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Tangjian Shi

Deborah Bird

Final Project

12/9/2022

Historical/Contemporary Comparison: The Blue Mosque and the Alhambra

The Blue Mosque also known as the Sultan Ahmed Mosque is an Ottoman-era

contemporary imperial mosque located in Istanbul, Turkey. The building sits next to the Hagia-

Sophia mosque. The building was constructed in the 17th century between 1609 and 1616 during

Ahmed the first rule. The king contracted and commission Sedefkar Mehmed Agha to construct

the mosque. The contractor applied both the Islamic architecture and late classical Ottoman

architecture. The Alhambra is a fortress and palace complex located in Granada, Andalusia in

Spain.

The construction commenced in 1238 by the first Nasrid emir and founder of the Granada

Emirate Muhammad I Ibn al-Ahmar. It sits on the Sabaki hill. Addison Mizner, Jose Contreras

and Pavel Notbeck were the building contractors and they made use of the Islamic architectural

style. The two buildings are similar from using the Islamic architectural even though the Blue

Mosque applied some late classical Ottoman style. However, they are different from the

functions they play for instance the Blue Mosque is used for religious purposes and Alhambra is

a palace occupied by the loyal family. The mosque is also big in size with a capacity of 10,000

making it bigger than the Alhambra.

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Sedefkâr Mehmed Ağa, Dome, the Blue Mosque (Sultan Ahmed Mosque), completed 1617,

Istanbul (photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

The Alhambra close range view

The Blue Mosque history or origin dates back 1603-1618 after the peace of Zsitvatorok

and the crushing loss with Persia. King Sultan Ahmed the first decided on constructing a mega

mosque in Istanbul with intentions of reasserting the Ottoman power. The king from the massive

losses the country had attained after incurring huge losses during war procured funds from the

treasury. The mosque was constructed on a site meant for a palace to communicate a significant

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symbolic message of power and dominance. It was a building that apart from religious purpose it

was meant to achieve, it also had a political purpose of bringing the war to an end and for people

to embrace peace through the support of worship. The Blue Mosque also had a cultural effect in

the sense that a majority of people in region were Muslims and made use of Islamic culture.

Hence, the design and arrangement of the building complied with the Islamic culture of the time.

The mosque’s site is politically instigated because unlike other Ottoman mosques which could be

constructed far from cities to pave way for development, the Blue Mosque is place in between

Hagia Sophia and he Byzantine Hippodrome which is also near the Ottoman royal residence.

The Alhambra complex was built on the Sabika hill, considered an outcrop of Sierra

Nevada. The same location in the 11th century has considered as a fortresses site and a palace of

the then king Samuel ibn Naghrillah. The site has a deep cultural and political impact in the

sense that it is a site believed and perceived as one hosting the royal palace. As the region

continued developing economically modification of the site have been done for instance by the

Nasrid rulers. It is the embracing of culture that in the 14th century during Yusuf 1 and

Muhammad V reigns that the site was expanded making the site to have a kingly appearance.

There has been a lot of political impact that affected the site positively and negatively.

For instance after the Christian Reconquista came to an end in 1492 the place became slightly

altered. Further alteration took place in 1526 during the reign of Charles V who recommended

the application of the new Renaissance-style palace but the palace was left incomplete in the

early 17th century. As a matter of reality, squatters had started occupying some buildings within

the palace and the Alhambra was established after the defeat of Napoleon 1 even though their

troops destroyed the site. The rediscovering of the site was done by some British intellectuals

and American and northern European Romantic travelers.

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The Blue Mosque has two major sections, the large area which is the prayer hall also

crowned by the main dome and a large spacious courtyard. The mosque design is against earlier

imperial mosques in Istanbul because of the exterior stone wall which is relieved through

numerous blind arcade and windows. The architect incorporated a lot of Byzantine elements

found in Hagia Sophia with traditional Islamic architecture a combination that makes to be the

greatest yet last mosque of the classical era. The building has three sides with a huge elevation

and recessed entrances in order to provide access to the sacred core. The courtyard section has an

inner frame creating a domed arcade. In overall, the mosque has five main domes and eight

secondary domes. The dome arcade is uniform on all sides apart from the prayer hall entrance

where the arches expand.

Inside the central dome there are some triangular segments with spherical surface and its

weight is supported in the four large fluted columns. The prayer large space has been made

possible by the presence half-domes cascading outwards from the center joining the exterior

walls. In the entire building there are six minarets for call to prayer. Four of them are positioned

on the corners of the prayer hall while the other two are on the courtyard’s external corners. The

minarets are pencil-shaped and a series of balconies adorning its lean design. On decoration, the

upper area is decorated using over 20,000 different hand-painted glazed ceramic in 60 different

tulip patterns. The lower grounds are illuminated using 200 stained glass windows. Additionally,

an iron chain hangs in the court entrance on the western side

The Alhambra sits on a 2,300–2,430 ft in length and 660–670 ft width. The building

extends from west-northwest to east-southeast covering an area of approximately 1,530,000 sq ft

equal to 35 acres. The structure stands on a narrow promontory overlooking the Plain of

Granada and carved by the river Darro on its north side descending from Sierra Nevada. The

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main westernized feature is the Alcazaba which is a large fortress facing the city. The building

has a series of main structures namely entrance gates, Alcazaba, Nasrid palaces, Palace of

Charles V, and the Church of Santa Maria and the Alhambra Mosque. According to -------- the

main entrance is known as the Gate of Justice located on the south side of the walled complex.

This gate is comprised of six horseshoe arc directing towards a steep ramp while passing through

a bent passage. The passage creates a 90 degrees turn to the left and then 90 degrees to the right.

There is an opening above for security purposes.

Gate of Arms is the second entrance gate located on the north side of Alcabaza leading

towards the plaza de los aljibes and the Nasrid palaces. There are two exterior gates located on

the fur east. On the north side is the Arrabal Gate and the south side is the Gate of seven floors.

Alcazaba also known as the Citadel is the centerpiece of the complicated system. It is the tallest

tower of approximately 85 ft (Tower of Homage) with its purpose being center of military

command. The Nasrid palace is the royal palace comprising of three different parts, the Mexuar,

Comares, and the palace of lions. Mexuar is the westernmost section of the structure and has two

courtyards followed by a main hall. All are aligned with a central axis from west to east.

Comares Palace was initially the largest part of the complex but has over the years been

modified. It serves as the new palace complex and official palace of the state and sultan. The

Palace of Lions is the central rectangular courtyard measuring 28.7 meters long and 15.6 meters

wide. Has wide axis connecting east with the west. The Palace of Charles V is in the middle of

the building and has massive high Renaissance artistic circles of Giulio Romano and Raphael.

The church of Santa Maria is a catholic church currently siting in the same location as firmer

Alhambra Mosque

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http://www.sultanahmetcamii.org/structure-and-form-of-the-mosque/

https://www.lovegranada.com/alhambra/map/

Close-up plan of the Nasrid Palaces (from

1889):

Mexuar (main hall)

Comares Palace

Palace of the Lions

Courtyard of Lindaraja

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Culturally, the Turkish people have always focused on having some of the best

architectural designs. To them, it was a sign of power and it is for this reason that Blue Mosque

was constructed in an area where mosques are rarely constructed.

The Alhambra

The Alhambra is a palace and fortress complex located in Granada, Andalusia, Spain. It was It was originally constructed as a small fortress in 889.

The Alhambra rises majestically above the city of Granada, Spain. Photo: Irene Hwang