Dictionary of islamic architecture

Further reading:
P.Hassan, ‘Sultanate mosques and continuity in Bengal
architecture’, 
Muqarnas
6, 1989. This deals with pre-
Mughal architecture.
Mosque of Zafar Khan, Ghazi, Bengal. Note multiple mihrabs (after
Michell)
Bengal

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35
G.Michell (ed.), 
The Islamic Heritage of Bengal,
Paris 1984.
This is the best reference book on Islamic architecture in
Bengal.
beteng
Indonesian term for enclosure wall, used to refer to
the outer walls of palaces in Java.
Bijapur
City in southern India famous for its sixteenth- and
seventeenth-century architecture.
Bijapur is located on an arid plateau between the
Krishna and Bhima rivers. The city rose to prominence
under the Adil Shahi dynasty who ruled the city from
the fifteenth century until its conquest by the Mughals
in 1686. Traditionally the dynasty was founded in 1490
when the Turkish governor Yusuf Khan declared the
independence of Bijapur. By the sixteenth century the
Adil Shahi dynasty ruled a huge area which extended
as far as Goa on the western coast.
Since the seventeenth century the city has shrunk
so that the present town occupies less than half the
original area. The original city walls with a
circumference of over 10 km survive to give some
idea of the city’s original importance. These massive
walls are surrounded by a moat and protected by
ninety-six bastions. There are five main gateways,
each of which consists of a bent entrance protected
by two large bastions. Within this huge enclosure
there is a smaller walled area known as the Arquila
or citadel which forms the centre of the modern
town. The city is supplied with water by a series of
underground water channels interspersed with
water towers to regulate the pressure.
Water is perhaps the most distinctive element in
the architecture of Bijapur and is used for ornamental
tanks, water pavilions, bath houses and ornamental
channels. The Mubarak Khan is one of the best
surviving examples of a water pavilion; it consists
of a three-storey structure with a shower bath on the
roof. Other notable examples include the Jal Mandir
Palace once located in the centre of a reservoir (now
disappeared) and the Sat Manzili which was
originally a seven-storey structure enlivened with
water tanks and spouting water.
The city contains several mosques, the largest of
which is the Jami Masjid founded in the sixteenth
century. The mosque has a rectangular central
courtyard containing several fountains in the centre.
The mosque sanctuary is nine bays wide and is
crowned by a large central dome. One of the more
unusual features of the mosque is the stone floor
which is divided up into 2,250 individual prayer
spaces. Other important mosques in the city are the
Jhangari Mosque and the Mecca Masjid which is
enclosed within huge walls.
The city contains many tomb complexes the best
known of which is the mausoleum of Muhamad
Adil Shah II, known as the Gol Gumbaz. Other
important mausoleums include the Ibrahim Rauza
built between 1626 and 1633. The complex consists
of a large square area enclosed within a tall wall
and entered via a monumental gateway flanked by
twin minarets. In the centre of the complex is a
raised platform containing two large buildings
either side of a sunken rectangular tank. To the east
surrounded by a colonnade is the domed tomb
chamber which has an extraordinary suspended
stone ceiling. To the west of the pool is the the
mosque with four thin minarets, one at each corner.
The whole complex is decorated with painted,
inlaid and carved ornament in the form of flowers
and arabic calligraphy.