Musalla Complex

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Musalla complex
Herat Remains of Musallah complex.jpg
Remains of Musalla Complex seen in 2005
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Herat
Location in Afghanistan
Alternative nameMusallah complex, Gauhar Shad Musallah
Location Herat, Afghanistan
Region Herat Province
Coordinates 34°21′33″N62°11′10″E / 34.359284°N 62.18608°E / 34.359284; 62.18608 Coordinates: 34°21′33″N62°11′10″E / 34.359284°N 62.18608°E / 34.359284; 62.18608
Type Islamic religious complex
Height55 m (180 ft) minarets
History
Builder Queen Goharshad of Timurid Empire of Herāt
Founded1417
Abandoned1885
Cultures Islamic
EventsRuins, razed in 1885
Site notes
ConditionRuined
Public accessYes
Architecture
Architectural styles Timurid
Architectural detailsTimurid Mosque, Shah Rukh madressa, mausoleums, 20 minarets

The Musalla complex, also known as the Musallah Complex or the Musalla of Gawhar Shah, is a former Islamic religious complex located in Herat, Afghanistan, containing examples of Timurid architecture. Much of the 15th-century complex is in ruins today, and the buildings that still stand are in need of restoration. The complex ruins today consist of the five Musallah Minarets of Herat, the Mir Ali Sher Navai mausoleum, the Gawhar Shad Mausoleum, and the ruins of a large mosque and a madrasa complex.

Contents

Construction on the complex began in 1417 under Queen Gawharshad, the wife of Timurid ruler Shah Rukh, and ended in the late 1400s with the building of a madrassa by Sultan Husayn Bayqara. It was seriously damaged in 1885 during the Panjdeh incident, when the British and ruling Emir of Afghanistan demolished most of the complex buildings. Due to earthquakes and war, four fell during the course of the 20th century.

History

Shah Rukh made Herat the capital of the Timurid Empire in 1405, moving it from Samarkand. The complex was then commissioned by Timurid Queen Gawhar Shad and construction began in 1417, likely under architect Kavamad-Din of Shiraz who also built a similar madrasa in Khar Gerd. [1] The madrasa was built between 1417 and 1426, [2] [3] possibly as late as c. 1432. The complex had two minarets by its eastern façade on either side of the main entrance and the mausoleum in its northwest corner. [4] The mosque was completed in 1437. [5] [6] A madrasa by Sultan Husayn Bayqara called Madrasa Ni'matiyya was built sometime between 1469 and 1506, probably around 1493 (898  AH). [7]

The Musalla complex was heavily damaged in the late 19th century. Due to artillery fire, the minaret tops were destroyed in 1868. Then during the Panjdeh incident of 1885, Russian soldiers attacked Afghan soldiers southeast of Merv. Most of the buildings in the complex were leveled by the British and Emir Abdur Rahman Khan in order to prevent the Russians from using the buildings as cover. [6] Only the Gawhar Shad mausoleum and nine of the original twenty minarets were allowed to remain. [7] [6] The Heratis had petitioned Abdur Rahman to save the complex, but he responded that saving the living was more important than saving the dead's resting places. [8]

An earthquake in 1932 destroyed two of the mosque's four minarets and another earthquake in 1951 destroyed another, leaving only one standing. [7] [1] Only five of the original twenty minarets in the complex remained in 2021. [7]

The complex was visited and photographed in the 1930s by the travel writers Robert Byron and Annemarie Schwarzenbach. Byron's book, The Road to Oxiana , mentions the minarets and discusses Timurid history. [5] The mausoleum of 'Ali Shir Nawa'i was rebuilt in 1950. [6]

Preservation efforts

By the 20th century, the mausoleum had been extensively damaged, with the cupola in particular being severely deteriorated. Intervention in the 1950s supervised and led by Fikri Saljuqi resulted in drastically changing the appearance of the building, with construction of an entirely new eastern façade and a partly new southern facade, and the hexagonal Mihrab being demolished and replaced with a rectangular one. The interior dome was decorated and mosaics were installed on the outside walls to a height of one metre (3 ft 3 in). [6] Restoration and repairs to the mausoleum often were of poor quality using inappropriate materials. [4]

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) along with Italian architect Andrea Bruno began preliminary conservation and restoration efforts in 1974–75. Work started on the minarets of the Nicmatiyya madrassa in April 1977. A year later, structural reinforcement started in cooperation with the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan government. Its aim was to restore the faience decoration and to prevent masonry erosion. The work was slowed due to a lack of steel piping. While close to finishing the mosque restoration, Herat's March 1979 uprising and the resultant suppression caused work to end. UNESCO returned briefly in 1989 to review the situation. [6]

During the Soviet–Afghan War, the mausoleum and minarets suffered additional damage. Herat was the only urban battlefield during the war, and historical buildings were often targeted to lower morale. The mausoleum's roof was struck in 1984–1985 and lost several tiles, especially on the northern and western portions. At the bottom of the dome, writing in Kufic was partially destroyed on the eastern side and completely gone on the north. The 1950 eastern façade was hit by a shell and repaired with regular bricks. Evidence of the former connections to the masadra to the east and south was destroyed. Its inner square chamber remained in good condition. The last minaret that stood at the corners of the mosque was almost completely destroyed by Soviet heavy artillery during this period, leaving only 12 metres (39 ft) of its base remaining. The middle minaret also suffered damage, with tile work in the best condition on the southern side and partly remaining on the eastern side. The balcony supports were destroyed and shells hit the minaret. A two-metre (6 ft 7 in) hole was created 17 metres (56 ft) up, exposing the staircase inside. A scar two meters below the hole was also created. The eastern minaret in the southeast corner was the most affected of the four eastern minarets: two holes were created by howitzers 30 metres (98 ft) off the ground and 2 metres in diameter. Further repairs were conducted by the Danish Committee for Aid to Afghan Refugees (DACAAR) and the WFP between 1992 and 1994. DACAAR added masonry and covered the dome of the mausoleum along with the base with a thin layer of cement. [6]

Emergency preservation work was carried out at the site in 2001 by the Society for the Preservation of Afghanistan's Cultural Heritage (SPACH). These efforts included erecting walls to protect the mausoleum and Sultan Husain Madrasa, restoring garden landscaping at the mausoeum, and measures to forestall the collapse of the Gawhar Shad Madrasa's remaining minaret. [7] [9] [10] [11] In 2014, UNESCO and the Afghanistan government coordinated to attempt to preserve and replicate the tile work on the exterior dome. [12] UNESCO is presently considering the nomination of Herat as a World Heritage Site. [13] In 2020, the Aga Khan Development Network made a pledge to the President of Afghanistan to restore a minaret in danger of collapsing. [14] [15]

Description

The Timurids built the complex initially north of the city along the Khiyaban avenue 1.6 km (1 mi) north of Darvaza-yi Malik. [6] The location was convenient because of its close vicinity to the royal residence in the Bagh-i Zaghan. [16] In 2015, Herat's suburbs were surrounding the site. [4] The complex was centered around a musalla 106 by 64 metres (348 ft × 210 ft). The inner court had four iwans, with two arcades going around it. [17] The madrasa with the mausoleum in its corner was built to the northwest Mosque. Husayn Bayqara's madrassa was built to the northwest of Gawhar Shad's madrasa. [6] There was also the mausoleum of Ali-Shir Nava'i between the ruins of the madrasas. [1] Across from the mausoleum of Gawhar Shad there was the tomb of Sheikh Zadeh Abdallah. Abdallah's tomb was octagonal with four iwans, with the north iwan being the largest. [17]

Minarets

The complex used to have 20 minarets adorned with tiles in intricate patterns and designs. By 2002, the five remaining minarets had their tiles scattered on the ground around them. [3] [6]

Minarets of Ni'Matiyya Masadra [18]
DesignationLocationHeightLean [lower-alpha 1]
M1Southwest51.83 metres (170.0 ft)70 centimetres (28 in)
M2Northwest54.75 metres (179.6 ft)50 centimetres (20 in)
M3Northeast58.23 metres (191.0 ft)200 centimetres (79 in)
M4Southeast58.72 metres (192.7 ft)170 centimetres (67 in)

The four eastern minarets stood at the corners of Sultan Husayn Bayqara's Ni'matiyya masadra before it was demolished, and outlined a courtyard 103 by 105 metres (338 ft × 344 ft). [18] They had one balcony each and were a brighter blue than the four minarets that stood in the west. When built, they were at least 70 metres (230 ft) tall. Due to wind and changes in temperature, they all lean westward. The minarets had an ornate turquoise tile covering before it was destroyed. Robert Byron wrote it "was as if one saw the sky through a net of shining hair planted suddenly with flowers". There were also two tall arches over an entrance, depicted in 1887. The tombstone of Bayqara's grandfather, called the Stone of the Seven Pens, is nearby. [5] [6]

The four minarets in the west stood at the corners of the former mosque and outlined a court 350 by 210 metres (1,150 ft × 690 ft). [8] These were wider, eight-sided, and had one balcony each. They were supported by white marble panels and the color of grape-blue. Three fell due to earthquakes in the 20th century. [7] The remaining minaret, called Minar-i Nahbas, stood in the southwest. It was 37.5 metres (123 ft) tall before the Soviet–Afghan War. Fakhr-ul Madaris, a religious school with 350 students, was built at its base around 1940, incorporating the minaret into its norther façade. [1] [8] Both minaret and school were destroyed by Soviet artillery in 1985, and only 12 metres (39 ft) of the minaret's base remains. [5] [6]

The middle minaret with a height of 42.40 metres (139 ft 1 in) has two balconies and was decorated with blue lozenges separated by regular bricks with flower mosaics. The top of the minaret (above the second balcony) was hit by artillery and destroyed. It had a lean of 90 centimetres (35 in) before the Soviet–Afghan War which had extended to 350 centimetres (140 in) by 1998. The minaret was one of a pair that had stood at the sides of the entrance to the masadra. [5] [6] [1]

Gawhar Shad Mausoleum

The mausoleum was originally constructed to house the remains of Prince Baysunghur, a son of the Timurid ruler Shah Rukh and Gawhar Shad. [19] [20] Some members of Baysunghur's family were interred alongside him. They included Gawhar Shad herself and her brother Amir Sufi Tarkhan, [21] her other son Muhammad Juki, [22] Baysunghur's sons Sultan Muhammad [23] and Ala al-Dawla, as well as the latter's son Ibrahim. More distantly related Timurids, Ahmad and Shah Rukh (sons of Abu Sa'id Mirza, who was responsible for Gawhar Shad's execution), were also buried in the mausoleum. [19] Baysunghur's father Shah Rukh was briefly interred as well, before later being transferred to the Gur-e-Amir in Samarqand. [24]

Gawhar Shad's mausoleum is 27 metres (89 ft) tall. It lies is between the two western minarets and was built in the masadra's northwest corner. [5] [6] The building forms a cruciform shape, with a dome covering the center. [17] This dome is the most impressive feature of the structure, in that it is actually three domes superimposed over one another: a low inner dome, a bulbous outer cupola and a structural dome between them. [4] The outer cupola is decorated with flowery light-blue-green mosaics. The inner dome is adorned with gold leaf, lapis lazuli and other colours which form intricate patterns. The interior of the tomb itself is a square chamber with axial niches. [25] [6]

Due to the widespread habit of tombstones being taken and re-used, it is unknown how many burials there are in the mausoleum. Though some sources claim there were as many as twenty grave markers at one time, at present there are only six. [19] Lying in the center of the room, they are oblong shaped and made of matt black stone, with floral patterns carved on them. There are two larger stones, three smaller cenotaphs, and a child-sized tomb. [5] [6]

In 1998, some objects were located inside the mausoleum to preserve them and prevent robbery. They include twelve 100 cm × 60 cm (39 in × 24 in) marble slabs, a piece of the base of a minaret rising from the mosque, a large slab with seven lines of writing, and other marble panels. [6]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ A measurement of how off-balance the minaret is

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Dupree, Nancy Hatch (1977). Historical guide to Afghanistan. University of Arizona Libraries. doi:10.2458/azu_acku_ds351_d87_1977.
  2. ↑ "Musalla Complex & Minarets | Herat, Afghanistan Attractions". Lonely Planet. 15 January 2006.
  3. 1 2 "Monuments Of Herat, Afghanistan's Ancient Cultural Capital, In Danger Of Destruction". rferl.org. Archived from the original on 20 September 2018. Retrieved 19 September 2018.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Cassar, Brendan; Noshadi, Sara (2015). Keeping history alive: safeguarding cultural heritage in post-conflict Afghanistan. UNESCO Publishing. pp. 184–186. ISBN   978-92-3-100064-5.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Byron, Robert (1937). The Road to Oxiana. Macmillan and Co. Ltd. pp. 97–103.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 Tirard-Collet, Olivier (1998). "After the War. The Condition of Historical Buildings and Monuments in Herat, Afghanistan". Iran. 36: 123–138. doi:10.2307/4299980. ISSN   0578-6967. JSTOR   4299980. Archived from the original on 23 August 2021. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Masjid-i Jami'-i Gawhar Shad-". Archnet.org. Retrieved 5 September 2021.
  8. 1 2 3 Herat : a pictorial guide / text Nancy Hatch ; photography Inger Hansen ; Drawings Brigitte McCulloch (PDF). University of Arizona Libraries. 1966. doi:10.2458/azu_acku_pamphlet_ds375_h47_w65_1966.
  9. ↑ "Mousallah Complex in Herat – Afghanistan – Tourist Spots Around the World". Touristspots.org. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  10. ↑ "Afghanistan: Race To Preserve Historic Minarets Of Herat, Jam". Rferl.org. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  11. ↑ "Tư vấn sản phẩm". Adventuretravelphotos.com. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  12. ↑ "Italian-Funded Conservation of Gawhar Shad Mausoleum in Herat Underway by Afghan Government and UNESCO". unesco.org. UNESCO. Retrieved 15 November 2019.
  13. ↑ "City of Herat". unesco.org. UNESCO. Retrieved 15 November 2019.
  14. ↑ "AKDN Vows to Restore Ancient Minaret in Herat". TOLOnews. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  15. ↑ "Ambassador Hirji discuss Afghan peace process with Minister Naderi". Afghanistan Times. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  16. ↑ Golombek, Lisa (1969). "The Timurid Shrine at Gazur Gah". Occasional Paper - Royal Ontario Museum, Art and Archaeology. Royal Ontario Museum (15): 90.
  17. 1 2 3 Petersen, Andrew (2002). Dictionary of Islamic Architecture. Routledge. p. 111. ISBN   978-1-134-61365-6.
  18. 1 2 Restoration of monuments in Herat: strengthening government's capability for the preservation of historical monuments. United Nations Development Programme. 1981.
  19. 1 2 3 Knobloch, Edgar (2002). The Archaeology & Architecture of Afghanistan. Tempus. p. 137. ISBN   978-0-7524-2519-1.
  20. ↑ Roemer, H. R. (1989). "BĀYSONḠOR, ḠĪĀṮ-AL-DĪN". Encyclopaedia Iranica. Encyclopaedia Iranica Foundation. Retrieved 14 November 2019.
  21. ↑ Green, Nile (2017). Afghanistan's Islam: From Conversion to the Taliban. Univ of California Press. p. 66. ISBN   978-0-520-29413-4.
  22. ↑ Barthold, Vasilii Vladimirovitch (1963). Four Studies on the History of Central Asia. 2. Brill Archive. p. 147.
  23. ↑ Golombek (1969 , p. 86)
  24. ↑ Manz, Beatrice Forbes (2007). Power, Politics and Religion in Timurid Iran. Cambridge University Press. pp. 258, 263. ISBN   978-1-139-46284-6.
  25. ↑ Dupree, Louis (2014). Afghanistan. Princeton University Press. p. 318. ISBN   978-1-4008-5891-0.

Timurid Herat by Terry Allen The Timurid architecture of Iran and Turan

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