Umayyad Mosque facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Umayyad Mosque |
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الْجَامِع الْأُمَوِي
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| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Islam |
| Status | Intact |
| Location | |
| Location | Damascus, Damascus Governorate |
| Country | Syria |
| Architecture | |
| Architectural type | Islamic |
| Architectural style | Umayyad |
| Completed | 715 CE |
| Specifications | |
| Minaret(s) | 3 |
| Minaret height | 253 ft (77 m) |
| Materials | Stone, marble, tile, mosaic |
| Official name: Ancient City of Damascus | |
| Type: | Cultural |
| Criteria: | i, ii, iii, iv, vi |
| Designated: | 1979 (3rd session) |
| Reference #: | 20 |
| Region: | Arab States |
The Umayyad Mosque (Arabic: الجامع الأموي, romanized: al-Jāmiʿ al-Umawī), also known as the Great Mosque of Damascus, is a very old and important mosque in Damascus, the capital of Syria. It is one of the largest mosques in the world. People believe it is where the head of John the Baptist is buried. This belief started in the 500s. The mosque also has shrines for Husayn ibn Ali, who was a grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad.
This special place has been used for worship for thousands of years. First, the Arameans built a temple there for their rain god, Hadad. Then, the Romans took over and changed it into a huge temple for their god, Jupiter. Later, when the Byzantine Christians ruled, Emperor Theodosius I turned it into a large church.
After Muslims conquered Damascus in 634, they used part of the church as a small prayer area. As more Muslims came to the city, the Umayyad ruler al-Walid I decided to build a grand mosque. He gave Christians other properties in the city as a fair trade. The old church was mostly taken down, and a new, huge mosque was built. It took many years and thousands of workers to build this amazing place.
History of the Umayyad Mosque
Ancient Worship Site
The land where the Umayyad Mosque stands has always been a place of worship. Long ago, during the Iron Age, the Arameans built a large temple there. They dedicated it to Hadad-Ramman, their god of thunderstorms and rain. One stone from this ancient temple, from the time of King Hazael, can still be seen today in a museum in Damascus.
When the Roman Empire took over Damascus in 64 BCE, they connected Hadad with their own god of thunder, Jupiter. They decided to make the temple even bigger and more impressive. A famous architect named Apollodorus of Damascus designed the new Temple of Jupiter.
This Roman temple became a very important place for worshipping Jupiter. It was one of the largest temples in Roman Syria. By the 300s CE, it was known for its huge size and beauty. It had two sets of walls around it. The inner wall protected the main temple, and the outer wall included a market area.
In 391 CE, the Christian emperor Theodosius I changed the Temple of Jupiter into a large church. This church became the main church for the Bishop of Damascus.
Building the Umayyad Mosque
How the Mosque Was Built
Muslim Arab forces captured Damascus in 634. In 661, the Umayyad dynasty took control and made Damascus their capital. The old Christian church was still used, but Muslims also had a small prayer room there. As the Muslim population grew, this prayer room became too small.
In 706, the Umayyad ruler al-Walid I decided to build a large mosque on the church's site. He personally oversaw the project. Most of the church was taken down, but the outer walls of the old Roman temple were kept. The mosque's prayer hall was built against the south wall. Workers reused columns and arches from the old church in the new building.
To make up for taking the church, al-Walid gave other churches in the city back to the Christians. The mosque was finished in 711, or perhaps in 715, shortly after al-Walid's death. It cost a lot of money to build, possibly over a million gold coins. Workers from many places, including Egypt, Persia, India, and Greece, helped build it.
Mosque Design and Layout
The design of the new mosque was very new and important for Islamic architecture. Earlier mosques were often simple halls with columns. But the Umayyad Mosque had a grand design with three parallel aisles. A central aisle led from the entrance to the mihrab (a special niche in the wall that shows the direction of prayer). This central aisle had a dome, which made the prayer area feel more important.
At first, the mosque did not have tall minaret towers. Instead, it used short towers or platforms at the corners of the outer wall. From these, the muezzin would call people to prayer. These were likely old Roman towers that were simply reused.
Beautiful Decorations
The mosque was decorated with amazing details. The lower walls were covered in rich marble panels. You can still see some of these original marbles near the east gate today. New windows were added to the upper walls, with beautifully carved grilles.
The most famous decorations were the mosaics. They covered much of the courtyard and the inside hall. The best-preserved parts can still be seen in the courtyard.
It's believed that the original mosque had the largest area of gold mosaics in the world, covering about 4,000 square meters. These mosaics show landscapes and buildings in a style from the late Roman period. They used many different art styles. Unlike some other art of the time, these mosaics did not show human or animal figures. This was likely a new rule from the Muslim leaders.
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Some historians say that the artists and materials for the mosaics came from the Byzantine capital, Constantinople. One story says that al-Walid I asked the Byzantine emperor for 200 artists. However, some experts think this story might have been made up later to show the power of the Muslim rulers.
Art experts like Finbarr Barry Flood note that Byzantine art was very admired during this time. While Byzantine influence is clear in the mosaics, it's possible that local artists also worked on them. Recent studies of the mosaic pieces suggest that most of them were made in Egypt.
People have long wondered what the mosaics mean. Some think they show all the cities in the world, or just Damascus and the Barada River. Others believe they show Paradise. The idea of Paradise is supported by some writings from the Qur'an that were on the mosque walls. These writings talk about the Day of Judgment and the reward of a heavenly garden.
The fact that there are no human figures in these scenes might mean it's a Paradise waiting for people to arrive at the end of time. The images have been compared to descriptions of Paradise in the Qur'an and older art. It's also possible that the mosaics combine several meanings, using images of Paradise to show Damascus as an ideal, earthly paradise.
The Prayer Niche (Mihrab)
The mosque's original mihrab was one of the first curved prayer niches in the Islamic world. It was the second one known to exist. We don't know exactly what the first mihrab looked like because it has been repaired many times.
A visitor in 1184 described the mihrab as having tiny arches, like small mihrabs, filled with shiny mother-of-pearl mosaics. This mihrab was famous for its beauty. It might have inspired other beautiful mihrabs built later by the Mamluk rulers. Experts think the mihrab described in 1184 was from a restoration in 1082.
Later Periods and Changes
Abbasid and Fatimid Eras
After the Umayyad rulers were overthrown in 750, the Abbasid dynasty took power and moved their capital to Baghdad. They didn't focus much on Damascus, so the Umayyad Mosque didn't get many new additions for a while. However, the Abbasids still saw it as a major symbol of Islam.
In 789–90, the Abbasid governor built the Dome of the Treasury in the mosque's courtyard. This dome was used to keep the mosque's money safe. The northern minaret, called the Minaret of the Bride, was also built by the Abbasids around 831.
By the early 900s, a huge water clock was installed at one of the mosque's entrances. This clock stopped working by the mid-1100s.
Later, the Fatimids from Egypt took control of Damascus in 970. They didn't make many changes to the mosque. In 1069, a fire damaged large parts of the mosque, especially the northern wall, during a fight between the city's people and the Fatimid army.
Seljuk and Ayyubid Eras
The Seljuk Turks took over Damascus in 1078. They started repairing the damage from the 1069 fire. In 1082, the central dome was restored and made even more beautiful. The northern portico was rebuilt in 1089.
The mosque became a key place for Muslims to gather and defend the city against the Crusaders. Important religious leaders preached there, calling on Muslims to protect Damascus. When the Crusaders attacked in 1148, the city's people fought back, and the Crusaders left.
During the rule of Nur ad-Din Zangi, a second large water clock, the Jayrun Water Clock, was built outside the eastern entrance. It was rebuilt after a fire and repaired again later.
Under the Ayyubids, the Umayyad Mosque remained the center of religious life in Damascus. The northern wall was damaged by fire again in 1173 and rebuilt by Sultan Saladin. The Minaret of the Bride was also rebuilt. Saladin and many later rulers were buried near the mosque.
Mamluk Era
The Mongols captured Damascus in 1260. For a short time, Christian services were held in the Umayyad Mosque. But the Muslim Mamluks from Egypt soon took back the city. The mosque was returned to its original Islamic use.
In 1270, Sultan Baybars ordered many repairs to the mosque, including its marble, mosaics, and gold decorations. These repairs cost a lot of money. The mosaics of the mosque greatly influenced Mamluk architecture.
In 1285, the scholar Ibn Taymiyya began teaching about the Qur'an in the mosque. When the Mongols attacked Damascus again in 1300, Ibn Taymiyya urged the people to fight back. The Mamluks drove out the Mongols.
More repairs were done in the 1300s. The qibla wall was rebuilt, and the Bab al-Ziyadah gate was moved. However, a fire in 1339 damaged much of this work. The Mamluks were very dedicated to keeping the mosque in good condition. An astronomer, Ibn al-Shatir, worked at the mosque and built a large sundial on the northern minaret in 1371. This sundial is now lost, but a copy is there today.
In 1401, the Mongol conqueror Timur ordered Damascus to be burned. The fire badly damaged the Umayyad Mosque. The eastern minaret was destroyed, and the central dome collapsed. A new southwestern minaret was added in 1488 by Sultan Qaytbay.
Ottoman Era
The Ottoman Empire conquered Damascus in 1516. The Ottomans used a system called waqf (a special fund) to support religious sites. The Umayyad Mosque's waqf was the largest in the city. In 1518, the Ottoman governor had the mosque repaired and redecorated.
A famous scholar, Abd al-Ghani al-Nabulsi, taught regularly at the mosque starting in 1661. The mosque's preacher was one of the most important religious leaders in Ottoman Damascus.
In 1893, a fire accidentally started by a worker badly damaged the mosque's prayer hall and caused the central dome to collapse. The Ottomans fully restored the mosque over nine years. They kept the original layout but did not try to copy the old decorations. The central mihrab was replaced, and the dome was rebuilt in a new style.
Until 1899, the mosque had a very old library collection. Most of its books were given to the German emperor Wilhelm II.
Modern Times
The Umayyad Mosque had major repairs in 1929, 1954, and 1963.
In the 1980s and early 1990s, Syrian president Hafez al-Assad ordered a large renovation of the mosque. Some groups, like UNESCO, criticized the way these renovations were done. However, in Syria, the mosque was seen more as a symbol than just a historical building, so its renovation was meant to make it even more meaningful.
In 1990, a special shrine was built for the martyrs of the Battle of Karbala. In 2001, Pope John Paul II visited the mosque to see the relics of John the Baptist. This was the first time a pope had visited a mosque.
On March 15, 2011, some of the first protests of the Syrian civil war started at the Umayyad Mosque. People gathered and chanted for democracy. Security forces quickly stopped the protests.
Architecture of the Mosque
The Umayyad Mosque is shaped like a rectangle. It is about 97 meters wide and 156 meters long. A large courtyard is in the northern part, and the prayer hall is in the southern part. The mosque is surrounded by four outer walls that were part of the old Roman temple.
The Prayer Hall (Sanctuary)
The inside of the prayer hall has three main sections, or arcades. These arcades are parallel to the direction of prayer, which faces Mecca. They are supported by two rows of stone columns. Each arcade has two levels: large arches on the first level and double arches on the second.
In the center of the prayer hall, a larger, taller arcade crosses the other three. This central section leads to the mihrab (prayer niche) and the minbar (pulpit). This central part divides the arcades into two halves. The entire prayer hall is about 136 meters long and 37 meters wide.
There are four mihrabs along the back wall of the prayer hall. The main one is the Great Mihrab. Another one, the Mihrab of the Sahaba, is named after the companions of Muhammad. It is believed to be one of the first niche-shaped mihrabs in Islamic history.
The main dome of the mosque is called the 'Dome of the Eagle' (Qubbat an-Nisr). It sits above the center of the prayer hall. The original wooden dome was replaced with a stone one after the 1893 fire. It's called the 'Dome of the Eagle' because it looks like an eagle, with the dome as the head and the sides of the hall as the wings. The dome is 36 meters high and rests on an eight-sided base with windows.
دمشق القديمة - بانوراما الجامع الأموي من الداخل.jpg|800px|Panoramic view of the prayer hall, with the mihrab in the center (looking south) and the Shrine of John the Baptist visible to the left
The Courtyard (Sahn)
The courtyard is a large open space. Its stone pavement has been repaired many times over the years. Recent work has brought it back to its original level from the Umayyad period.
Arcades (covered walkways) surround the courtyard. They are supported by columns and piers (square pillars). Because the northern part of the courtyard was damaged in an earthquake in 1759, the arcade there is not perfectly even. The courtyard and its arcades still have the largest remaining parts of the mosque's original Umayyad-era mosaic decorations.
Several domed buildings stand in the courtyard. The Dome of the Treasury is an eight-sided building with mosaics. It stands on eight Roman columns in the western part of the courtyard. Its mosaics were largely redone in the late 1900s. On the other side of the courtyard is the Dome of the Clock, another eight-sided domed building. In the middle of the courtyard, there is a modern building that covers a fountain for washing.
Umayyad Mosquee panoramic.jpg|900px|Courtyard of the Umayyad Mosque, view from east (left) towards west (right). Notable structures: Dome of the Clock (far left), and the Minaret of Isa (Jesus).
The Minarets
The Umayyad Mosque complex has three minarets. These are tall towers from which the call to prayer is made. They are the Minaret of Isa (Jesus) on the southeast corner, the Minaret of Qaytbay on the southwest corner, and the Minaret of the Bride on the northern wall.
Minaret of the Bride
The Minaret of the Bride was the first minaret built for the mosque. We don't know the exact year it was first built. The lower part of the minaret likely dates back to the Abbasid period in the 800s. The upper part was built in 1174. This minaret is used for the call to prayer. It has a spiral staircase with 160 stone steps leading to the top.
The Minaret of the Bride has two main parts: the tower and the spire. The oldest part, the main tower, is square. It has four galleries and is built with different types of stone. Near the top, there are two openings with horseshoe arches. A local story says the minaret is named after a merchant's daughter who provided lead for the roof. A copy of a 14th-century sundial is attached to this minaret.
Minaret of Isa (Jesus)
The Minaret of Isa is about 77 meters tall, making it the tallest of the three minarets. Some sources say the Abbasids built it in the 800s. The main part of the current minaret was built by the Ayyubids in 1247, and the top section was added by the Ottomans.
The main body of the minaret is square, and the spire is eight-sided. It gets narrower towards the top and has a crescent moon on it. Islamic belief says that Isa (Jesus) will return to Earth from heaven during the morning prayer and will pray behind the Mahdi. He will then face the Antichrist. According to local tradition in Damascus, Jesus will arrive on Earth through the Minaret of Isa, which is why it has this name.
Minaret of Qaytbay
The Minaret of Qaytbay, also called the Western Minaret, was built in 1488 by Sultan Qaytbay. He also ordered its renovation after a fire in 1479. This minaret shows strong Egyptian architectural styles from the Mamluk period. It is eight-sided and built in sections that get smaller as they go up. It has three galleries. People believe that both the Minaret of Jesus and the Western Minaret were built on the foundations of old Roman towers.
Influence on Mosque Design
The Umayyad Mosque is special because it has kept its general structure and architectural features since it was first built in the early 700s. Its original design has not changed much. Since it was built, the mosque has been a model for other large mosques in Syria and around the world.
Experts say that building the Damascus mosque completely changed the city's look and showed the strength of Muslim rule. It also set the standard for how mosques would be built in the future. For example, the al-Azhar Mosque in Cairo, the Great Mosque of Cordoba in Spain, and the Selimiye Mosque in Turkey were all based on its design.
Religious Importance
The Umayyad Mosque is considered one of the holiest sites in Islam. A Christian tradition from the 500s says that the head of John the Baptist (known as Yahya ibn Zakariya by Muslims) is buried there. During the mosque's construction, workers reportedly found a box with John the Baptist's head. The ruler al-Walid I ordered it buried under a special pillar in the mosque.
The mosque is also very important to both Shia and Sunni Muslims. This is because the family of Prophet Muhammad, including women and children, were brought here after the Battle of Karbala. They were held captive here for 60 days. There are two shrines inside the mosque that honor Husayn ibn Ali, Muhammad's grandson.
According to some Islamic teachings, Jesus will return to Earth at this mosque, appearing on a "white minaret." Most Muslim scholars see this as a symbolic idea.
Here are some important places within the mosque:
West Side:
- The entrance gate (called Bāb as-Sā'at) is where prisoners from Karbala were made to stand for 72 hours before being brought inside.
South Wing (main hall):
- Shrine of John the Baptist.
- A white pulpit marks where Ali ibn Husayn Zayn al-Abidin spoke to the court.
- A raised floor in front of the pulpit shows where the women and children of Muhammad's family stood.
- A wooden balcony opposite the raised floor marks where the ruler sat.
East Wing:
- A prayer rug and mihrab in a glass box mark where Ali ibn Husayn Zayn al-Abidin prayed while imprisoned.
- A metal indentation in the wall marks where the head of Husayn ibn Ali was displayed.
- A Zarih marks where the heads of others who died in Karbala were kept.
See also
In Spanish: Mezquita de los Omeyas para niños
- Great Mosque of Aleppo
- List of the oldest mosques in the world
- Timeline of Islamic history
