Gardens
Fin Garden, Kashan, Iran by Diego Delso is under CC BY license.
Gardens were often used in Islamic Architecture during the Golden age as a symbol of peace and harmony as well as as resemblance to the garden of paradise. This style was first utilized by the Archemenid Empire (otherwise known as the First Persian Empire). The classical form of the Persian Paradise garden, or the charbagh, comprises a rectangular irrigated space with elevated pathways, which divide the garden into four sections of equal size.
Domes
Another piece of Islamic Architecture that is very unique is the implementation of domes dating back as early as the 11th century. The domes are constructed using a system of squinches, which is a construction filling in the upper angles of a square room so as to form a base to receive an octagonal or spherical dome, was already known in Sasanian architecture. This architecture was mimicked all over the world from the Sultaniyya Mausoleum in Egypt to Humayun's Tomb and the Taj Mahal in Asia.
Humayuns Tomb
Humyan’s Tomb from the Corner by Rizzwanec is under CC BY license.
TajJ mahal
Taj Mahal by Joel Godwin is under CC BY license.
Minarets
Minaret of Qayt Bey, Umayyad Mosque by Bernard Gagnon is under CC BY license
Minarets are commonly found in mosques. The function of a minaret is to serve as a vantage point for prayers. These calls for prayers are called 5 times per day at dawn, noon, mid-afternoon, sunset and night. While early mosques did not have minarets it is said that they were designed after the church steeples in Syria. However, to take it one step further, the church steeples that were found in Syria were said to be modeled after ziggurats of Babylonia. The two oldest known Minarets include the Minaret of the Great Mosque of Kairouan (early 9th century) and the Minaret of Jam, Afghanistan (12th century).
Kairouan Minaret
The Minaret of the Great Mosque Okba of Kairouan by Bernard Gagnon is under CC BY license
Minaret of Jam
Impressing from any angle, Minaret of Jam by Bernard Gagnon is under CC BY license.
Islamic Architecture Video
References
Alhambra Valparaiso Ocio y Cultura SL. (n.d.). Alhambra.org. La Alhambra de Granada. Retrieved December 9, 2021, from https://www.alhambra.org/en/alhambra-history.html.
AlSulaiti, F. (2021, December 8). Minaret. World History Encyclopedia. Retrieved December 9, 2021, from https://www.worldhistory.org/Minaret/.
Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. (n.d.). Dome of the rock. Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved December 9, 2021, from https://www.britannica.com/topic/Dome-of-the-Rock.
Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. (n.d.). Minaret. Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved December 9, 2021, from https://www.britannica.com/art/minaret-architecture.
Planet|, T. of I. A. (2014, August 25). The historic Great Mosque of samarra. Times of India Travel. Retrieved December 9, 2021, from https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/travel/destinations/the-historic-great-mosque-of-samarra/as40188702.cms.
AlSulaiti, F. (2021, December 8). Minaret. World History Encyclopedia. Retrieved December 9, 2021, from https://www.worldhistory.org/Minaret/.
Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. (n.d.). Dome of the rock. Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved December 9, 2021, from https://www.britannica.com/topic/Dome-of-the-Rock.
Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. (n.d.). Minaret. Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved December 9, 2021, from https://www.britannica.com/art/minaret-architecture.
Planet|, T. of I. A. (2014, August 25). The historic Great Mosque of samarra. Times of India Travel. Retrieved December 9, 2021, from https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/travel/destinations/the-historic-great-mosque-of-samarra/as40188702.cms.