plan. Most of the desert palaces were abandoned after the Umayyads fell from power, and remain as ruins.
Notable examples
Jordan
*
Qasr Amra
*
Qasr al Hallabat
*
Qasr al-Muwaqqar
*
Qasr al-Qastal
*
Qasr Hammam As Sarah
*Qasr of
Jabal al-Qal'a, Amman
*
Qasr Kharana
Qasr Kharana ( ar, قصر خرّانة), sometimes Qasr al-Kharana, Kharana, Qasr al-Harrana, Qasr al-Kharanah, Kharaneh, Khauranee, or Hraneh, is one of the best-known of the desert castles located in present-day eastern Jordan, about east of ...
*
Qasr Mshatta
*
Qasr Tuba
Syria
*
Al-Omari Mosque,
Bosra
Bosra ( ar, بُصْرَىٰ, Buṣrā), also spelled Bostra, Busrana, Bozrah, Bozra and officially called Busra al-Sham ( ar, بُصْرَىٰ ٱلشَّام, Buṣrā al-Shām), is a town in southern Syria, administratively belonging to the Dara ...
*
Great Mosque of Hama
*
Mabrak an-Naqah Mosque, Bosra
*
Qasr al-Hayr al-Gharbi
*
Qasr al-Hayr al-Sharqi
*
Umayyad Mosque
The Umayyad Mosque ( ar, الجامع الأموي, al-Jāmiʿ al-Umawī), also known as the Great Mosque of Damascus ( ar, الجامع الدمشق, al-Jāmiʿ al-Damishq), located in the old city of Damascus, the capital of Syria, is one of the ...
, Damascus
Palestine and Israel
*
Al-Aqsa Mosque
Al-Aqsa Mosque (, ), also known as Jami' Al-Aqsa () or as the Qibli Mosque ( ar, المصلى القبلي, translit=al-Muṣallā al-Qiblī, label=none), and also is a congregational mosque located in the Old City of Jerusalem. It is situate ...
*
Al-Sinnabra
*
Dome of the Rock, Jerusalem
*
Dome of the Chain
Dome of the Chain ( ar, قبة السلسلة, Qubbat al-Silsilah) is an Islamic free-standing domed building located adjacently east of the Dome of the Rock in the Old City of Jerusalem. It is one of many small buildings that can be found scatte ...
, Jerusalem
*
Khirbat al-Mafjar
Hisham's Palace ( ar, قصر هشام '), also known as Khirbat al-Mafjar ( ar, خربة المفجر), is an important early Islamic archaeological site in the Palestinian city of Jericho, in the West Bank. Built by the Umayyad dynasty in the ...
*
Khirbat al-Minya
*
White Mosque, Ramla
Algeria
*
Sidi Okba Mosque
Lebanon
*
City of Anjar, Lebanon
Saudi Arabia
*
Al-Masjid an-Nabawi
Tunisia
*
Great Mosque of Kairouan
The Great Mosque of Kairouan ( ar, جامع القيروان الأكبر), also known as the Mosque of Uqba (), is a mosque situated in the UNESCO World Heritage town of Kairouan, Tunisia and is one of the most impressive and largest Islamic mo ...
or Mosque of Uqba
Gallery
File:Chain Dome.jpg, The Dome of the Chain
Dome of the Chain ( ar, قبة السلسلة, Qubbat al-Silsilah) is an Islamic free-standing domed building located adjacently east of the Dome of the Rock in the Old City of Jerusalem. It is one of many small buildings that can be found scatte ...
(Qubbet as-Silsilla) on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, much renovated version of structure first built in 691
File:Mosque of umar, bosra, syria, easter 2004.jpg, Al-Omari Mosque after renovations
File:Qasr Al-Hallabat mosque.jpg, Mosque at Qasr al Hallabat
File:Alheeralgharbi.jpg, Qasr al-Hayr al-Gharbi, a castle built by caliph Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik in 727, following Byzantine style.
File:Qasr Kharana in Jordan.jpg, Qasr Kharana
Qasr Kharana ( ar, قصر خرّانة), sometimes Qasr al-Kharana, Kharana, Qasr al-Harrana, Qasr al-Kharanah, Kharaneh, Khauranee, or Hraneh, is one of the best-known of the desert castles located in present-day eastern Jordan, about east of ...
in Jordan
File:Qasr Kharana courtyard.jpg, Courtyard of the Qasr Kharana
Qasr Kharana ( ar, قصر خرّانة), sometimes Qasr al-Kharana, Kharana, Qasr al-Harrana, Qasr al-Kharanah, Kharaneh, Khauranee, or Hraneh, is one of the best-known of the desert castles located in present-day eastern Jordan, about east of ...
File:Qasr al-Hayr al-Sharqi, Walls and towers, Syria.jpg, Qasr al-Hayr al-Sharqi in the Syrian desert
File:Qasr Amra.jpg, Qasr Amra in Jordan, from the south
File:Anjar - Cardo vu du nord 2.jpg, Ruins of the city of Anjar, Lebanon
Anjar (meaning "unresolved or running river"; ar, عنجر / ALA-LC: ''‘Anjar''; also known as Hosh Mousa ( ar, حوش موسى / ''Ḥawsh Mūsá''), is a town of Lebanon located in the Bekaa Valley. The population is 2,400, consisting alm ...
File:Pergamon Museum Berlin 2007131.jpg, Detail of the Mshatta facade
File:Qasr As Sarah, central vault.jpg, Central vault of the Qasr Hammam As Sarah bathhouse
File:Minya.jpg, Ruins of the Khirbat al-Minya in Galilee
File:Decoration at Umayyad Palace at Khirbat ul Minya-6.JPG, Decoration from Khirbat al-Minya
File:Umayyad Qasr, Amman, Jordan6.jpg, Umayyad Qasr, Amman, Jordan
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{{Islamic architecture
7th-century architecture
8th-century architecture
Architecture in Syria
Architecture in the State of Palestine
Architecture in Jordan