Amiriya Madrasa

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The Amiriya School 3amiriya school2.jpg
The Amiriya School

Al-Amiriya is a 16th-century madrasa (educational institution) located in Rada, Yemen. It is under consideration for inscription as a UNESCO World Heritage site. [1] It was built in 1504 and is an example of the architecture of Tahirids, Yemen. The monument was in poor condition until 1978 when Iraqi-born archaeologist Selma Al-Radi saw it and enlisted financial help from foreign missions to restore it in a more than twenty-year effort which she led. [1] [2]

Madrasa school or college, often providing an Islamic education

Madrasa is the Arabic word for any type of educational institution, secular or religious, whether for elementary instruction or higher learning. The word is variously transliterated madrasah, medresa, madrassa, madraza, medrese, etc. In the West, the word usually refers to a specific type of religious school or college for the study of the Islamic religion, though this may not be the only subject studied.

Yemen Republic in Western Asia

Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country at the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is the second-largest Arab sovereign state in the peninsula, occupying 527,970 square kilometres. The coastline stretches for about 2,000 kilometres. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, the Gulf of Aden and Guardafui Channel to the south, and the Arabian Sea and Oman to the east. Yemen's territory encompasses more than 200 islands, including the largest island in the Middle East, Socotra. Yemen is a member of the Arab League, United Nations, Non-Aligned Movement and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation.

Tahirids (Yemen)

The Tahirids were an Arab Muslim dynasty that ruled Yemen from 1454 to 1517. They succeeded the Rasulid Dynasty and were themselves replaced by the Mamluks of Egypt after only 63 years in power.

Contents

Significance

This site was added to the UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List on July 8, 2002, in the Cultural category. [1]

UNESCO Specialised agency of the United Nations

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) based in Paris. Its declared purpose is to contribute to peace and security by promoting international collaboration in education, sciences, and culture in order to increase universal respect for justice, the rule of law, and human rights along with fundamental freedom proclaimed in the United Nations Charter. It is the successor of the League of Nations' International Committee on Intellectual Cooperation.

The restoration process revived the art of qadad, a form of waterproof interior and exterior plastering. In 2004 a documentary film, Qudad, Re-inventing a Tradition , was made on the subject by the filmmaker Caterina Borelli (preview). [3]

Qadad

Qadad or qudad is a waterproof plaster surface, made of a lime plaster treated with slaked lime and oils and fats. The technique is over a thousand years old, with the remains of this early plaster still seen on the standing sluices of the ancient Marib Dam.

Close-up of part of the restored Amiriya Complex, showing white qadad Jennifer Bryson in Yemen.jpg
Close-up of part of the restored Amiriya Complex, showing white qadad

The restoration of the Amiriya Complex was awarded the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 2007. [4]

Aga Khan Award for Architecture architecture prize

The Aga Khan Award for Architecture (AKAA) is an architectural prize established by Aga Khan IV in 1977. It aims to identify and reward architectural concepts that successfully address the needs and aspirations of Islamic societies in the fields of contemporary design, social housing, community development and improvement, restoration, reuse and area conservation, as well as landscape design and improvement of the environment. It is presented in three-year cycles to multiple projects and has a monetary award, with prizes totalling US$ 1 million. Uniquely among architectural awards, it recognizes projects, teams, and stakeholders in addition to buildings and people.

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 3 The Madrasa Amiriya of Rada - UNESCO World Heritage Centre Retrieved 2009-03-25.
  2. "Selma Al-Radi, Restored Historic Madrasa, Dies at 71" "New York Times", 14 Oct 2010
  3. "Qudad, Re-inventing a Tradition". Documentary Educational Resources.
  4. Aga Khan Award website

Bibliography

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