Al-Askari Shrine, the Askariyya Shrine, or Al-Askari Mosque is a

Shia Shia Islam is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib () as both his political successor (caliph) and as the spiritual leader of the Muslim community (imam). However, his right is understood ...

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

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 ...

and

mausoleum A mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the burial chamber of a deceased person or people. A mausoleum without the person's remains is called a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be considered a type o ...

in the

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

i city of

Samarra Samarra (, ') is a city in Iraq. It stands on the east bank of the Tigris in the Saladin Governorate, north of Baghdad. The modern city of Samarra was founded in 836 by the Abbasid caliph al-Mu'tasim as a new administrative capital and mi ...

from

Baghdad Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...

. It is one of the most important Shia

shrine A shrine ( "case or chest for books or papers"; Old French: ''escrin'' "box or case") is a sacred space">-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ...: ''escri ...

s in the world. It was built in 944. The dome was destroyed in a bombing by

Sunni Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr () rightfully succeeded him as the caliph of the Mu ...

extremists in February 2006 and its two remaining

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 were destroyed in another bombing in June 2007, causing widespread anger among Shias and instigation of the Iraqi Civil War between the country's Shia and Sunni factions. The remaining

clock tower Clock towers are a specific type of structure that house a turret clock and have one or more clock faces on the upper exterior walls. Many clock towers are freestanding structures but they can also adjoin or be located on top of another building ...

was also destroyed in July 2007. The dome and minarets were repaired and the mosque reopened in April 2009. The 10th and 11th Shī'īte Imams, 'Alī al-Hādī ("''an-Naqī''") and his son Ḥasan al-'Askarī, known as ''al-'Askariyyayn'' ("the two ''Askarī''s"), are buried in the shrine. Housed in the mosque are also the tombs of Ḥakīma Khātūn, sister of 'Alī al-Hādī; and Narjis Khātūn, the mother of Muḥammad al-Mahdī.Shrine of Imām al-Hādī and Imām al-‘Askarī
(ArchNet Digital Library) Adjacent to the mosque is another domed commemorative building, the

Serdab A serdab (), which became a loanword in Arabic for 'cellar', is an ancient Egyptian tomb structure that served as a chamber for the ka statue of a deceased individual. Used during the Old Kingdom, the serdab was a sealed chamber with a small sli ...

("cistern"), built over the cistern where the Twelfth Imam, Muḥammad al-Mahdī, first entered the

Minor Occultation The Minor Occultation (, '), also known as the First Occultation (, '), refers in Twelver Shia Islam to a period of nearly seventy years (874–941 CE, 260–329 AH) during which the Hidden Imam, Muhammad al-Mahdi, is believed to have communicat ...

or "hidden from the view"—whence the other title of the Mahdi, the Hidden Imam.

History

The

Imams Imam (; , '; : , ') is an Islamic leadership position. For Sunni Muslims, Imam is most commonly used as the title of a prayer leader of a mosque. In this context, imams may lead Islamic prayers, serve as community leaders, and provide relig ...

'Alī al-Hādī ("''an-Naqī''") and Haṣan al-'Askarī lived under house arrest in the part of Samarra that had been

Caliph A caliphate ( ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with Khalifa, the title of caliph (; , ), a person considered a political–religious successor to the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a leader of ...

al-Mu'tasim Abū Isḥāq Muḥammad ibn Hārūn al-Rashīd (; October 796 – 5 January 842), better known by his laqab, regnal name al-Muʿtaṣim biʾllāh (, ), was the eighth Abbasid Caliphate, Abbasid caliph, ruling from 833 until his death in 842. ...

's military camp (''Askar al-Mu‘tasim'', hence an inmate of the camp was called an ''Askarī''). As a result, they are known as the ''Askariyyayn''. They died and were buried in their house on Abī Ahmad Street near the

built by Mu'tasim. A later tradition attributes their deaths to poison. Nasir ad-Din Shah Qajar undertook the latest remodelling of the shrine in 1868, with the golden

dome A dome () is an architectural element similar to the hollow upper half of a sphere. There is significant overlap with the term cupola, which may also refer to a dome or a structure on top of a dome. The precise definition of a dome has been a m ...

added in 1905. Covered in 72,000 gold pieces and surrounded by walls of light blue tiles, the dome was a dominant feature of the Samarra skyline. It was approximately in diameter by high.

Bombings

2006 attack

On 22 February 2006, at 6:55 am local time (03:55

UTC Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) is the primary time standard globally used to regulate clocks and time. It establishes a reference for the current time, forming the basis for civil time and time zones. UTC facilitates international communica ...

) explosions occurred at the shrine, effectively destroying its golden dome and severely damaging the shrine. Several men belonging to Iraqi insurgent groups affiliated with Al-Qaida, one wearing a military uniform, had earlier entered the mosque, tied up the guards there and set explosives, resulting in the blast. Two bombs were set off by five to seven men dressed as personnel of the Iraqi

Special Forces Special forces or special operations forces (SOF) are military units trained to conduct special operations. NATO has defined special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained and equip ...

who entered the shrine during the morning. ''Time'' magazine reported at the time of the 2006 bombing that:

2007 attack

At around 8 am on 13 June 2007, operatives belonging to

al-Qaeda in Iraq Al-Qaeda in Iraq (; AQI), was a Salafi jihadism, Salafi jihadist organization affiliated with al-Qaeda. It was founded on 17 October 2004, and was led by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi until its disbandment on 15 October 2006 after he was killed in a targ ...

destroyed the two remaining golden

s flanking the dome's ruins. No fatalities were reported. Iraqi police reported hearing "two nearly simultaneous explosions coming from inside the mosque compound at around 8 am". A report from state-run Iraqiya Television stated that "local officials said that two mortar rounds were fired at the two minarets".

Reopening

In late 2007, the Iraqi government conducted a contract with a Turkish company to rebuild the shrine. The Iraqi government later cancelled the contract due to delays by the Turkish company. As of April 2009, the golden dome and the minarets have been restored and the shrine reopened to visitors.

Notable burials

Among the famous people buried in this place are:

Gallery

File:Samarra.png, The Al-Askari Shrine in 1916. File:Al-Askari Mosque 2006.jpg, The Shrine in 2006 after the first bombing File:Al-Askari Mosque 2013.jpg, Repairs to the al-Askari Mosque, October 2013 File:الساعة الذهبية في مرقد الامامين العسكريين.jpg, Al-Askari Shrine clock tower File:ضريح الامامين العسكريين.jpg, General view of the Al-Askari Shrine File:مرقد الامامين العسكريين ليلاً.jpg, Al-Askari Shrine in the night

Notes

References

External links

Ernst Herzfeld Papers, Records of Samarra Expeditions, Shiite Shrine Complex
Collections Search Center, S.I.R.I.S., Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.
Ernst Herzfeld Papers, Series 7: Records of Samarra Expeditions, 1906–1945
Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.
Images of the destruction: before and afterBBC picture galleryBBC videoAlaskariyain holy shrine official pageDisappointment in Samarra
{{Holiest sites in Shia Islam Shia mosques in Iraq Mosques in Iraq Shrines in Iraq Mausoleums in Iraq Tourist attractions in Iraq Buildings and structures in Samarra 944 establishments Religious buildings and structures completed in the 940s Safavid architecture 10th-century mosques Shia shrines Iraq War sites