c. 712 715, Hammam , Qusayr Amra, Jordan. Umayyad.

This hammam and palace structure was built by Caliph al-Walid I (ibn Abd al-Malik). Qusayr Amras hammam has an impressive vaulting system that includes a system of pointed transverse arches, a characteristic of Eastern architecture, and Byzantine frescoes that depict court life at the palatial estate and the workers, craftsmen and animals that brought this unique structure into being. Other frescoes depict a haloed dignitary (possibly the caliph), opposite the four kings of Byzantium, Ethiopia, Persia, and the Visigoths. This grouping in symbolic in Islamic architecture as the control of the caliph over a powerful assembly of the four contemporaneous kings. OTHER INFO: Caliph al-Walid ibn Abd al-Malik also commissioned the Great Mosque at Damascus to be built over the site of the Byzantine Cathedral of St. John the Baptist. A small chapel dedicated to the saint was left standing and worked into Walid Is mosque plan. St. John, or Yahya, is considered a Prophet of Islam. Walid Is father, Abd al-Malik, commissioned the building of the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem.

c. 730, Lion Gazelle mosaic, Khirbat al-Mafjar. Umayyad.

Built by Caliph al-Walid II (ibn Abd al-Yazid) near Jericho in the Jordan Valley, Khirbat al-Mafjar remains one of the most sophisticated Umayyad palaces in the region. Once a two-storied palace with a mosque, hammam, and courtyard, the ruins of Kirbat al-Mafjar include an opulently decorated hammam, beautiful mosaic baths, and female figural sculptures. This structure is renowned for its elaborate mosaics, stucco facades, and evidence of Byzantine and Sassanian influences. Much of the hammams mosaic style is derived from geometric patterns, while another another famous mosaic panel at the site displays an apple tree providing cover on its right side to two gazelles that chew at its foliage while to the left a lion is shown attacking another gazelle from behind. Interpretations of this scene speak to its symbolic implications of the Umayyad caliphate: life can be peaceful and serene under Umayyad authority while those who threatened central power face physical defeat.

c. 740, Khirbat al-Mafjar, Jordan Valley. Ummayad.

Facade view, birds eye plan, artistic rendering, female figural statue.

Sample of Mshatta exterior wall, however qibla wall ornamentation was strictly geometric/vegetal, and did not include depictions of human or animal life.

743 744, Qibla wall exterior, Qasr al-Mshatta. Umayyad.

Also commissioned by Umayyad caliph, al-Walid ibn Abd al-Yazid (Walid II), Qasr al-Mshattas year-long construction was suddenly brought to a halt when Walid II was assassinated in 744 . Byzantine and Sassanian influence is evident in its brickwork, masonry, decoration and design. Mshattas most breathtaking feature is the elaborate stucco carvings on the south facade, whose vegetal and geometric nature provides a sort of camouflage for the thick stone walls which it ornaments.

762 767, Plan of Al-Mansurs Baghdad. Abbasid.

The notable circular plan of Madina-al-Salam (City of Peace) was constructed in the 8th century by Abbasid Caliph Mansur. Planned so that all roads lead to the main government center which included a palace, a mosque, residences, government offices, and a kitchen.

847-861, Great Mosque, Samarra, Iraq. Abbasid.

Caliph al-Mutawakkil commissioned the construction of the Great Mosque in the mid-ninth century. The mosques most notable feature is the Minaret al-Malwiya, influenced by a specific type of Mesopotamian ziggurat, that supports a great spiraling ramp fifty-five meters high.

9th century, Carved pair of Doors, Abbasid Iraq.

13th century, House of Wisdom, Baghdad. Abbasid.

The Abbasids' House of Wisdom was a library and translation institute in Baghdad, Iraq. A key institution in the Translation Movement, and a major intellectual center in the Islamic Golden Age - translators, scientists, scribes, authors, men of letters, writers, authors, copyists and others met every day for translation, reading, writing, scribing, discourse, dialogue and discussion. Many manuscripts and books in various scientific subjects, and in different languages were translated there. The languages which were spoken, read and written there were Arabic, Farsi, Hebrew, Aramaic, Syriac, Greek and Latin; also occasionally Sanskrit, which was used to translate the old Indian manuscripts in astronomy and mathematics. Other ares of study included medicine, chemistry, geography, philosophy and literature.

Minaret
A tall slender tower of a mosque that has one or more balconies from which the summons to prayer is called.

Sahn
In Islamic architecture, a sahn is a courtyard. Almost every mosque has a sahn, which is surrounded by an arcade from all sides.

Minbar
A pulpit in the mosque located to the right of the mihrab where the imam (leader of prayer) stands to deliver sermons.

Vegetal Ornamentation
Vegetal patterns employed alone or in combination with the other major types of ornament adorn a vast number of buildings, manuscripts, objects, and textiles, produced throughout the Islamic world. With the exception of the garden and its usual reference to paradise, vegetal motifs and patterns in Islamic art are largely devoid of symbolic meaning.

Arabesque
French: "in the Arab fashion". Term often used to describe a complicated, intertwined, flowing design of stylized floral and plant motifs.

Mosaic
Images created with an assemblage of small pieces of colored glass, stone, or other materials. Individual material pieces are called tessera.

Caliph
A caliph is head of state in a caliphate. This term is used to describe a position of power with no separation of religion and government, unlike sultans, whose duties were strictly governmental.

Shariah
Literally means way" or "path", and symbolizes the code of conduct or religious law of Islam.

Hadith
A traditional account of things said or done by Muhammad or his disciples, and regarded by traditional Islamic schools as important tools for understanding the Qur'an.

Hammam
A communal bathhouse, usually with separate baths for men and women.

Umayyad
After the death of Ali, there was a bitter religious and political struggle between the followers of a more traditional Islamic faith, who were called Sunnis, and the more radical followers of Ali, who were called Shiites. The Sunnis won, and established the Umayyad dynasty, with its capital at Damascus in Syria. In Jerusalem, the Umayyads built the first major mosque, the Dome of the Rock, on the site of Solomon's Temple (and the place where Abraham almost sacrificed his son Issac.)

Abbasid
In 750 AD, the Umayyad caliphs were replaced by the Abbasid caliphs, who murdered all of the surviving Umayyad men but one. In 762 AD the Abbasids moved their capital from Damascus in Syria to the new city of Baghdad in Iraq. Baghdad was soon the largest international city in the world outside of China. The Abbasid empire controlled most of West Asia and North Africa from 750 CE until about 1000 CE.

Sunni
The Sunni are the "people of the tradition [of Muhammad] and the community", and the largest branch of Islam. Sunni Islam is referred to as the orthodox version of the religion. The word "Sunni" comes from the term Sunnah, which refers to the sayings and actions of Muhammad that are recorded in hadiths.

Shia
The Shia are self-proclaimed followers of Ali, and the second largest denomination of Islam. Shias believe that God's representatives (Prophets and Imams) cannot be elected by common Muslims.