The Mansoor Jahan Mosque (, , ), also known as the Jamia Masjid of Thatta (, ), is a 17th-century building that serves as the
central mosque for the city of
Thatta, in the
Pakistan
Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...
i province of
Sindh
Sindh ( ; ; , ; abbr. SD, historically romanized as Sind (caliphal province), Sind or Scinde) is a Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Pakistan. Located in the Geography of Pakistan, southeastern region of the country, Sindh is t ...
. The mosque is considered to have the most elaborate display of tile work in
South Asia
South Asia is the southern Subregion#Asia, subregion of Asia that is defined in both geographical and Ethnicity, ethnic-Culture, cultural terms. South Asia, with a population of 2.04 billion, contains a quarter (25%) of the world's populatio ...
,
[ and is also notable for its geometric brick work – a decorative element that is unusual for Mughal-period mosques.][ It was built during the reign of Mughal emperor ]Shah Jahan
Shah Jahan I, (Shahab-ud-Din Muhammad Khurram; 5 January 1592 – 22 January 1666), also called Shah Jahan the Magnificent, was the Emperor of Hindustan from 1628 until his deposition in 1658. As the fifth Mughal emperor, his reign marked the ...
, who bestowed it to the city as a token of gratitude,[ and is heavily influenced by ]Central Asia
Central Asia is a region of Asia consisting of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The countries as a group are also colloquially referred to as the "-stans" as all have names ending with the Persian language, Pers ...
n architecture – a reflection of Shah Jahan's campaigns near Samarkand
Samarkand ( ; Uzbek language, Uzbek and Tajik language, Tajik: Самарқанд / Samarqand, ) is a city in southeastern Uzbekistan and among the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest continuously inhabited cities in Central As ...
shortly before the mosque was designed.[
]
Location
The mosque is located in eastern Thatta, the capital of Sindh in the 16th and 17th centuries before Sindh's capital was shifted to nearby Hyderabad
Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...
. It is located near the Makli Necropolis
Makli Necropolis (; ) is one of the largest funerary sites in the world, spread over an area of 10 kilometres near the city of Thatta, in the Pakistani province of Sindh. The site houses approximately 500,000 to 1 million tombs built over the c ...
, a UNESCO World Heritage Site
World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...
. The site is approximately from Karachi
Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...
.
Background
Shah Jahan sought refuge in Thatta from his father, Emperor Jahangir
Nur-ud-din Muhammad Salim (31 August 1569 – 28 October 1627), known by his imperial name Jahangir (; ), was List of emperors of the Mughal Empire, Emperor of Hindustan from 1605 until his death in 1627, and the fourth Mughal emperors, Mughal ...
, after he had rebelled against him. Shah Jahan was impressed by the hospitality he received by the Sindhi people
Sindhis are an Indo-Aryan peoples, Indo-Aryan Ethnicity, ethnic group originating from and native to Sindh, a region of Pakistan, who share a common Sindhi culture, History of Sindh, history, #History, ancestry, and Sindhi language, langua ...
, and ordered construction of the mosque as a token of gratitude.[
Construction of the mosque may have also been partially motivated by a desire to help alleviate the effects of a devastating storm that impacted the region in 1637,][ and which had nearly destroyed Thatta.][
Shah Jahan's campaigns in Central Asia during this era influenced the mosque's architectural style, as Timurid influences were introduced into the Mughal Empire as his armies pressed towards ]Samarkand
Samarkand ( ; Uzbek language, Uzbek and Tajik language, Tajik: Самарқанд / Samarqand, ) is a city in southeastern Uzbekistan and among the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest continuously inhabited cities in Central As ...
, in modern-day Uzbekistan
, image_flag = Flag of Uzbekistan.svg
, image_coat = Emblem of Uzbekistan.svg
, symbol_type = Emblem of Uzbekistan, Emblem
, national_anthem = "State Anthem of Uzbekistan, State Anthem of the Republ ...
.[ Despite the fact that the Emperor was not in the region during its construction, and so was unlikely directly involved in its construction, its profuse tile-work and intricate brick work indicate that it was funded by the Mughal's imperial coffers.][
]
History
Persian inscriptions at the mosque indicated that it was built between 1644 and 1647,[ during the reign of Mughal Emperor ]Shah Jahan
Shah Jahan I, (Shahab-ud-Din Muhammad Khurram; 5 January 1592 – 22 January 1666), also called Shah Jahan the Magnificent, was the Emperor of Hindustan from 1628 until his deposition in 1658. As the fifth Mughal emperor, his reign marked the ...
. An eastern addition was completed in 1659, during the reign of Emperor saiqa vakil.
The mosque's ''mihrab
''Mihrab'' (, ', pl. ') is a niche in the wall of a mosque that indicates the ''qibla'', the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca towards which Muslims should face when praying. The wall in which a ''mihrab'' appears is thus the "''qibla'' wall".
...
'' had initially been incorrectly aligned with Mecca
Mecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia; it is the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valley above ...
. The Sufi
Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism.
Practitioners of Sufism are r ...
mystic, Makhdum Nooh, who is buried in the nearby city of Hala is said to have been approached by the mosque's planners in order to correct its alignment. Popular tradition maintains that Makhdum Nooh then corrected the error overnight by the power of his prayer, thereby ensuring his status as a saint. Historical records show that the mosque's ''mihrab'' had actually been rebuilt a century after the mosque's construction.[
]
Architecture
The Shah Jahan Mosque's architectural style is overtly influenced by Turkic and Persian styles. The mosque is characterized by extensive brickwork
Brickwork is masonry produced by a bricklayer, using bricks and mortar. Typically, rows of bricks called '' courses'' are laid on top of one another to build up a structure such as a brick wall.
Bricks may be differentiated from blocks by ...
and the use of blue tiles, both of which were directly influenced by Timurid architectural styles from Central Asia
Central Asia is a region of Asia consisting of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The countries as a group are also colloquially referred to as the "-stans" as all have names ending with the Persian language, Pers ...
[ − from where the previous rulers of Sindh, the Tarkhans, had hailed before the region was annexed by the Mughals in 1592.][
]
Decorative elements
Tile work
The profuse use of tiles is considered to be the most elaborate display of tile work in the Indian Subcontinent
The Indian subcontinent is a physiographic region of Asia below the Himalayas which projects into the Indian Ocean between the Bay of Bengal to the east and the Arabian Sea to the west. It is now divided between Bangladesh, India, and Pakista ...
.[ Unlike the ]Wazir Khan Mosque
The Wazir Khan Mosque (, ''Wazīr Khã Masīt''; Persian language, Persian, ) is a 17th-century Mughal Empire, Mughal masjid located in the city of Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab, Pakistan.
The mosque was commissioned by the then governor ...
in Lahore
Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...
, another Shah Jahan era mosque, the mosque in Thatta does not employ the use of fresco
Fresco ( or frescoes) is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaster, the painting become ...
.
The mosque's tiles represent a direct influence of the Timurid style. The mosque employs cobalt blue
Cobalt blue is a blue pigment made by sintering cobalt(II) oxide with aluminium(III) oxide (alumina) at 1200 °C. Chemically, cobalt blue pigment is cobalt(II) oxide-aluminium oxide, or cobalt(II) aluminate, CoAl2O4. Cobalt blue is lighte ...
, turquoise
Turquoise is an opaque, blue-to-green mineral that is a hydrous phosphate of copper and aluminium, with the chemical formula . It is rare and valuable in finer grades and has been prized as a gemstone for millennia due to its hue.
The robi ...
, manganese violet, and white tiles.
The mosque's dome is embellished with exquisite blue and white tile-work arranged in stellated patterns to represent the heavens.[ Its walls feature calligraphic tile work, signed by ''Abdul Ghafur'' and ''Abdul Sheikh''.
The tiles' location and arrangement displays Persian ]Safavid
The Guarded Domains of Iran, commonly called Safavid Iran, Safavid Persia or the Safavid Empire, was one of the largest and longest-lasting Iranian empires. It was ruled from 1501 to 1736 by the Safavid dynasty. It is often considered the begi ...
influence,[ and features several colours on a single tile,][ unlike tile work at ]Lahore
Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...
which featured a single colour on each tile.[ The use of multicolour tiles and floral patterns reflects Persian ]Kashan
Kashan (; ) is a city in the Central District (Kashan County), Central District of Kashan County, in the northern part of Isfahan province, Isfahan province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district.
History
Earlies ...
i influences.[
]
Brick work
The mosque features extensive brickwork laid in geometric patterns, which is a decorative element unusual for Mughal era mosques,[ and is an element of Timurid architecture adopted for use in the mosque.][ The mosque's brickwork was also influenced by Sindhi vernacular styles, which in turn was influenced by Persian architecture.][ Brick work is most notable in the arcades surrounding the central courtyard, while concentric rings of brick are used to embellish the underside of peripheral domes.
]
Layout
The layout of the mosque may have been influenced by the conservative Timurid-style Humayun Mosque in Kachhpura, near the city of Agra
Agra ( ) is a city on the banks of the Yamuna river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, about south-east of the national capital Delhi and 330 km west of the state capital Lucknow. With a population of roughly 1.6 million, Agra is the ...
,[ in modern-day ]India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
. The main entryway into the mosque complex is through a Persian-style '' charbagh'', or quadrangle garden.
It has a four-iwan layout. The main prayer hall is set to the west of its central courtyard, which features iwan
An iwan (, , also as ''ivan'' or ''ivān''/''īvān'', , ) is a rectangular hall or space, usually vaulted, walled on three sides, with one end entirely open. The formal gateway to the iwan is called , a Persian term for a portal projecting ...
s, or portals, in each of its four cardinal directions. The courtyard is rectangular in shape, and measures by . It is surrounded by aisled galleries, which are lined with 33 arches.
The mosque's ''mihrab'' features pierced screens – an element that is commonly employed on Mughal funerary monuments, but unusual in Mughal mosques.[ The mosque features excellent acoustics; a person speaking on one end of the dome can be heard from the other end when the speech exceeds 100 ]decibels
The decibel (symbol: dB) is a relative unit of measurement equal to one tenth of a bel (B). It expresses the ratio of two values of a power or root-power quantity on a logarithmic scale. Two signals whose levels differ by one decibel have a ...
. Prayers in the main prayer hall can be heard throughout the entire building.
The mosque is unusual for its lack of minarets. It has a total of 93 domes, the most of any structure in Pakistan.
Conservation
Restoration works were carried out by Emperor Aurangzeb in 1692, as well as by Murad Ali Khan Talpur in 1812. The mosque was inscribed on the tentative UNESCO World Heritage
World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...
list in 1993, but has not been conserved to the same high standards as the Wazir Khan Mosque
The Wazir Khan Mosque (, ''Wazīr Khã Masīt''; Persian language, Persian, ) is a 17th-century Mughal Empire, Mughal masjid located in the city of Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab, Pakistan.
The mosque was commissioned by the then governor ...
or Badshahi Mosque
The Badshahi Mosque (; ) is a Mughal Empire, Mughal-era congregational mosque, imperial mosque located in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan. It was constructed between 1671 and 1673 during the rule of Aurangzeb, opposite of the Lahore Fort on the north ...
in northern Pakistan.
Gallery
File:PK Thatta asv2020-02 img04 Shah Jahan Mosque.jpg, The mosque's mihrab
''Mihrab'' (, ', pl. ') is a niche in the wall of a mosque that indicates the ''qibla'', the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca towards which Muslims should face when praying. The wall in which a ''mihrab'' appears is thus the "''qibla'' wall".
...
File:The Other Portion of Beautiful Shah Jahan Mosque.jpg, Arcades around the central courtyard feature bricks laid in geometric patterns
File:Shahjahan Mosque Thatta Sindh.JPG, A close up view of mosque's geometric brickwork
File:Intricate tile work on the ceiling - Shah Jahan Mosque.jpg, Some peripheral domes feature colored tiles as well as brick.
File:Inside this architectural feat - Shah Jahan Mosque.jpg, Arches off of the central prayer chamber are decorated with blue Sindhi tiles
File:Shah jahan mosque -Thatta 7(asad aman).jpg, View from the gardens
File:Shahjahan Mosque.jpg, A view of the mosque's courtyard
File:Shah Jahan Mosque Thatta Sindh Pakistan 8.jpg, Pillar relief corner
File:Details in the Entrance portal in one of the iwans - Shah Jahan Mosque.jpg, The mosque's ''iwan
An iwan (, , also as ''ivan'' or ''ivān''/''īvān'', , ) is a rectangular hall or space, usually vaulted, walled on three sides, with one end entirely open. The formal gateway to the iwan is called , a Persian term for a portal projecting ...
s'', or entry portals, are also decorated with tile work.
Further reading
*Khan, Ahmed Nabi and Robert Wheeler. Islamic Architecture in South Asia, Oxford: Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...
, 2003.
*Lari, Yasmeen. Traditional Architecture of Thatta, Karachi: Heritage Foundation, 1989.
*Mumtaz, Kamil Khan. Architecture in Pakistan, Singapore: Concept Media Pte Ltd, 1985.
*Nadiem, Ihsan H. Historic Mosques of Lahore, Lahore: Sang-e-Meel Publications, 1998.
*Nadiem, Ihsan H. Makli: The Necropolis at Thatta, Lahore: Sang-e-Meel Publications, 2000.
See also
* Wazir Khan Mosque
The Wazir Khan Mosque (, ''Wazīr Khã Masīt''; Persian language, Persian, ) is a 17th-century Mughal Empire, Mughal masjid located in the city of Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab, Pakistan.
The mosque was commissioned by the then governor ...
– another Shah Jahan period mosque. Located in Lahore
Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...
, the mosque is considered to be the most elaborately decorated Mughal mosque.
* List of mosques in Pakistan
References
External links
Video of the Shah Jahan Mosque, Thatta
Oriental Architecture – Shah Jahan Mosque
{{coord, 24.7472, N, 67.9278, E, source:wikidata, display=title
Thatta District
Mughal mosques
Mosques in Sindh
1647 establishments in Asia
Mosques completed in the 1650s
Religious buildings and structures completed in 1659
Mosque buildings with domes in Pakistan
Tourist attractions in Thatta
Grand mosques