Djenne & Timbuktu, Mali The Mud Brick Mosques of Djenne and Timbuktu in Mali are among the architectural wonders of the Sahara Desert. These two cities, which became the dominant regional trading centers during the European colonial era, surpassed Chinguetti in religious importance in the 15th and 16th centuries. Because of their isolation from other Muslim states during … [Read more...]
MAUSOLEUM OF THE MAHDI
Omdurman, Sudan Muhammad Ahmad, also known as the Mahdi, is one of the most colorful and controversial Muslim figures of the 19th century. He is held by many as an ardent Sudanese Nationalist and champion of Sharia law, and vilified by many as a violent extremist and Jihadist. Both points of view recognize him as a determined foe of European colonialism and western cultural … [Read more...]
GREAT MOSQUE OF SANA’A
Sana’a, Yemen Yemen is something of a conundrum in the Islamic world. Geographically the closest country by land to the holy cities of Mecca and Medina, it was the first place outside of what is now Saudi Arabia where Islam was introduced. It then spent well over a thousand years as little more than a forgotten corner of the Muslim world. Thanks to its strangely ironic … [Read more...]
MASJID BADSHAHI
Lahore, Pakistan The Masjid Badshahi is the greatest mosque built during the Mughal period. Many incorrectly attribute it to Shah Jahan, the great emperor-builder of the Mughals; but it was in fact constructed by his son and successor, Aurangzeb. It is nevertheless considered to be the pinnacle of the Shah Jahan period, as the Masjid Badshahi represented everything that was … [Read more...]
TAJ MAHAL
Agra, Uttar Pradesh Shah Jahan was one of the greatest builders in history, and his mind-boggling mosques grace many cities throughout India and Pakistan. However, it is not for his mosques for which he is best known, but rather for a mausoleum, the Taj Mahal. Built in memory of his beloved wife, the Taj Mahal is many things; an Islamic shrine, a monument to love, and the … [Read more...]
MOSQUES OF SHAH JAHAN (JAMA MASJID, MASJID WAZIR KHAN)
Delhi, India & Lahore, Pakistan The last great Turkic empire to arise in Central Asia was that of the Mughals, which at its height in the late Middle Ages dominated much of Afghanistan, Persia, Pakistan and India. Nominally descended from the empire of Timur, the Mughal Empire reached its peak during the reign of Shah Jahan in the 17th century. Shah Jahan, who was … [Read more...]
SULEIMAN MOUNTAIN
Osh, Kyrgyzstan Suleiman Mountain has been venerated as a sacred place since ancient times. Named in honor of the Qu’ranic Prophet Suleiman, who may or may not be the same person as King Solomon of the Hebrew Bible, the mountain has been visited by religious pilgrims since well before the advent of Islam. The mountain itself is an absolutely amazing rock formation which … [Read more...]
KHAST IMAM MOSQUE (MASJID KHAST IMAM)
Tashkent, Uzbekistan Generally speaking, the most revered artifacts of Islam that have survived the centuries have been preserved in places that make geographical sense: Mecca, Cairo, Istanbul and so forth. So it is unusual that the Uthman Qur’an, believed to be the oldest known copy of the Qur’an and which according to tradition was once in the possession of Uthman, Ali or … [Read more...]
SHAH I ZINDA NECROPOLIS
Samarkand, Uzbekistan Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Samarkand marked the frontier of the Islamic world in Central Asia. Although Muslims could be found beyond, it was for many years the most remote great Islamic city in the east. Situated at the geographical heart of the Silk Route between China and the Middle East, it was consistently ranked among the world’s most … [Read more...]
MOSQUES OF FATH ALI SHAH (MASJID SOLTANI)
Teheran, Iran Teheran is one of the youngest major cities in Iran, and despite the fact that it is the national capital and the second largest city in the Middle East after Cairo, it boasts virtually no ancient or medieval mosques of significance. That said, when Teheran did begin to come into its own as the political center of Persia, the rulers of the Safavid and Qajar … [Read more...]