Abbasids
Dynasty which ruled most
of the Islamic world between
750 and 945.
Ibn Tulun Mosque
In 750 CE there was a revolution against Umayyad rule
which began in eastern Iran and rapidly spread over the
whole empire. The Umayyads were totally destroyed
except for one prince who fled to Spain and established
the Umayyad dynasty there.
The newly established Abbasids decided to move
the capital from Damascus to a city further east, first
Raqqa was chosen and then in 762 Baghdad was
founded by the
Abbasid caliph al-Mansur. Baghdad grew to be
one of the biggest and most populous cities in
the world based around Mansur’s famous round city.
In 836 the caliph al-Mu tassim was unhappy about
clashes between the local population and his troops
so he established a new capital further north on the
Tigris at Samarra.
During this period the power of the caliphate began to
decline and control over distant provinces was loosened.
Several local dynasties grew up including the Tulunids
in Egypt, the Aghlabids in Ifriqiyya and the Samanids
in Khurassan (eastern Iran).
Internal troubles in Samarra caused the caliph al Mu tamid
to move back to Baghdad in 889; at this time Abbasid
power outside Iraq was purely nominal. In 945 the Abbasids
were replaced by the Shi a Buwaihid amirs as rulers of Iraq
and Iran.
For the next two hundred years the Abbasids remained
nominal caliphs with no real authority.
In the mid-twelfth century the Abbasids were able to
reassert some authority when the Seljuk ruler Sultan
Muhamad abandoned his siege of Baghdad.
During the reign of Caliph al-Nasir (1179–1225)
the Abbasids were able to gain control over much
of present-day Iraq.
The Mongol invasions and sack of Baghdad in 1258 dealt
a final blow to the political aspirations of the Abbasids.
Although Abbasid architecture covers a vast area from
North Africa to western India, the majority of extant buildings
are in the Abbasid homeland of Iraq. Abbasid architecture
was influenced by three architectural traditions—Sassanian,
Central Asian (Soghdian) and later, during the twelfth and
thirteenth centuries, Seljuk.
Many early Abbasid structures such as the palace of Ukhaidhir
bear a striking resemblance to Sassanian architecture, as they
used the same techniques (vaults made without centring)
and materials (mud brick, baked brick and roughly hewn stone
laid in mortar), and built to similar designs (solid buttress towers).
Central Asian influence was already present in Sassanian
architecture but it was reinforced by the Islamic
-->
conquest of Central Asia and the incorporation of a large
number of Turkic troops into the army.Central Asian influence
is seen most clearly at Samarra where the wall paintings
and some of the stucco work resemble that of the Soghdian
palaces at PanjikentThe Abbasid architecture of the twelfth
and thirteenth centuries is essentially Seljuk architecture built
with Iraqi materials. In addition to the various influences upon
it, early Abbasid architecture can be seen to have developed
its own characteristics.
One of the most notable features of the Abbasid cities of
Baghdad and Samarra is their vast scale. This is most clearly
demonstrated at Samarra with its extensive palaces and mosques
stretched out for more than 40 km along the banks of the Tigris.
The scale of the site led to the development of new forms: thus
the great spiral minarets of the Great Mosque and the Abu Dulaf
were never repeated elsewhere (with the possible exception of
the Ibn Tulun Mosque).
Other developments had farreaching consequences; for example,
the three stucco types developed at Samarra rapidly spread
throughout the Islamic world (e.g. the Abbasid mosque at Balkh
in Afghanistan) and continued to be used centuries later.
ablaq
Term used to describe alternating light and dark courses
of masonry.It is thought that the origin of this decorative
technique may derive from the Byzantine
use of alternating courses of white ashlar stone and
orange baked brick.The technique of ablaq seems
to have originated in southern Syria where volcanic
black basalt and white limestone naturally occur in
equal quantities.
The first recorded use is in repairs to the north wall
of the Great Mosque of Damascus which are dated
to 1109. In 1266 Sultan Baybars built a palace known
as Qasr Ablaq which was built out of bands of light
and dark masonry.
Although the building has not survived, it demonstrates
that the term ablaq was used to describe masonry of
this type. In the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries this
became a characteristic feature of Mamluk architecture
in Egypt, Syria and Palestine.
At this stage red stone is also used so that some buildings
are striped in three colours, red, black and white.
Ablaq continued to be used in the Ottoman period and
can be seen in buildings such as the Azzam palace in
Damascus.A difference between its use in the Mamluk
and the Ottoman periods is that earlier on it was restricted
to façades, doorways and windows whereas in the Ottoman
period it is used for overall decoration, sometimes including
the floors.
The technique was also used in Spain and can be seen
in the voussoirs of the arcades of the Great Mosque in
Córdoba which are red and white.
The technique also seems to have been invented in
Europe in the mid-twelfth century although it is not
certain whether it was invented independently or
copied from Syria.
Important European examples are the thirteenth-century
churches of Monza, Siena and Orvieto and a fourstorey
palace in Genoa.
They left but, they left their good principles of architecture.
RépondreSupprimer________________________
I manufacture frp interior cladding panels