Dictionary of islamic architecture

See also:
East Africa, Somalia
Monastir
Important medieval city on the east coast of Tunisia.
At present Monastir is on the coast, but in early
Islamic times it was probably a peninsula or island.
Monastir was one of the coastal cities developed by
the Aghlabids during the ninth century. The city
contains the remains of three ribats or fortified
monasteries the earliest of which is the great ribat of
Harthma ibn A
iyan founded in 796. The Great
Mosque of the city was built in the ninth century
although most of the structure dates to the tenth
century or later.
See also:
Aghlabids, Tunisia
Morocco (Arabic: Maghrib)
Country at the north-west corner of Africa with an
Atlantic and Mediterranean coast.
The country may be divided into three main
regions, the coastal plains, the Atlas mountains and
the Sahara desert. The majority of the population
lives on the plains with a smaller, more rural
population in the mountains. The Sahara is sparsely
inhabited.
Traditionally Islam first reached Morocco during
the conquest of the Arab general 
Uqba who reached
the shores of the Atlantic in 684. However, it seems
likely that the first real conquest, as opposed to a
temporary raid, took place at the beginning of the
eighth century under the general Musa ibn Nusayr.
The predominantly Berber population was quickly
converted to Islam and took part in the Muslim
conquest of Spain. After the initial success of the
Spanish conquest the Berbers were disappointed
with their share of the land allocations, in addition
many were affected by the doctrines of Kharijism
which represented a devia-tion from orthodox
Islam. By 740 the situation had become critical and
there was a rebellion against the Umayyads. A
Syrian army sent to restore order was defeated in
742 leaving Morocco independent of central control.
For the next forty years there was a period of
anarchy with several Berber groups vying for
power. In 788 the Idrissids emerged as the victors
and were able to establish an independent
monarchy which lasted until the end of the tenth
century when it became a victim of Fatimid and
Umayyad (Spanish) rivalry. During the eleventh
century the country was taken over by the
Almoravids who ruled an empire which included
southern Spain and much of north-west Africa. In
the mid-twelfth century the Almoravids were
displaced by the Almohads who conquered a vast
territory from the southern Sahara to central Spain.
The Almohad Empire collapsed in the mid-
thirteenth century to be replaced by the Marinids
who ruled an area roughly equivalent to modern
Morocco although there were constant attempts to
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expand eastward. Local unrest and increasing
European interest in Morocco led to the collapse of
the Marinids in the fifteenth century. A period of
anarchy was followed by a reaction against Christian
occupation of the coast which was embod-led in the
Sa
dian dynasty. The Sa
dians who claimed descent
from the Idrisids lasted until the mid-seventeenth
century when they were defeated by the 
Alawids.
The 
Alawids also had a semi-religious basis claiming
their descent from 
Ali, members of this dynasty still
rule the country.
A large variety of materials are used in historic
and traditional Moroccan architecture. This partly
reflects the variety of the natural landscape which
includes extremely high mountains, fertile plains and
arid desert. Another important factor is the influence
of Spanish architecture which was reinforced by the
Christian reconquest which drove Muslims
southwards into Morocco. The coastal cities of the
north inherited the Byzantine system of construction
in stone and baked brick. In the Atlas mountains mud
pisé and rubble stone construction were the
predominant materials although these were often
covered with plaster. Overlapping gutter-shaped
tiles with a characteristic blue-green colour were
used for the roofs of important buildings and may
represent Spanish influence. Small monochrome tiles
were used for floors, as dadoes for courtyards and
sometimes as decoration for whole façades. Wood
was relatively plentiful, cedar, cork and oak from
the Atlas mountains was used for a variety of
functions including roofing timber, supports for
projecting windows, panelled ceilings and decorative
mashrabiyya screens. The quality of wood carving
is extremely high and resembles that of Muslim
Spain. Stucco was extensively used for decorative
features such as multifoil arches and decorative
panels.
There are few examples of Moroccan Islamic
architecture from before the eleventh century and
those which do survive have been extensively
altered. The most important city for the early period
is Fez which was established as a capital in 807 by
Moulay Idris the Younger. Very little survives of
the early city although it is known that it had an
advanced water system which supplied water for
domestic use. Architecturally the most significant
buildings in the town are the Qarawiyyin and the
Andalusian mosques which were both built in the
ninth century. The form of these mosques with
aisles running parallel to the qibla wall cut by an
axial aisle is a Syrian—Umayyad plan. Later
mosques in Morocco follow the more usual North
African practice of aisles perpendicular to the qibla.
No mosques of the Almoravid period have
survived with the exception of the Great Mosque
of Taza which was considerably remodelled in later
periods.
Remains of the Almohad period are more
plentiful and include the Kutubiya and Kasba
mosques in Marakesh, the Hassan Mosque in Rabat
and the Great Mosque of Timnal. The earliest of these
is the mosque of Timnal which is built out of mud
pisé and baked brick. The prayer hall has nine aisles
perpendicular to the qibla wall and one aisle parallel
to the qibla wall, an arrangement which was to
become standard. The unusual feature of the
building is the incorporation of the mihrab into the
base of the minaret. This arrangement was not used
in subsequent mosques although huge decorative
minarets became one of the characteristic features
of Almohad architecture. The most impressive
example is the unfinished mosque of Hassan in Rabat
begun in 1196. This vast mosque measures 140 by
185 m and includes three rectangular courtyards. The