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- DESIGN
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- Architecture Guide
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- Islamic
c. 630 – 1736
Moorish, Ottoman, Persian, Mughal
Influences: Roman temples and Byzantine churches with Central Asian decorative motifs: Berber, Umayyad and Abbasid, Arab, and Hindu
Architecture created by the Moors, Ottomans, Arabs, Persians, Mughals, and other followers of Muhammad is free of figures, instead of decorated in intricate geometric patterns inspired by nature and mathematics.
Ottoman Islam, Turkey
Under Ottoman rule, Constantinople became Istanbul, and the once Byzantine Hagia Sofia was transformed into a mosque with the addition of minarets. This iconic structure was used as a model for additional Ottoman mosques throughout the Empire.
Hagia Sophia
The Hagia Sophia (meaning “Holy Wisdom” in Greek) has remained one of the most profound wonders of my study of architectural history and one that I always dreamed to visit in person. Fortunate to make this reverie a reality, I was struck with awe by its massive size, vast interior space covered by a 184-foot-high dome, antiquity (you…
Istanbul, Turkey
The vast city of Istanbul fascinated me with its complex Byzantine and Ottoman history. As the largest of Turkey’s cities, it is filled with architectural and cultural wonders worth visiting. They range from mosques, churches and palaces to museums, parks and bazaars. Magnificent monuments gain roots from the once Roman capitol of Constantinople, followed by the Muslim conquest by the Ottoman sultans who transformed…