Dictionary of islamic architecture

See also:
Abbasids, Baghdad, Samarra, Syria
Further reading:
J.-C.Heusch and M.Meinecke, ‘Grabungen im
abbasidischen Palastareal von ar-Raqqa/ar-Rafiqa’,
Damaszener Mitteilungen
2: 85–105, 1985.
M.al-Khalaf, ‘Die abbasidische Stadtmauer von ar-Raqqa/
ar Rafiqa’
,
Damaszener Mitteilungen
2: 122–31, 1985.
J.Warren, The date of the Baghdad Gate at Raqqa’, 
Art and
Archaeology Research Papers
XIII: 22–3, 1978.
rauza
Persian term for mausoleum.
Red Fort (Lal Qila)
Mughal palace in Delhi built by the Mughal emperor Shah
Jahan between 1638 and 1648
.
The building derives its name from the use of red
sandstone as the main building material. The palace
forms the core of Shah Jahan’s new city of
Shahjahanabad. The fort is located next to the Jumna
river and surrounded on all four sides by a high
crenellated wall which on the landward side is
enclosed within a moat. The two main entrances to
the palace are the Lahore and Delhi gates both of
which were enlarged by Jahan’s successor
Aurangzeb. The internal layout of the palace is
symmetrical and was probably based on that of the
Agra fort. The Lahore gate was the main form of
public access and leads into a large square with the
Red Fort (Lal Qila)

---

246
imperial audience hall on the opposite side. The
private apartments were made up of a series of
pavilions and gardens arranged in a rigid geometry.
The decoration of the palace is of outstanding quality
and refinement and with the Alhambra is one of the
finest examples of Islamic palatial architecture.
Decorative techniques include painting, gilding,
pietra dura (stone inlay) gilding and white marble
carved in shallow relief.