Dictionary of islamic architecture

parts and enclosed with a defensive wall fortified
with semi-circular buttress towers. Probably the
most important discovery is the congregational
mosque with a large central courtyard and no
mihrab. The absence of a mihrab confirms the early
date of the building given by an inscription dated
to 727.
Medieval architecture in Pakistan is best
represented by the funerary and religious buildings
of Multan and Uchch in the Punjab. There are few
remains from the Ghaznavid period apart from the
twelfth-century tomb of Khaliq Walid or Khalid
Walid near Multan. The tomb consists of a
rectangular baked-brick enclosure containing a
square domed chamber. The outer enclosure wall is
strengthened with semi-circular buttress towers and
includes a rectangular projection marking the
position of the mihrab in the west wall. Inside, the
mihrab consists of a rectangular recess covered with
an arched hood and framed by bands of inscriptions
cut into the brickwork. In the centre of the recess is a
blind niche set between pilasters and crowned with
a trefoil arch. The design of this mausoleum
represents the first stage in the evolution of the
medieval tombs of Multan which culminated in the
tomb of Shah Rukn-i Alam built during the reign of
Ghiyas al-Din Tughluq. In the latter tomb the outer
walls no longer form an enclosure but are wrapped
around the central octagonal tomb. Externally the
walls slope inward and are strengthened at the
corners by tapering domed turrets providing a
counter thrust to the weight of the dome. The
distinctive sloping walls and corner turrets of this
tomb were later repeated in the Tughluqid
architecture of Delhi.
Another architectural tradition is represented by
the flat-roofed tombs and mosques of Uchch a small
city to the south of Multan. A typical Uchch mosque
consists of a rectangular hall with wooden pillars
supporting beams resting on carved brackets. The
areas between the beams are covered with wooden
boards which are usually painted in yellow or white
against a bright orange or red ground. The walls of
the buildings are usually made of baked brick
covered in decorative cut plaster. Most buildings
of this type are entered via a projecting wooden
porch also supported on wooden columns.
Prominent buildings of this type are the tombs of
Jalal Din Surkh Bukhari, Abu Hanifa and Rajan
Qattal.
During the sixteenth century most of the area of
modern Pakistan was brought under Mughal rule.
In general imperial Mughal architecture was
Plan of tomb of Khalid Walid at Kabriwala, Pakistan (after Mumtaz)
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restricted to Lahore, whilst the rest of the country
developed its own regional style. One exception to
this general rule is the fort at Attock in the North-
West Province built by Akbar as a defence against
invasion from the west. The fort is built on a hillside
between the Indus and Kabul rivers and consists of
a huge enclosure wall fortified by projecting
machicolations and large round bastions. Other
buildings at Attock include the garden and palace
of Akbar which are small structures hidden
amongst the hills. Certainly the most developed
expression of Mughal architecture in Pakistan is the
fort at Lahore built by Akbar in 1556 on the banks
of the river Ravi. The plan of the Lahore fort
resembles those of Agra and Delhi with its riverside
position and its arrangement of gardens and
pavilions. The fort is entered via a main gateway
leading into a large rectangular courtyard with the
imperial reception hall (diwan-i amm) in the centre
of the wall opposite the entrance. Behind the
reception hall is the private area of the palace
divided into courtyards and gardens overlooking
the river. Apart from the fort the most important
imperial building in the city is the Badshahi Mosque
built by Aurangzeb in 1674. The mosque has the
same general plan as that of the Jami Masjid in Delhi
although the Badshahi Mosque is much larger.
Other imperial Mughal buildings in Lahore include
the tomb of Jahangir, the Shahdara complex and the
Shalamar Bagh.
In addition to the imperial Mughal complexes,
Lahore also contains some of the finest examples of
the regional Mughal style which is a mixture of
Mughal forms with local and Persian modifications.
Characteristic features of this style are the use of
brightly coloured tile mosaics, thick octagonal
minarets, wide flattened domes and arches. Probably
the finest example of tile mosaic (kashi) is the Picture
Wall in the fort at Lahore which includes both animal
and human figures. Probably more representative
of the local style is the tilework of the Wazir Khan
Mosque, where all surfaces are covered with floral
and geometric designs in coloured tiles. This mosque
also has the earliest examples of the thick octagonal
minarets which later became characteristic features
of Lahore architecture.
Outside Lahore, Mughal-period architecture may
be divided into a number of local styles, the most
significant of which is that of Sind. The architecture
of Sind was heavily influenced by the neighbouring
Seventeenth-century Mosque of Wazir Khan, Lahore, Pakistan (after Mumtaz)
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state of Gujarat in India which consists of heavily
carved trabeate stone buildings. Some of the finest
examples can be found in the Makli cemetery in
lower Sind, where exuberantly carved tombs are
covered by corbelled domed canopies resting on
square carved monolithic columns. Sind is also noted
for its geometric tile mosaics which may have been
the inspiration for the more naturalistic tilework of
Lahore. Some of the best examples of tilework can
be seen in the monuments of Hyderabad and Thatta
in upper Sind. Other characteristic features of
architecture in this region are the use of multiple
blind niches on outer walls and elaborately shaped
crenellations. During the period of British rule the
architecture of Pakistan was represented by an
eclectic mixture of European, Hindu and Mughal
styles. Immediately after Independence, Pakistani
architecture developed under the influence of
Modernism which saw its culmination in the
establishment of a new capital at Islamabad in 1960.
Although the design of Islamabad was based on
religious and national criteria it did not include
provision for a national mosque. This situation was
rectified in 1970 when work began on the Shah Faisal
Masjid which is a huge structure covered with a roof
in the form of a truncated pyramid flanked by four
tall pointed minarets.