Dictionary of islamic architecture

See also:
Ottomans
Further reading:
K.W.Arafat, ‘Ottoman Athens’, 
Arts and the Islamic World
4
no . 4: 1987/8.
—— ‘Ottoman Ioannina’, 
Arts and the Islamic World
no. 20
: 1991.
E.H.Ayverdi, ‘Yunanistan’, in 
Avrupa’da Osmanli Mimari
Eserleri
4 book 5, Istanbul 1981.
M.Kiel, ‘Islamic Architecture in the Balkans’, 
Arts and the
Islamic World
4 no . 3: 1987.
G.Soteriou, ‘Arabic remains in Athens in Byzantine
times’, 
Social Science Abstracts
2 no . 2 360 : 1930.
Gujarat
Predominantly Hindu coastal region of western India with
distinctive Islamic architecture.
Gujarat is a fertile low-lying region located between
Pakistan, Rajasthan and the Indian Ocean. The
position of the region on the Indian Ocean has meant
that it has always had extensive trading contacts
particularly with the Arabian peninsula. It is likely
that the first Muslims in Gujarat arrived sometime
in the eighth century although there is little
published archaeological evidence of this. The oldest
standing mosques in the area are located at the old
seaport of Bhadresvar in western Gujarat and have
been dated to the mid-twelfth century although they
may stand on older foundations.
The first Muslim conquest of the area took place
at the end of the thirteenth century under the Ala
al-Din the Khaliji sultan of Delhi. The earliest
monument from this period is the Jami Masjid at
Cambay which includes columns taken from ruined
Hindu and Jain temples. The form of the mosque
resembles that of the Quwwat al-Islam Mosque in
Delhi with a rectangular courtyard with gateways
on three sides and an arched screen in front of the
sanctuary on the west side. Other early mosques
built in a similar style include those of Dholka Patan
and Broach all of which are located close to the
coast. During the fifteenth century many mosques,
tombs and other monuments were built in the
regional capital Ahmadabad, the most significant
of which are the Jami Masjid and the tomb of
Ahmad Shah. These buildings incorporate many
features from Hindu temple architecture including
Gujarat

---

103
projecting balconies, perfo-rated jali screens and
square decorated columns. Monuments of the
sixteenth century contain the same Hindu and
Islamic elements combined in a more developed
fashion as can be seen in the Jami Masjid of
Champaner built in 1550. The Mughal conquest in
the mid-sixteenth century brought Gujarat into the
mainstream of architectural development.
However, the architecture of the region exerted a
considerable influence on the Mughal emperor
Akbar, who built the city of Fatehpur Sikri in
Gujarati style.
The secular architecture of Gujarat is mostly built
of wood and characterized by elaborately carved
screens and overhanging balconies. Another
characteristic feature of the region is the use of step
wells, or vavs, which consist of deep vertical shafts,
approached via recessed chambers and steps.
Sometimes these were very elaborate structures with
multiple tiers of steps.