The Muhammad Mosque or Siniggala Mosque is a former

mosque A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a place of worship for Muslims. The term usually refers to a covered building, but can be any place where Salah, Islamic prayers are performed; such as an outdoor courtyard. Originally, mosques were si ...

, located in the Old City of

Baku Baku (, ; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Azerbaijan, largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and in the Caucasus region. Baku is below sea level, which makes it the List of capital ci ...

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

. The mosque was built in the 11th century. It is the first building in Azerbaijan, which is related to

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

and dated for its architectural ligature.

Architecture

According to

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

inscription which was saved in front of the doorway of the northern wall of the mosque, it was built by ustad-rais Muhammad the son of Abu Bakr in 471 of

Hijra Hijra, Hijrah, Hegira, Hejira, Hijrat or Hijri may refer to: Islam * Hijrah (also ''Hejira'' or ''Hegira''), the migration of Muhammad from Mecca to Medina in 622 CE * Migration to Abyssinia or First Hegira, of Muhammad's followers in 615 CE * L ...

(1078/79). It means that the architect was not only a master-ustad, but also a rais-head of artificers’ corporation.

Minaret

In 1723, the mosque acquired the name ''Siniggala'', when a military squadron of the Russian Army, consisting of 15 warships and led by

Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...

Matyushkin, approached the city from seaside and demanded its surrender during the Russo-Persian War.

Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...

warships began to bomb the city after the refusal to surrender. One of the Russian shells hit the

minaret A minaret is a type of tower typically built into or adjacent to mosques. Minarets are generally used to project the Muslim call to prayer (''adhan'') from a muezzin, but they also served as landmarks and symbols of Islam's presence. They can h ...

of Muhammad Mosque and damaged it. A stormy wind then blew the Russian ships further out to sea. The population of the city interpreted the wind as a divine scourge sent to the occupants. From that time until the middle of the 19th century, the minaret of the mosque wasn't reconstructed. It remained a symbol of the persistence and courage of the defendants of the tower. The minaret adjoins the new mosque, which was constructed based on the older one's plan. The trunk of the minaret is strong and slightly thinning. It is constructed from carefully drafted stone. Coarse and flat

stalactite A stalactite (, ; , ) is a mineral formation that hangs from the ceiling of caves, hot springs, or man-made structures such as bridges and mines. Any material that is soluble and that can be deposited as a colloid, or is in suspension (chemistry ...

s of tabling retain sherefe –

muezzin The muezzin (; ), also spelled mu'azzin, is the person who proclaims the call to the daily prayer ( ṣalāt) five times a day ( Fajr prayer, Zuhr prayer, Asr prayer, Maghrib prayer and Isha prayer) at a mosque from the minaret. The muezzin ...

’s balcony enclosed by stone plates. A ribbed dome completes the trunk of the minaret. Narrow, winding stairs are winded within the trunk. Ligature with Koranic inscription was traced under the tabling with archaic kufi alphabet.

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{{Old City (Baku) 11th-century mosques Buildings and structures completed in 1079 Former mosques in Azerbaijan Icherisheher Islamic architecture in Azerbaijan Mosque buildings with minarets in Azerbaijan Mosques in Baku Religious buildings and structures completed in the 1070s World Heritage Sites in Azerbaijan

Architecture

Minaret

See also

Notes

References

External links