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The Dome of the Rock: the Atypical Mosque

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FORCES BEHIND THE DOME OF THE ROCK

If the architectural elements of the Dome of the Rock were not part of the chronology of mosque tradition then where did they come from? One has to consider the time that it was built and the political motives of its patron Abd al-Malik to answer that question. Abd al-Malik of the Ummayad dynasty was the caliph, or leader, of the newly developing Islamic empire. At the time of his rule he was both dealing with the rival Byzantine empire as well as the growing influence of various figures in Mecca, the holiest site for Muslims. Consequently there seems to be two accepted motives for why Abd al-Malik built the mosque, that he either wanted to celebrate his power and victory over the Byzantine empire or that he wanted it to rival the Ka'ba because of the political affiliations it had with leaders in Mecca. Whichever is true, the building of a monument over a holy site in Jerusalem provided him an opportunity to do both. In order to do this Abd al-Malik and his architects had to use an architectural language understood by both Muslims and Byzantine Christians. Since there was not yet an established Islamic architecture they looked to the highest examples of Byzantine architecture.

THE DOME OF THE ROCK'S PREDECESSORS

There are several buildings the Dome of the Rock is said to have borrowed from but the one bearing the most visual similarity is the nearby Holy Sepulcher (335 C.E.). These similarities are the use of a dome and rotunda, concentric aisles in which there is a central ring of supports for the dome with an ambulatory around it and an outer wall around that. Also the Holy Sepulcher originally received its light from windows in the drum which supports the dome, similar to the 16 windows of the Dome of the Rock in the same location.

Besides these similarities to the Holy Sepulcher certain features of the Dome of the Rock can be found in other churches. The doorways at the Cathedral of Bosra(515-13) and St. George at Ezra(515-16) use plain masonry which makes them look identical to the Dome of the Rock's. The structure of the dome is said to be most similar to the one believed to exist in the Church of St. Simeon Stylites(~500) in Iraq. This church also has a frieze in the apse which bares similarity to those decorating the cornices of the Dome of the Rock's piers and interior of the drum. The use of mosaics on the exterior of the Dome of the Rock is also not original, St. Peters old Basilica in Rome(450 C.E.) used mosaics to decorate the exterior of the facade.