The Dome of the Rock - Hardcover

Grabar, Oleg

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0847819426 ISBN 13: 9780847819423

Publisher: Rizzoli, 1996

Synopsis

The Dome of the Rock was built in 692 C.E. under the patronage of the Umayyad caliph Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan. It enshrines the Sacred Rock, literally the irregular highest tip of Mount Moriah, one of the several ridges around which the city of Jerusalem began to develop as early as five thousand years ago. The structure commemorates the Prophet Muhammad's (ca. 570-632) celebrated Night Journey from Mecca to Jerusalem and his Ascension through the heavens to visit God, as told in the Koran and the Traditions. As such, the mosque has reflected and represented Islam during most of its history, but it is also associated with sacred events in the lives of Christ, the Virgin, and Christian saints as well as with a host of Jewish prophets, traditions, and memories. Today the Dome of the Rock is used primarily for women's congregational prayer, private prayer, and religious instruction, and as a place of pilgrimage for people of all faiths.
This volume is the most detailed and complete visual documentation published to date of this profound monument. Stunning color photography explores the exterior and luxurious interior, illuminated by delicate light from stained glass windows and decorated with veined marble, mosaics, oriental carpets, and porphyry columns.
The introduction, by one of today's most esteemed Islamic scholars, explores the history, art, architecture, and cultural and religious significance of the building. The book also includes transcriptions of the earliest-known Koranic script, inscribed on the building's octagonal arcades, historical travelers' accounts of the Dome, maps and drawings, a bibliography and glossary, and an index.

About this title

About the Author

Oleg Grabar is professor emeritus of Harvard University and currently a professor in the School of Historical Studies at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton.

Reviews

A study of Jerusalem's Dome of the Rock, among the holiest of places for Muslims, Christians, and Jews, this beautiful book combines superb photography and clear, scholarly writing. Grabar (Sch. of Historical Studies, Inst. for Advanced Studies, Princeton) describes the dimensions and physical attributes of the building, the beliefs and practices associated with it, and the source of the decorative features. The writing is supported by the excellent photographs of architectural photographer Nuseibeh, who collaborated on The Shape of the Holy (Princeton Univ., 1996) with Grabar. Nuseibeh describes the mosaics of the dome, supplies translations of the inscriptions, and discusses the problems of photographing the area. The volume brings to life one of the most glorious architectural achievements of the Umayyad dynasty and one that is at the center of recent conflicts in the region. This volume deserves to be in every public and academic library.?Martin Chasin, Adult Inst. Bridgeport, Ct.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

It is possible to get bogged down in the commentary that accompanies this presentation of one of Jerusalem's most distinguished buildings. That is too bad. It is possible, also, to be slowed down--indeed, stopped dead in one's browsing tracks--by Nuseibeh's extremely careful photographs of the place. That is not bad at all. The Dome of the Rock commemorates many things, including a central Islamic mystical event, the Night Journey of the prophet Muhammad from Mecca to Jerusalem. On account of this association, it is one of the most visited sites in Islam. With its shining golden outer dome, richly tiled walls, and mosaic-laden interiors upheld by gleaming marble columns, it constitutes a treasury of Islamic sacred decor, which is almost completely nonobjective. Nuseibeh's colorplates afford many closer views of details than could be enjoyed on the site itself, and perhaps better perspectives and panoramas of the shrine and its surroundings, as well. A genuinely stunning art book. Ray Olson

Edition details

• Publisher: Rizzoli
• Publication date: 1996
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0847819426
• ISBN 13: 9780847819423
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 175