Historic Mosques and Shrines of Oman 9781841712307, 9781407352855

Table of contents :
Front Cover
Copyright
Dedication
CONTENTS
Notes on personal and geographic names, technical and local terms
Credits
List of Figures
List of colour plates
FOREWORD AND ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
INTRODUCTION
Chapter 1: THE NATURAL AND BUILT ENVIRONMENT OF OMAN
Chapter 2: THE MOSQUE OF THE IBADI INTERIOR
Chapter 3: MOSQUES AND SHRINES OF THE COASTS AND RELATED AREAS
Chapter 4: MAIN ASPECTS OF THE RELIGIOUS ARCHITECTURE OF OMAN
Notes of conclusion
APPENDIX
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Index/Glossary

Citation preview

Historic Mosques and Shrines of Oman Paolo M. Costa with a contribution by

E. Baldissera

BAR International Series 93 8 2001

Published in 2019 by BAR Publishing, Oxford BAR International Series 938 Historic Mosques and Shrines of Oman © The author and contributor individually and the Publisher 2001 The authors’ moral rights under the 1988 UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act are hereby expressly asserted. All rights reserved. No part of this work may be copied, reproduced, stored, sold, distributed, scanned, saved in any form of digital format or transmitted in any form digitally, without the written permission of the Publisher. ISBN 9781841712307 paperback ISBN 9781407352855 e-book DOI https://doi.org/10.30861/9781841712307 A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library This book is available at www.barpublishing.com BAR Publishing is the trading name of British Archaeological Reports (Oxford) Ltd. British Archaeological Reports was first incorporated in 1974 to publish the BAR Series, International and British. In 1992 Hadrian Books Ltd became part of the BAR group. This volume was originally published by Archaeopress in conjunction with British Archaeological Reports (Oxford) Ltd / Hadrian Books Ltd, the Series principal publisher, in 2001. This present volume is published by BAR Publishing, 2019.

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IN MEMORY OF ROBERT BERTRAM SERJEANT, 1915-1993

ii

CONTENTS Note on transliteration

iv

List of figures

V

Foreword

xiii

INTRODUCTION Chapter 1 -THE NATURAL AND BUILT ENVIRONMENT OF OMAN

7

Colour Plates Chapter 2 - THE MOSQUE OF THE IBADI INTERIOR Historical, geographical and socio-religious background Building type Mosques of Nizwa Friday mosque of Samad al-Kindi Old Great Mosque of Central Nizwa Mosque al-Shawadhna (al- 'Aqr quarter) Great Mosque of the Sa'al quarter of Nizwa Mosque al-Jinah of the Sa 'al quarter Mosque al-Sharja Mosques of Bahia Great Mosque of Bahia Mosque al-Maytha' The palace mosque Mosques of Mana~ Great Mosque Mosque al-'Ayn, Mosque al-Shura and Mosque al-'Ali Great Mosque of al-Rustaq Great Mosque of Nakhl Mosque of al-GhariQ Mosque al-Mukabbara Mosque al- 'Awayna (Wadi Bani Khalid) Chapter 3 - MOSQUES AND SHRINES OF THE COASTS AND RELATED AREAS The Great Mosque of Zafar (al-Balid) Quarter mosque of Zafar (al-Balid) The funerary mosque of al-Ribat (Salalah) The Great Mosque of Sad~ The Great Mosque of Rakhy0t Shrines of Dhofar Shrines and mosques of Musandam Mosque al-Khawr (Khasab) The Great Mosque of Bukha Religious buildings of the Batinah coast Traditional mosques of Matrah Mosque al-t-:famra at Jabr0 The mausoleum of Jabr0 The Great Mosque of al-Khabura The mosque of al-'Aqr lbadi mosques along the Batinah Mosque near Sur Tharmaid Memorial tombs along the northern coasts Mosque of the She-camel (Jawwan, Sohar) The religious architecture of the south-eastern coast and the Sharqiya The mausoleum of Bibi Maryam at Qalhat iii

34 35 49 49

51 53 58 66 69

73 73 80 81 86 88 96 103

105 114

116 117

121 123 126 128 129 131

134 136 139 139

145 146 146 149

154 162

165 166 171

175 176 176

The mosques of Sur Mosque al-Sunaysil The Great Mosque of Bilad Bani Bu 'Ali Mosque al-Battikh ('lbri) Mosque al-Ahram ('lbri) Shrines of central Oman The mosque of the Jabal al-Akhdhar The mosque of the eastern piedmont of al-Majar al-Gharbi range Mosques of Wadi Shida and Wadi al-Sarrami Mosque of al-Rakka

183 184 187 197 199 201 204 205 207 210

Chapter 4 - MAIN ASPECTS OF THE RELIGIOUS ARCHITECTURE OF OMAN

212

Decorated mihrabs: possible origin and development of local types Decoration with inset ceramics Special architectonic features: the octagonal column of Dhofar Mosque furniture Notes of conclusion

212 223 225 227 236

Appendix - CALLIGRAPHIC INSCRIPTIONS Texts, translations and commentaries by Eros Baldissera

241 241

Bibliography

265

Index/Glossary

269

Notes on personal and geographic names, technical and local terms

As it is well known to all concerned with the culture of the Middle East , the problem of rendering in Latin alphabet names , toponyms , technical terms and local words is a difficult one to solve, at least in a way that may be agreable to all readers. Since this book is not meant only for specialists , but also readers interested in art history and architecture , as well as settlement patterns , building techniques and, more in general , the material culture of Oman , I have adopted a simplified way , which can be summarized as follows: Place names: the spelling commonly found on maps has been adopted , preferring the form closest to the original word. For example I preferred the spelling Matrah instead of the frequent form Muttrah , because it is closer to the Arabic Maµ-al;i,although withouth the diacritic signs. For the town of Manal;i, I have not used the spelling Manl;i, because in the mouth of local people I have always heard both vowels distinctly pronounced , although with slightly different emphasis. In most cases I have written the 'ayn (e.g. 'Tori, al- 'Aqr) because of its importance for a correct pronunciation of the word. When in doubt about the correct name of a mosque or of a place , I followed the spelling adopted by Government publications such as the mosques guidebook Datil al-masagid.fi Sulfanat 'Uman, Muscat 1416/1993. Terms of common use in books on Islamic art, such as mihrab , minbar etc are used in the anglicized form. Less common Arabic terms , like

z

PAOLO M. COSTA

Fig. 25. Oblique air view of the site of Zafar (al-Balid) at the beginning of the excavations of the Great Mosque , visible in foreground (1977)

24

HISTORIC MOSQUES AND SHRINES OF OMAN

Fig. 26 . The Great Mosque of Zafar after two seasons of excavations

25

PAOLO M. COSTA

Fig. 27 . Ancient Zafar (al-Balid) , remains of a bridge across the moat. In background the tell of the city Palace

Fig. 28. Unwalled village of al-t;lamiliya in the northern piedmont zone (Wadi alRustaq)

26

HISTORIC MOSQUES AND SHRINES OF OMAN

Fig. 29 Bent entrance of the old town of Fanja (1979)

Fig. 30 Gate of al-Fiqayn (Mana�) (1984)

27

PAOLO M. COSTA

Fig. 31 Air view of the centre of Nizwa with the old suqs and the Imam 's palace before restorations (1983)

Fig. 32 The ancient fortified farm of al-Ou$ayr (Sa~am)

28

HISTORIC MOSQUES AND SHRINES OF OMAN

Fig. 33 Pavillion of the al-Luqta estate. In foreground partly visible an ornamental pool with seats and shelves (1982)

Fig. 34 Palm frond house of the Batinah

29

PAOLO M. COSTA

Fig. 35 Sur Rumays (Sarka) ; note small roofless mosque outside the building

Fig. 36 Ruined buildings of the ancient settlement of Zukayt (lzki)

30

HISTORIC MOSQUES AND SHRINES OF OMAN

Fig. 37 Remains of the old settlement of Sabtayn (Musandam) showing a small cubic granary and a tower type of house

Fig. 38 Master bedroom of a traditional Dhofari house (Salalah)

31

PAOLO M. COSTA

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Fig. 39 Schemat ic drawing showing construction features of a traditional Dhofari house (S. Kite)

Fig. 40 Conical bricks employed in the building known as Castle al-1:lazm at Samad al-Shan (Wadi Samad)

32

HISTORIC MOSQUES AND SHRINES OF OMAN

Fig. 41 Palm stems used for arch centering (ablution area of old Great Mosque, Mana~) (1982)

Fig. 42 A two storey sabla of Mana~ (al-Bilad), general view from nearby tower ( 1981)

Fig. 43 Inside view of ground floor hall of the same sabla

33

1. Bird's-eye-view of lbra , one of the main settlements of the Sharqiya Region of Oman (1980) . The photograph shows the southern part of the vast oasis , neatly bisected by the large wadi (1980). In the background modern buildings grown along the motor road stand against the dark barrier of the 1-:lajaral-Sharqi range.

2. The small village of Wubal , guarding the narrowest point of the Suma'il Gap , an important natural way into the Interior, along the eastern edge of the Western 1-:lajarmountain range.

3. View of the centre of Nizwa (1981) showing in the foreground the densely packed houses of the al-'Aqr quarter and, in the centre , the Imam's palace, with its large circular keep, flanked by the Great Mosque , built in 1975 on the site of an older building .

4. Oblique air view of one of the settlements which form the vast oasis of Mana~. Called al-Bilad or al-t:fijra, it is a walled residential area, since a few years abandoned , counting around 2000 houses. The tall, square tower in the foreground stands by one of the four gates into the town . In the background a fort and the Great Mosque stand isolated in the plain.

5. Zenithal view of Manat:i al-Bilad, showing the almost regular rectangular plan of the town; only on the eastern side the town wall loses its linear lay-out to encompass large patches of cultivation and small clusters of houses. On the opposite side the unwalled quarter of alMabuk merges into palm groves and fields.

6. Satellite image of the Batinah coastal plain with the town of Sohar in its centre. The white hills, visible at the lower left of the picture, mark the west end of the wide Western Hajar range and the beginning of the desert.

7. A view from the sea of Sohar and its hinterland (1979). The picture shows the linear development along the shore of the fishermen houses, the whitewashed walls of the fort, with the keep rising within the walled compound, and the houses of the southern quarter of the town , scattered amidst cultivated areas. In the background, after a wide belt of cultivations , the gravel plain extends as far as the high rising barrier of the mountains .

8. The Batinah plain near Barka, some 70 km west of Muscat (1979). The picture shows the composite physical and built environment of the plain, where a third of the population of Oman lives. In the foreground , modern buildings grown along the motor-way which runs in an almost straight line for over 300 km from the capital to the northern border of the country. In the centre of the photograph the isolated Sur Rumays is visible and, behind it, scattered houses and patches of cultivation . Further back is the belt of intensive agriculture and the sea shore.

9. Close up of Sur Rumays. The sur, ubiquitous in Oman, is a tribal fortified retreat to be used in case of danger. This is a particularly well preserved example of the sur of the Batinah plain, where , more substantial defences were required. Note the moat, resulting from the quarrying of the clay used in the building, and the impressive gate. The large enclosure is designed to shelter people as well as domestic animals

10. The oasis of al-ljawiyah . This extraodinary example of the adaptation of man to the environment , is the only permanent agricultural settlement in the extensive area kown as the Wahibah Sands. Water is brought the the palm groves by channels tapping the aquifers of Wadi al-Batba, in the north (1982)

11. The village of GhOI, at the western foot of the Jabal al-Akhdhar . The oldest part of the settlement , perched on a high mountain spur and since long abandoned, preserves traces of at least three phases of development. Untouched by modern building, it is an impressive example of early settlement where defence relied mainly on the elevated position (1980)

12. At 'lzz, a small village of the Sharqiya, a group of men is gathering in the forecourt of a mosque getting ready for the evening prayers . In the foreground, under the flight of steps, runs the water channel which feeds the mosque ablution facilities .

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13. The historic town of Nakhl, mid-way between the Batinah coast and the mountains , is dominated by a rocky hill crowned by an ageless fort : the only feature which enlives its bare, stern walls is as curious winged arch (1979). Unfortunately lost in a recent restoration, the recess can be compared to a similar ornament on the Seljuq walls of Diyarbakir, in Turkey

14. Forecourt and arched portico of a small mosque at al-Ghabbi , in the Sharqiya region. The beauty of this simple , unadorned building depends on the exquisite design of the arches , the harmony of the proportions and the delicate play of the dark arcades and the plain fac;ade (1980).

15. Oblique helicopter view from east of the Nizwa oasis (1984). In the foreground the Sa'al quarter, with the Great Mosque in the centre. Beyond the wadi, the al-'Aqr quarter and the Imam's palace with the round keep are visible.

16. The Great Mosque of the Sa'al quarter, Nizwa (1980). The large building with its huge buttresses and the round tower stands on the square, from which can be entered via a flight of steps topped by an arched gate house.

17. Sa'al Great Mosque seen from the roof of a neighbouring house; the curious round tower is nothing but a covered way to the roof, simbolically referring to the call to prayer.

18. Sa'al Great Mosque: the mihrab. The large central panel (measuring 4 x 4 m) frames the shallow niche formed by three concentric recesses. All the recesses are surrounded by flat frames inscribed with Kufic calligraphy . The panel is at the centre of the qibla wall , across which runs a 1 m band filled by a naturalistic vine pattern as background to a monumental Kufic inscription . The mihrab (dated to mid 7'h/13th century) is the focus of the spacious and well proportioned prayer hall.

19. Northern gate of the Sa'al quarter (1979). The straight gate, of almost anthropomorphic design , is the formal definition of the community threshold more than a defensive structure .

20. Fortified mosque on Wadi Sayfam, near Ghafat: a unique, unexpected building of great aesthetic quality , enhanced by the grand scenery of the wadi, the intensive greenery of the palm groves and the barren background of the mountain (1982).

21. Northern part of the settlement of lmti near lzki (1982). In the centre of the picture is the old Great Mosque, an interesting building with a forecourt, a square prayer hall and an external flight of steps to the roof.

22. Small rural mosque near lmti. The mihrab decoration consists of various geometric motifs crisply carved in the wet stucco . Several porcelain bowls are also set in the surface as ornament. The motif is repeated all along the frame in the form of roundels.

23. A detail of the mihrab of plate 22, showing a blue and white porcelain bowl set in the stucco .

24. Mosque al-Jinah of Sa'al (Nizwa): the prayer hall. It is a rectangular room with one column in the middle from which spring two fourcentred arches. The mihrab is surrounded by a decorated stucco panel which displays an outstanding level of craftsmanship and an exceptional uniformity of style in all its parts.

25. Detail of the two-line inscription on the mihrab niche of the al-Jinah mosque : it is perhaps the best example of ancient calligraphy to be seen in Oman. The splendid tulut script matches in quality design and carving of the mihrab decoration . The work is signed by master craftsman Muhammad b. Ahmad b. Sayf and is dated 925/1519 .

26. Mihrab of the Great Mosque of Muqazzat:i (lzki) . The inscription above the niche mentions four generations of artisans ('Ali b. Talib b. Mushmil and his sons) and the date 1029/1619 .

27. Mosque al-Shawadhna, al-'Aqr (Nizwa). One of the finest examples of quarter mosque with a beautiful , well preserved mihrab , dated 936/1529 and signed by 'Isa b. 'Abdullah b. Yusuf . Note the five blue and white porcelain bowls which decorate the lunette above the niche .

28. Mosque al-Sharja (Nizwa) on the eastern bank of Wadi al-Abyadh . The setting is rural and the building is extremely simple , the only feature being the external flight of steps to the roof (1978).

29. Mosque al-Sharja , the interior (1978). The rectangular hall with two columns on the long axis is enriched by the unexpected beautiful mihrab, decorated by high quality carving and inset ceramics . Also the side niche was originally framed by carved motifs. The mihrab is dated 924/1518 and signed by 'Abdullah b. Qasim b. Muhammad al-Humaymi from Manab.

30. Bayt al-Kabir (lbra 'Alaya) (1977). Surviving vault of a reception room in this large three story residence of a wealthy merchant family, built in the 11th/17th century and since long abandoned. Note the decoration with inset ceramics : a widespread fashion along the Indian ocean littoral, especially common along the East African coast.

31. Small mosque near lmti. Enamelled helwa bowls left by mosque goers testify the traditional practice of ritual offerings, common especially in rural mosques and shrines

32. Air view of the Great Mosque of Bilad Bani Bu 'Ali (1979)showing the amazing roof of 51 domes . The area in front of the mihrab is barrel vaulted for the breadth of four bays

33. Overall view of al-Yemen the norther quarter of the historic town of lzki (1985), with its large Great Mosque at the nearest corner of the enceinte. In the foreground the ruins of a large fort once built to separate al-Yemen from its rival quarter al-Nizar

34. Shrine of Sheikh Mas'ud in the Musandam region (1980). Beside a funerary mosque and surrounded by burials, the tomb stands in isolation in a small sandy bay of the rugged Musandam coast. The simple, square building is covered by a hemispheric dome and is entered via a barrel vaulted porch with a single four-centred arch

35. Mosque al-'Awayna (l-:layl, Wadi Bani Khalid). Now in ruin (1988) the small mosque still preserves a beautifully decorated mihrab carved in the year 970/1562 by Talib b. Mushmil a member of the famous family of craftsmen from the town of Manat:1.Note the three Chinese bowls inset above the niche semi-dome

36. Small wayside mosque , near al-Fiqayn (Manat:,). This simple building well represents the common lbac,1imosque built for the use of peasants , shepherds and travellers

37. Mosque al-Shura' (Manat:,) (1985): the courtyard . The refined architectonic quality of the traditional mosque of inner Oman can be seen even in the detail of the outer mihrab and one of the doors into the prayer hall of this quarter mosque of the main residential area of the oasis of Manat:,.

38. The old Great Mosque of Nakhl (1982) . The large building , here seen from a nearby hill, was located at the outskirts of the old town , on an artificial terrace at the edge of the wadi. On the left the mosque was adjoined by a Quranic school and the ablution facilities . (Replaced by a modern mosque in 1985).

39. The Quranic school of the old Great Mosque of Nakhl stood in the shade of a very old, monumental tree , which owed its long life to the mosque drain .

40. The Great Mosque of Bahia (1980). The large building (18 x 30 m) is located on an isolated prominence, beside the towering mass of the town citadel and above the densely packed houses of one of the residential quarters of the town : the symbols of the most important facets of the lbadi society, the religious and the political authorities, stand side by side above the settlement.

•

41. The Great Mosque of Bahia was built with total respect of the site topography and the hill was partly used to link a flight of steps to the roof top.

42. The impressive prayer hall of the mosque of Bahia is developed along the long axis of the building with six rows of columns supporting pointed and slightly stilted arches. The mihrab is flanked by a masonry minbar, both decorated by carved stucco . The mihrab panel shows two distinct techniques of decoration: the outer surface is decorated with mould-cast technique, whereas the inner area, which frames the niche, is knife-carved . This part, which is probably the older, bears the inscription with the name of the artisan 'Abdullah b. Qasim b. Muhammad al-Humaymi and the date 917/1511.

43. Small rural mosque of the Samad quarter, Nizwa. A building with no special features and an extremely simple lay-out, squeezed between the fields and the edge of the wadi , the mosque is nevertheless unique for its location : perched high on the bank of the wadi, the mosque commands a grand , unobstructed view over the vast expanse of gravel, water and greenary . The water below represents a natural ablution facility which can be reached by a spectacular flight of steps plunging directly into the wadi: an unexpected mixture of artefact and nature.

Chapter 2

THE MOSQUE OF THE IBADI INTERIOR The imam had to be elected among the ulema , the learned members of the community. He had to be elightened and firm, able to lead an army against an enemy , if need arose. In general a man of outstanding personal qualities ; a primus inter pares though the imam in fact is not a law giver (the law comes only from Allah) , but a law enforcer.

Historical, geographical and socio-religious background The traditional mosque of Oman's interior is a building of great simplicity ,which does not only reflect the austere religious principles of the people by whom and for whom it is built , but also the special physical and human environment to which it belongs (fig. 44) .

The administrative organisation of the Ibadi state is very simple. Every main centre has a qa~_;~I

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