''Sebka'' () refers to a type of decorative motif used in western Islamic ("Moorish") architecture and

Mudéjar architecture Mudéjar were Muslims who remained in Iberia in the Late Middle Ages, late medieval period following the Reconquista, Christian reconquest. It is also a term for Mudéjar art, which was greatly influenced by Islamic art, but produced typically b ...

History and description

Various types of interlacing

rhombus In plane Euclidean geometry, a rhombus (: rhombi or rhombuses) is a quadrilateral whose four sides all have the same length. Another name is equilateral quadrilateral, since equilateral means that all of its sides are equal in length. The rhom ...

-like motifs are heavily featured on the surfaces of

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 ...

s and other architectural elements in

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

and

al-Andalus Al-Andalus () was the Muslim-ruled area of the Iberian Peninsula. The name refers to the different Muslim states that controlled these territories at various times between 711 and 1492. At its greatest geographical extent, it occupied most o ...

during the

Almohad The Almohad Caliphate (; or or from ) or Almohad Empire was a North African Berber Muslim empire founded in the 12th century. At its height, it controlled much of the Iberian Peninsula (Al-Andalus) and North Africa (the Maghreb). The Almohad ...

period (12th–13th centuries). They continued to spread to other decorative mediums such as carved

stucco Stucco or render is a construction material made of aggregates, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as a decorative coating for walls and ceilings, exterior walls, and as a sculptural and ...

over the walls of various buildings in

Marinid The Marinid dynasty ( ) was a Berber Muslim dynasty that controlled present-day Morocco from the mid-13th to the 15th century and intermittently controlled other parts of North Africa (Algeria and Tunisia) and of the southern Iberian Peninsula ...

and Nasrid architecture, eventually becoming a standard feature in the western Islamic ornamental repertoire, often in combination with arabesque elements. George Marçais, a 20th-century scholar on the architecture of the region, said that this motif originated with the complex interlacing arches in the 10th-century extension of the Great Mosque of Cordoba by Caliph al-Hakam II. It was then miniaturized and widened into a repeating net-like pattern that can cover surfaces. This motif, in turn, had many detailed variations. One common version, called ''darj wa ktaf'' ("step and shoulder") by Moroccan craftsmen, makes use of alternating straight and curved lines which cross each other on their symmetrical axes, forming a motif that repeats shapes resembling roughly a ''khamsa'', ''

fleur-de-lis The ''fleur-de-lis'', also spelled ''fleur-de-lys'' (plural ''fleurs-de-lis'' or ''fleurs-de-lys''), is a common heraldic charge in the (stylized) shape of a lily (in French, and mean and respectively). Most notably, the ''fleur-de-lis'' ...

'', or

palmette The palmette is a motif in decorative art which, in its most characteristic expression, resembles the fan-shaped leaves of a palm tree. It has a far-reaching history, originating in ancient Egypt with a subsequent development through the art o ...

. Another version, also commonly found on minarets in alternation with the ''darj wa ktaf'', consists of interlacing multifoil/polylobed arches to form a more rounded lobed shape. File:Maqsura de la Mezquita de Córdoba.jpg, The interlacing arches in the Great Mosque of Cordoba, in

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

, dating from the 10th century and believed by some scholars to be the origin of the ''sebka'' motif File:Alcázares Yeso 08.jpg, An old example of the ''sebka'' pattern or interlacing arch motif in the

-era ''Patio del Yeso'' in the Alcazar of Seville,

File:Giralda. Fachada sur.jpg, Southern facade of the

Giralda The Giralda ( ) is the bell tower of Seville Cathedral in Seville, Spain. It was built as the minaret for the Great Mosque of Seville in al-Andalus, during the reign of the Almohad dynasty, with a Renaissance-style belfry added by the Catholics ...

Seville Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spain, Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the Guadalquivir, River Guadalquivir, ...

showing a ''sebka'' or ''darj wa ktaf'' pattern File:Kasbah mosque sebka pattern DSCF0259.jpg, Another common variation on the ''sebka'' motif, with round lobed shapes, on one of the facades of the

of the Kasbah Mosque in

Marrakesh Marrakesh or Marrakech (; , ) is the fourth-largest city in Morocco. It is one of the four imperial cities of Morocco and is the capital of the Marrakesh–Safi Regions of Morocco, region. The city lies west of the foothills of the Atlas Mounta ...

File:Bou inania minaret detail.jpg, Another variation on the sebka motif on the minaret of the Bou Inania Madrasa in Fes, Morocco File:Cuarto Real de Santo Domingo DSCF6341.jpg, ''Sebka'' motif filled with arabesques in the carved

decoration of the Cuarto Real de Santo Domingo in

Granada Granada ( ; ) is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada (Spain), Sierra Nevada mountains, at the confluence ...

, Spain File:Bab Mansour2.JPG, ''Darj wa ktaf'' motif on Bab Mansour in

Meknes Meknes (, ) is one of the four Imperial cities of Morocco, located in northern central Morocco and the sixth largest city by population in the kingdom. Founded in the 11th century by the Almoravid dynasty, Almoravids as a military settlement, Mekne ...

, Morocco

References

{{Islamic art Architecture in Morocco Islamic art Visual motifs Moorish architecture