The Great Mosque of Cordoba is a beautiful and famous piece of architecture located in Spain.

The Great mosque of Cordoba is a house of worship where muslins gather to pray to Allah. Construction began between 784 and 786 AD under the supervision of "Abd al-Rahman I, who fled Syria when his family was killed by political dynasty enemies (Great Mosque of Cordoba, ND, ¶1). The Great Mosque of Cordoba is beautifully architecture with rectangular halls for prayer displaying white and red marble tile arches. " The extravagant use of color, particularly tiles, is one of the hallmarks of Islamic architecture." (Islam Empire of Faith, ND, ¶1).

Throughout the years the mosque was expanded by new rulers that kept the alternating white and red theme voussoirs going creating a mystical illusion throughout the open spaces. The maqsura, where the ruler prayed is the most highly decorated space of all, with "carved marble. stucco, and elaborate mosaics." (Great Mosque of Cordoba, ND. ¶4). The maqsura is located separately from the prayer hall by polylobed arcades, an earlier architecture theme developed during the incarnation of the mosque. This separation from the maqsura from the rest of the prayer hall was also composed of the mihrab, which indicated the direction towards Mecca, a direction in which all pray. The original mihrab constructed in the Great Mosque of Cordoba was abandoned as it was not aligned properly in the direction of Mecca. The mihrab that stands today was constructed almost 200 years later by Byzantine craftsmen. (Cordoba: The Great Mosque. the Mihrab, ND, ¶2 )

Inside the Great Mosque of Cordoba there are over 1,000 columns, which give the appearance of careful planning, however, this is said to not have been the case. Instead, columns from the old Visigoth cathedral and other roman buildings were used. These columns were of different shapes and sizes, some too long and other short. The longer columns were buried deeper into the ground. The arches were created to hide some of the imperfection of the columns. Cordoba: The Great Mosque. the columns, ND, ¶1)

Today, the Great Mosque of Cordoba is a staple of Spain where people from all around the world gather not just to pray but to admired this beautiful architecture that has surpassed the times and maintain its original beauty. Visitors gather outside and sit by Court of the Oranges, which produce an visual extension “of the rows of columns within the prayer hall..” (Great Mosque of Cordoba, ND. ¶3).

The sources of reference are

Great Mosque of Cordoba. (ND). Retrieved on April 5, 2009 from

http://www.archnet.org/library/sites/one-site.jsp?site_id=31

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Islam Empire of Faith. ND. Architecture. Retrieved on April 5, 2009 from

http://www.pbs.org/empires/islam/culturearch.html

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Kasugai City “The Town of Calligraphy”. ND. Retrieved on April 5, 2009 from http://www.city.kasugai.lg.jp/languages/english/eng_calligraphy.html

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Looklex Pain. Cordoba: The Great Mosque. the columns. ND. Retrieved on April 5, 2009 from http://looklex.com/spain/cordoba05.htm

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Looklex Pain. Cordoba: The Great Mosque. the Mihrab. ND. Retrieved on April 5, 2009 from http://looklex.com/spain/cordoba04.htm

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