Caliph's Palace his plan description features. Caliph's Palace

According to the results of explorations in Western Palestine in 1894,
American archaeologist Frederick Bliss describes three large mounds, to
north of Jericho, one of which was the palace of Caliph Hisham or
Khirbet al-Mafjar. At that time, large-scale excavations were not carried out, but in
1934-1948 Palestinian archaeologist Dmitry Baramki, along with others
world-class archaeologists spent 12 seasons excavating the object.
Later, in 1959, archaeologist Robert Hamilton would publish the most
the most complete monograph ever written on the excavations of the khirbat kurgan
al-Mafjar: An Arabian Mansion in the Jordanian Valley".
Establishing the authenticity and ownership of the palace known as
palace of Caliph Hisham, have always been problematic: in the medieval
historical and literary texts do not mention the palace or its
descriptions, and during the excavations themselves on the territory of the mound were discovered
only a few ostracons (a shard of an earthenware vessel, shells, shale,
limestone) with inscriptions in Arabic. On two of the found ostraca
the name of Caliph Hisham was mentioned, which allowed the archaeologist to attribute
the construction of the palace by the reign of Hisham (from 727 to 743 AD).

Thus, during the excavations of Baramka, the object was named
Hisham Palace, but later Hamilton put forward an alternative version,
claiming that the palace was upset and rebuilt by caliph Walid ibn
Yazid (Walid II), the heir of Hisham ibd al-Malik, in a short period
his reign in 743-47. This version is supported by the unprecedented
the luxury of the palace and elements of sheer excesses and the Arab Dolce Vita addition
time.

One thing is certain - Khirbet al-Mafjar was a pearl
construction of the Umayyad Caliphate, an example of magnificent artistic
works of the early Islamic period and can be considered as
example when evaluating all the "castles in the desert" of that period.

The main building of the palace complex - the Great Hall - baths, a hall for
receptions were a miracle of the then architecture and art.
Dozens of meters of luxurious mosaics, carpets of extraordinary beauty and skill
stucco (the technique of imitation of work on marble) and frescoes, all this,
of course, the palace commanded even among such powerful competitors as
palaces of Samarra or Cairo.

Sunset beautiful days the palace is also covered in mist. After the murder
Caliph Walid II, the palace fell into disrepair, never having been
completed, and then badly damaged and destroyed during the series
earthquakes, and also, apparently, was looted.

"Tree of Life" - this is the name of one of the most beautiful mosaics of the Middle
East, if not the whole world. She covered the floor of the guest room
bath complex. Imitating beautiful Persian carpets, mosaic
relatively well preserved, only slightly affected by
earthquakes.

The Arabs declared all the conquered lands the property of the Muslim community. The local population living on these lands had to pay a land tax to the caliph.

At first, the Arabs did not force people of other faiths to convert to Islam. Non-Muslims had to pay only a special poll tax, which brought significant income to the Caliph's treasury. Muslims turned out to be merciful: Christians and Jews in the territories conquered by the Arabs were allowed to live according to the laws of their faith. There were many Christians educated people, whom the Arab rulers attracted to their service. But after a few decades, the attitude of Muslims towards people of other religions changed and their oppression began. Those who converted to Islam were exempt from taxes. They only gave alms to the poor. It was believed that Muslims pay taxes with their blood, fighting against the "infidels."

The first caliphs tried to maintain equality among Muslims by ordering that the wealth of the conquered countries be divided equally. When the Arabs seized the treasury of the Iranian kings, a golden-woven carpet of extraordinary beauty, adorned with precious stones, fell into their hands. In order for all the soldiers to get an equal share of the booty, Caliph Omar ordered the carpet to be cut into many pieces. The conquests changed the life and way of life of the Arabs. The Bedouin nomads who took part in them abandoned their former occupations, populating the captured cities and fertile valleys. Noble Arabs - commanders and rulers of the provinces, began to imitate the nobles of the occupied countries. They built magnificent palaces, accumulated enormous wealth, and owned fertile lands. Caliphs, like other rulers of the countries of the East, surrounded themselves with wealth and luxury. Here is how a 10th-century courtier describes the caliph's court: material from the site

Arab potter's workshop

“Usually the caliph sat on the throne - on a pillow upholstered with Armenian silk fabric ... The caliph was wearing a black caftan made of silk ... He was crowned with a high black headdress, he was girded with the sword of the prophet. ...Before him lay the Koran of Osman, previously kept in the treasury. On the shoulders of the caliph is the cloak of the prophet, in his hands is the staff of the prophet. Slaves and bodyguards stood behind the throne and around it with swords, battle axes and clubs in their hands. Slave servants stood on either side of the throne, chasing away flies with gold and silver fans. When the time of the reception approached, the servants stood with slingshots in their hands, with which they shot at crows and other birds so that they would not croak and scream.

In the middle of the 8th century, the caliphs built a new capital on the Tigris River not far from ancient Babylon - Baghdad. The ruins of Babylon were dismantled by the Arabs and became building material for the construction of buildings. Hundreds of thousands of kilograms of silver and tens of thousands of kilograms of gold flocked to Baghdad from all over the Arab state. It has become the richest city in the East. The population of Baghdad was over a quarter of a million inhabitants. Contemporaries called it "the capital of Islam, the throne of the empire, the center of beauty, culture and art."

ART OF THE UMAYAD CALIPHATE

In the era of the first Arab conquests and during the reign of the Umayyad dynasty (661-750), who reigned in the ancient city of Damascus (Syria), new settlements arose far from the capital, on the paths of advancement of military detachments. The cities of Kufa and Ba "sra in the south and Mosu" l in the north of Iraq, Fustat in Egypt and Kairouan in Tunisia were more like fortified military camps. To protect and expand the borders of the Muslim world, fortresses were built on its outskirts - ribats, cloisters of pious warriors, fighters for the faith.

In rural areas of Palestine and Syria, the Umayyads built their estates. With the desolation of these places, they turned into "castles of the desert." The most famous of them are Quseir-Amra (10s of the 8th century), Mshatta (first half of the 8th century) in Jordan and Khirbet al-Mafjar (40s of the 8th century) in Israel, Qasr al- Khair ash-Sharqi (about 728) in Syria - were decorated with ornamental and narrative paintings, mosaics, stone and knock (artificial marble) reliefs. These castles and the ribats preserved in the Tunisian cities of Sousse and Monastir were built of hewn stone. The outer walls with bastion towers and a single entrance in the center of the main façade formed a square in plan. All rooms overlooked a paved courtyard.

The development of the religious architecture of the Umayyad Caliphate in Syria and Palestine began when the famous Qubbat al-Sahra (Dome of the Rock) was erected in Jerusalem, the third most important Muslim shrine after the Kaaba in Mecca and the Prophet's Mosque in Medina. Tradition connects the construction of Kubbat as-Sahra with the most important event of the Holy History of Islam - the miraculous timeless night journey of Muhammad from Mecca to Jerusalem and the ascension to the throne of Allah. Then the Prophet was instructed regarding the obligatory daily five-time prayer and the tree crowning the world, the heavenly Kaaba, heaven and hell were shown.

Kubbat as-Sahra was erected in 687-691. on the top of a mountain sacred to Jews, Christians and Muslims - here, according to legend, Abraham, in confirmation of his faith, was ready to sacrifice his son to God, and Solomon built the Temple in Jerusalem. According to the historian of the X century. al-Muqaddasi, this building was supposed to overshadow the nearby

Quseir-Amra. 10sVIIIin. Jordan.

****Abraham is revered in Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Muslims call him Ibrahim and honor him as the first preacher of monotheism, the ancestor of Jews and Arabs, and also the restorer of the Kaaba destroyed by the Flood. Solomon (965-928 BC) is an ancient Hebrew king, revered by Muslims as the prophet Suleiman.

*Stalactites are a type of architectural decoration that outwardly resembles natural stalactites (lime deposits in caves), for which they received their name.

** Lantern - a dedicated part of an architectural structure with openings for lighting and ventilation.

*** A tent is a conical or pyramidal four- or polyhedral covering of a building.

the home of the Christian Church of the Holy Sepulcher, "so that the minds of Muslims are not blinded" by its magnificence and vastness. In 874, the Arab historian al-Yakubi wrote about the place of construction and architecture of the Jerusalem shrine: .- Note. ed.) built a dome over the Rock ... and people took it as a custom to go around the Rock exactly as they did around the Kaaba. Muslims perceived Kubbat as-Sahra as a symbol of the victory and triumph of Islam.

The architects managed to create a structure that really reigns over the city: in the panorama of Old Jerusalem, a huge dome, radiating a golden glow, raised above the rock, immediately catches the eye. At half the height, the central, domed part of the building is surrounded by an octagonal gallery, the interior of which is divided in two by pillars and columns, creating a double bypass around the sacred rock. Under the rock is a cave, turned into a small sanctuary.

Inside Kubbat as-Sakhra, four powerful pillars with graceful marble columns spaced between them frame a rock that protrudes one and a half meters above the floor level. The height of the dome space (about twenty meters) is equal to the diameter of the dome, which makes the building structure stable and surprisingly proportional. The proportionality of Kubbat as-Sakhra is also connected with the fact that the number of architectural elements of each type is a multiple of four in it. Perhaps this is no coincidence, since the number "four" is associated with the four letters in the Arabic spelling of the word "Allah" and with the square as a symbol of the Kaaba.

The interior of the building is striking in its splendor. Its walls are lined with patterned marble panels; the columns are crowned with gilded capitals; above them

Kubbat as-Sahra (Dome of the Rock). 687-691 Jerusalem. Israel.

Qubbat-as-Sahra (Dome of the Rock). Interior. 687-691 Jerusalem. Israel.

Mosque of the Umayyads. 705-715 Damascus. Syria.

massive beams stretched out, which, like the lintels of four entrance doors, sheathed from below with bronze plates with embossing and gilding. The upper parts of the windows and the frames of the arches are decorated with mosaics of green, blue, mother-of-pearl, purple and gold tones. The dome, re-erected in 1022, is covered with patterned relief and painting from the inside. No less magnificent is the exterior design of the building, updated in the 16th and 19th centuries.

In the cities of Syria and Palestine, the first cathedral mosques were built on plots purchased from Christians. The new buildings used materials and parts of the old buildings. Thus, one of the most significant monuments of the era was erected - the Great Umayyad Mosque in Damascus (705-715), which included the remains of the Roman sanctuary of Jupiter of Damascus and christian church John the Baptist. The Damascus Mosque inside was decorated with colored patterned marble and magnificent mosaics with pictures of a fantastic garden city.

Monuments visual arts period of the reign of the Umayyads - the mosaics of the Dome of the Rock and the Great Mosque in Damascus, paintings and sculptures from the "castles of the desert" - show how the art of the Muslim Middle Ages acquired characteristic features. Storylines links connecting images with reality were gradually lost. Decoration has become more and more important. The three-dimensional perception of space was replaced by a two-dimensional one, the volumetric interpretation of figures was replaced by their silhouette or contour drawing. Motifs developed by the official art of the empires of the Ancient East were introduced into the composition. Later, in the medieval art of Iran, Iraq, Syria, Egypt and Muslim Spain, these traditions were established in patterns depicted on fabrics, carpets, embroidery, ceramics, glassware and metal.

ART OF THE ABBASID CALIFATE

The caliphs of the Abbasid dynasty (750-1258) moved the center of the Caliphate to Iraq. The desire of these rulers to assert the power of the dynasty was expressed in the unprecedented scope of urban planning. The idea of the city as a symbol of power was embodied in the architecture of the new capital - Baghdad (Iraq), founded on the banks of the Tigris River in 762. Initially, the city was called Madinat as-Salam (City of Peace); it was assumed that representatives of all social and ethnic groups of the state would live in it. The caliph personally examined the plan of the future city outlined by ashes on the ground and instructed the astrologers to choose the time of its laying. Madinat al-Salam - round in plan, fortified with walls and a moat, with four golden domes over the city gates facing the four cardinal points, with the caliph's palace in the center of residential development - was in essence a model of the Universe, in the middle of which stood the throne of the "commander of the faithful ( Muslims - Note. ed.)". Visible from everywhere, the green dome of the caliphs' palace was adorned with a bronze figure of a rider with a spear, to which the rumor attributed the ability to indicate from where the enemy was approaching the capital. The green dome, as it were, crowned the palace, the capital, and the entire empire, symbolizing the omnipotence of the caliph, who in the era of the Abbasids was considered the deputy of Allah himself.

The emphatically monumental style of Abbasid art finally took shape in the architecture and design of the building built in the middle of the 9th century. the residence city of Samarra (from the Arabic name, which in translation means “pleasing to the eye”), stretching for more than thirty kilometers along the banks of the Tigris. The first of the Samarra palaces, Jawsak al-

*Astrology (from Greek"astron" - "star" and "logos" - "word", "knowledge") - the doctrine of the connection between the location of heavenly bodies and historical events, the fate of people and peoples.

Khakani, built in 836, occupied the territory, only the width of which reached about one and a half kilometers. In Jawsak al-Khaqani there were complexes of government, front and residential ground and underground (summer) premises, enfilades of courtyards, underground drainage cisterns, gardens with pools, barracks, stables. The brick column of the Great Mosque of Samarra with an area of 156x240 meters was considered not to be surpassed in size as a religious building. The walls, fortified with semicircular bastions and corner towers, and the giant spiral minaret of Malviya, over fifty meters high, have survived from it. Unlike Baghdad, which was built as a palace, each of the palaces of Samarra was built as a city, reminiscent of the composition and scale of the residences of the kings of Assyria and Babylonia.

Samarra palace painting with planar contour figures, which more likely denoted than depicted a hunt, a feast, a dance, also partly revived the traditions of the art of the ancient Eastern empires. On the contrary, the reliefs that adorned the mosques, palaces and residential buildings of Samarra testified that at that time a new type of ornament began to form in Muslim art - arabesque, as the Europeans called it.

The well-preserved mosque of Ibn Tulun (876-879) in Cairo (Egypt) brilliantly completed a series of grandiose Abbasid mosques.

Minaret Malvia. middleIXin. Sanbenito. Syria.

ARABESQUE

Arabesque (from French arabesque - “Arabic”) - this is how the Europeans called the complex pattern characteristic of Arabic and Iranian art, created on the basis of an accurate mathematical calculation. The arabesque is built on the repetition and multiplication of one or more elements of the pattern - geometric shapes, floral motifs. Inscriptions, images of animals, birds, people and fantastic creatures can be woven into the arabesque pattern. Such an ornament actually excludes the background: one pattern is inscribed in another, densely filling the surface. The Europeans called this principle “fear of emptiness”. The pattern of the arabesque is in tune with the rhythm of Arabic classical poetry and music and is consistent with the ideas of Muslim theologians about the "indefinitely continuing fabric of the universe." The endless "movement" of the arabesque, flowing in a given rhythm, can be stopped or continued at any point without violating the integrity of the pattern. An arabesque can be placed on a surface of any configuration and size: there is no fundamental difference between ornamental compositions on a building wall or a carpet, on a manuscript binding and a ceramic or jewelry item.

Tiles from the Alhambra.XIVin. National Archaeological Museum, Madrid.

Tiles from the Alcazar Palace.XIVin. Seville. Spain.

those of column type. It was distinguished from its Iraqi predecessors by a more compact layout and the appearance of surprisingly proportional

high lancet arches, which since that time have become a characteristic feature of works of architecture in Muslim countries.

The history of the medieval Muslim world is full of turbulent political events. In the XI-XII centuries. the Seljuk Turks conquered Central Asia, Iran, Northern Mesopotamia and Asia Minor. In the XIII century. they were replaced by the Mongols, who captured Baghdad in 1258. They put an end to the Abbasid caliphate.

In North Africa and Southern Spain, the power of the Almoravid (1056-1146) and Almohad dynasties ( 1121/1122-1269 gg.). For about three centuries, in the heart of the Muslim world, the founders of Cairo (969), the Fatimids Caliphs, and then the Ayyubid sultans (end of the 12th - first half of the 13th century) and the Mamluks (1250-1517) ruled (until 1171). In the Middle East, as a result of the aggressive wars of the Central Asian ruler Timur (1370-1405), a power was created that marked the beginning of the era of the great Muslim empires of the late Middle Ages.

According to the results of research in Western Palestine in 1894, the American archaeologist Frederick Bliss describes three large mounds north of Jericho, one of which was the palace of Caliph Hisham or Khirbet al-Mafjar. At that time, large-scale excavations were not carried out, but in 1934-1948, the Palestinian archaeologist Dmitry Baramki, together with other world-class archaeologists, spent 12 seasons excavating the site. Later, in 1959, the archaeologist Robert Hamilton would publish the most comprehensive monograph ever written on the excavation of the mound, Khirbat al-Mafjar: An Arabian Mansion in the Jordanian Valley.

Palace plan drawn up by Chicago archaeologists

Establishing the authenticity and ownership of the palace, known as the palace of Caliph Hisham, has always been problematic: in medieval historical and literary texts there is no mention of the palace or its descriptions, and during the excavations themselves, only a few ostracons were found on the territory of the mound (a shard of an earthen vessel, shells, slate, limestone) with inscriptions in Arabic. Two of the found ostracons bear the name of Caliph Hisham, which allowed the archaeologist to attribute the construction of the palace to the period of Hisham's reign (from 727 to 743 AD).

Thus, during the excavations of Baramka, the object was called the Hisham Palace, but later Hamilton put forward an alternative version, arguing that the palace was upset and rebuilt by Caliph Walid ibn Yazid (Walid II), the heir of Hisham ibd al-Malik, during the brief period of his reign in 743-47 This version is supported by the unprecedented luxury of the palace and elements of obvious excesses and the Arab Dolce Vita of that time.

One thing is certain - Khirbet al-Mafjar was the pearl of the construction of the Umayyad Caliphate, an example of magnificent artwork early Islamic period and can be considered as an example in assessing all the "castles in the desert" of that period.

The main building of the palace complex - the Great Hall - baths, a hall for receptions were a miracle of the then architecture and art. Dozens of meters of luxurious mosaics, carpets, extraordinary beauty and skillfulness of stucco (marble imitation technique) and frescoes, all this, of course, made the palace even among such powerful competitors as the palaces of Samarra or Cairo.

The sunset of the beautiful days of the palace is also covered in mist. After the assassination of Caliph Walid II, the palace fell into disrepair, never being completed, and then it was badly damaged and was destroyed during a series of earthquakes, and also, apparently, was plundered.

The "Tree of Life" is the name of one of the most beautiful mosaics in the Middle East, if not the whole world. She covered the floor of the guest room of the bath complex. Imitating beautiful Persian carpets, the mosaic is relatively well preserved, with only a few damage from earthquakes.

Many statues, columns, mosaics, etc. today they are kept in the Israel Museum and in the Rockefeller Museum in Jerusalem, but there is nothing more interesting and more important to see with your own eyes the place where the inhabitants of Hisham's palace walked among today's museum exhibits.

One thing is certain - Khirbet al-Mafjar was a gem of the construction of the Umayyad Caliphate, an example of the magnificent artwork of the early Islamic period and can be considered as an example in assessing all the "castles in the desert" of that period.

The main building of the palace complex - the Great Hall - the baths, the reception hall were a miracle of the then architecture and art. Dozens of meters of luxurious mosaics, carpets, extraordinary beauty and skillfulness of stucco (marble imitation technique) and frescoes, all this, of course, made the palace even among such powerful competitors as the palaces of Samarra or Cairo.