How the Prophet’s Mosque has changed throughout history

As a result of numerous reconstructions over the centuries, the area of ​​the Prophet’s Mosque has increased from 1,022 sq. m up to 400,000 sq. m, write Nebi Bozkurt and Mustafa Sabri Kucukbashi for İslam Ansiklopedisi.

---

Even before the resettlement of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), Asad ibn Zurara, who took an oath at Aqaba, set up a mosque in Medina, fencing off a plot of land on which dates were dried. And after the resettlement, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) bought the land that belonged to two orphans for the construction of a mosque. When the site was cleared of bushes, he himself laid the first stone in its foundation. The construction of the temple began in September 622, and was completed in April 623. The first building was a site surrounded by a human-sized wall of adobe bricks on a stone foundation. Its size in sources is indicated as 60×70 cubits (1022 sq. M). QiblaThe first mosque was directed to Jerusalem, it had three doors, and the rooms of the wives of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) – Aisha and Saud (may Allah be pleased with them) adjoined the eastern wall. Later there were nine such rooms. When the qibla was changed, the south door of the mosque was closed, and a new one was opened from the north wall.

Soon the size of the mosque ceased to meet the needs of Muslims, therefore, after the conquest of Khaybar, it was enlarged and became square in plan with dimensions of 100×100 cubits (approximately 2433 sq. M).

Initially, the mosque did not have a roof, but later, in the place where the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) prayed, a canopy was erected to protect from rain and sun on six pillars. After the change of the qibla, this shelter, called Suffa, became a refuge for poor Muslims who lived there, studying religion. Thus, Suffa is called the first madrasah in Islam, and many prominent figures emerged from among its inhabitants.

Under Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him), the mosque did not undergo any changes. But the population of Medina was growing, therefore, under Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), the temple was expanded, and under Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him), it was completely rebuilt. As a result, after the completion of work in November 649, its dimensions reached, according to various sources, 170×130 cubits (5378 sq. M) or 160×130 cubits (5061.5 sq. M).

The next rebuilding of the mosque was carried out by the governor of Medina, Walid ibn Abdul-Malik in 710. The rooms of the wives of the Prophet (peace be upon him) were demolished, which provoked outrage among the inhabitants of Medina. And the room of Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her), where the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was buried, was inside the mosque . The area of ​​the temple itself has increased to 7,500 square meters. m, and new elements were added – a minaret, a mihrab in the form of a niche and a balcony for pronouncing the adhan.

In 778-781. the expansion of the mosque was carried out by the Abbasid Caliph Mahdi Billah, increasing its area to 9309 sq. m. Particular attention was paid to the decoration of the building – the number of columns reached 290, the lower part of the wall facing the qibla was trimmed with marble, and the upper one was decorated with gold. The western and eastern walls are decorated with colorful decorative carvings. In later periods, some parts of the Prophet’s Mosque were repaired and changed under the Caliphs Harun ar-Rashid, Mamun, Mutawakkil Alallah, Mutazid Billyakh. In 1068 and 1121 the temple was damaged by earthquakes, and in 1256 by fire. Caliph Mustasim Billah intended to repair it, but the capture of Baghdad by Hulagu’s army did not allow these plans to come true.

After the fall of the Abbasids, the Mamluks took care of the Prophet’s Mosque. Sultan Nuraddin Ali resumed restoration work. They were continued by Kutuz and Baybars I. Under the Mamluk Sultan Kalaun, a dome was first built over the grave of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), which was then made of wood.

In the future, the mosque did not change much until the reign of Sultan Kaitbay, who in 1476 made some restructuring in it, and also renewed the dome over the tomb of the Prophet (peace be upon him). In 1481, lightning struck the minaret and a fire started, as a result of which part of the mosque burned down. Restoration work began, which was completed in 1483. The area of ​​the temple reached 9429 square meters. m., and a madrasah and a ribat were built at the western wall .

After the Hijaz in the XVI century. ended up under the rule of the Ottoman Empire, the Turkish sultans took care of the Prophet’s Mosque. For the first time, repair work was carried out at them in 1531, under Suleiman I – for this, engineers and craftsmen arrived from Istanbul. In the future, other sultans also carried out similar activities. Major construction work was carried out under Mahmud II in 1817-1837. The dome over the grave of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was replaced with a stone dome, covered with lead and painted green. This tradition continues to this day, for which the dome was nicknamed Qubbat al-Khadra (” Green dome“). Under Sultan Abdul-Majid, a major overhaul of the Prophet’s Mosque was carried out (in 1851-1861). Its dimensions were significantly increased, the floor was paved with marble, new porticoes were built and old ones were expanded, the capitals of the columns were gilded. Calligrapher Abdullah Zuhdi, working for 3 years, decorated the dome, walls, doors, mihrab and columns with calligraphic inscriptions – ayats, hadiths, the names of the Prophet (peace be upon him), etc.

Major changes befell the Prophet’s Mosque in the 20th century, already under the Saudis. The first expansion of the mosque was made by them in 1949-1955. Part of it was demolished and rebuilt, and the area reached 16,326 sq. The opening ceremony of the renovated mosque took place on October 22, 1955 with the participation of the heads of Islamic states. In 1973, a covered area of ​​35,000 square meters was added to the western wall of the temple. m, and later added another 43,000 square meters to the mosque. m.

In 1984-1994. The largest-scale reconstruction of the Prophet’s Mosque in history was carried out. Its area was equal to 98 326 sq. m, and together with a covered area of ​​67,000 sq. m and a marble yard with an area of ​​235 sq. m it reached 400,000 sq. m. Thus, 650 thousand people can simultaneously perform namaz in it. The number of minarets has increased to 10, and a parking lot has been arranged under the building itself.

 

Islamosphere