Mosque
Great Mosque at Tlemcen
The Great Mosque of Tlemcen as a whole is an architectural
masterpiece however, the techniques introduced in the construction of the
mihrab dome are the most innovative. It is one of the oldest and best preserved
Almoravid buildings in Algeria.
The city of Tagrart, which became known as Tlemcen, in 1082. The
building of this new city began with the construction of the main mosque, which
Ibn Tashfin commissioned to hold daily and Friday prayers. The
mosque has a plan of an irregular pentagon, of about 60 x 50
metres, consisting of two main sections . The prayer hall is a rectangle made
of thirteen parallel aisles that run perpendicular to the qibla wall, typical
of North African "T plan" mosques. These aisles are peculiarly made
of horseshoe arches and intersect by transverse arcades of polylobed arches. It
is assumed that they visually establish an internal spatial hierarchy .
These lobed arches became an important feature of Almoravid
architecture, seen in many Moroccan and Andalusian buildings. The central aisle (nave) leads
to the mihrab and as custom it was given special treatment. Two of its bays
were crowned with domes, with the more spectacular dome being raised above the
bay just before the mihrab. Resting on muqarnas squinches, the
dome was mounted on sixteen interlacing ribs that create a star pattern. The
ribs were arranged by delicately cut bricks that some writers thought at first
were made of wood.With the above features the Great Mosque of Tlemcen represents a unique
example in the region, particularly in Algeria. In historical terms it is one
of the oldest and best preserved Almoravid buildings in Algeria.
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