Research Question-

How did Islamic architecture influence

Gothic architecture?
Introduction

Understanding a period is easy. Understanding a period in a certain place is easier. Medieval

Europe is interesting because you can see how it has shaped our present. Aspects of the
Medieval period in Europe are still strongly part of the Western society we see it has today.
Such aspects are large, monumental, and magnificent, and for this research, it’s not a figure of
speech. Across Europe is home to many previous Christendom during the Medieval ages.
There are many cathedrals from this period across the many, varying towns in Europe. Their
distinct look, in architecture, is called the Gothic style.

 Despite the poor, often chaotic and turbulent times in Medieval Europe, Gothic Cathedrals
came out intricate and detailed, unique enough that they can't be replicated. Notre Dame,
Chartres, familiar names with the Gothic style, are famous and well known around the world. 

Gothic architecture is as medieval European as it gets, or as medieval European as it seems.

Rule of thumb in architecture and art; if you like something, steal it. Won't be fair to say that the
Medieval European society of that time stole the style from elsewhere. By that logic, everyone
should be throwing pitchforks at everyone and everything for theft. 

The research that was compiled in this report studies how Gothic architecture got many of its
influences from another well known architectural style that dominated the Moorish ruling
kingdoms during the Medieval period; Islamic architecture. Understanding a period is easy
because the development of that period can be traced through the intermixing and exchange of
the societies living during that time. This is seen through art and a theme of this research;
architecture.

Rise of Islamic architecture

The Medieval ages, contrary to Europe, was prosperous for the Muslim kingdoms in the Middle
East, and the countries beyond. The golden age of Islam is preserved in the architecture of that
time. Islamic architecture, though associated with mosques, is prevalent in other edifices, from
palaces, public buildings, tombs and forts alike.

Characteristically, Islamic architecture includes features that make the architectural style what it
is.

Minaret: The Minaret is a spire or tower-like structure featuring small windows and an enclosed
staircase. Being one of the oldest elements of Islamic architecture, it’s found next to most
mosques. The primary function of such a structure is to allow the muezzin to call worshippers to
prayer from an elevated point. This occurs five times a day: dawn, noon, mid-afternoon, sunset
and night.
The 11th century saw some mosques adapting more than one minaret, which traditionally
indicates that it had been founded by a sultan.

Domes: Domes are seen among the many Islamic buildings.

The Dome of the Rock, a 7th-century shrine in Jerusalem, is the first Islamic building to feature
this architectural element. Inspired by Byzantine plans, the edifice is topped with a wooden
dome,(later plated with gold during the 16th century). 

Unlike most Islamic domes that rest on pendentives, this particular dome sits on a drum
supported by 16 piers and columns.

Pendentives are tapered structures that allow a circular base for a round or elliptical dome to be
placed on a square or rectangle room. Pendentives in Islamic architecture are often decorated
with tiles of muqarnas, which is a type of sculptural decoration.

Muqarnas Vaulting: The sculptural composition and patterned aesthetic make Muqarnas appear
like stalactites or a honeycomb. Additionally to domes and pendentives, this unique
ornamentation also adorns vaults, culminating in monochromatic, sculptural ceilings that
contrast the surrounding tiles.

Arches: Arches are a staple in Islamic architecture. Clear in both entrances and interiors,
Islamic arches are again categorized into four main styles: pointed, ogee, horseshoe, and
multifoil. For the sake of this research, I will be focusing more on Pointed arches, which refer to
a rounded design with a tapered apex.

The decorative detail: Ornamental designs, the lavish approach to decoration for interiors,
include jewel-like tiles arranged into geometric mosaics, patterned brickwork and kaleidoscopic
stones, and exquisite calligraphic adornments.

The features in Islamic architecture is what makes this style different and unique compared to
other styles. While this had been going on for the mosques and buildings of The Moors, the
churches, and cathedrals in Europe also had a style that defined and made them unique.

The dominance of Gothic architecture in Europe

The style that dominated Europe during the 12th and even up to the 16th century, the Gothic
style, evolved from Romanesque architecture, a medieval aesthetic characterized by arches,
vaulted ceilings and small glass windows. Gothic architecture adopted the features from
Romanesque style and times them by 2, with exaggerated arches, increased vaulting and
enlarged windows. The sky-high cathedrals and churches that evoked ethereality had the
visage of reaching towards the heavens. The Gothic style did abandon one key feature from
Romanesque architecture: thick walls. To construct taller, more delicate buildings needing thin
walls, Gothic architects employed flying buttresses for support. These stone structures allowed
architects to create cathedrals and churches that reached the skies and beyond.

Large Stained Glass Windows: Particularly prevalent in Gothic cathedrals, they feature
meticulous cut coloured glass. These kaleidoscopic windows, which are typically tall and arched
‘lancet’ windows or round ‘rose’ windows are larger than those found in other types of churches.
The purpose of the traditional gothic style of cathedrals wanted to bring more light in a time
when light bulbs weren’t invented.  The stained glass windows featuring tracery, a decorative
type of stone support, and detailed scenes from Biblical stories that came alive in the windows,
allowed light to come through quite easily.

Pointed Arches: The silhouette of the pointed arches accentuated each cathedral’s height,
symbolically pointed toward the sky, and accommodated similarly-shaped vaulting.

Ribbed Vaults: To incorporate higher ceilings and taller windows, Gothic architects utilized a
method of structural support called ribbed vaulting. Ribbed vaulting involves the use of
intersection barrel vaults, (arches placed parallel to one to support a rounded roof). Additionally,
to showcase a more decorative aesthetic than traditional barrel vaults, these crisscrossed
constructions offer increased support of sky-high buildings.

Flying Buttresses: On top of these advanced vaulting techniques, another unique method of
structural support were Flying Buttresses. These projecting stone structures reinforced the
buildings by redistributing the weight of the heavy roof to a lower, more solid level.

What makes such distinct architectural styles so connected

Much of what can be claimed as European in Gothic architecture is more so Middle Eastern in
inspiration. Let’s look at the infamous Notre Dame’s architectural design. The architectural
design first was seen in the Ibn Tulun Mosque in Cairo and passed via Amalfi merchants to
Sicily. The advanced knowledge of geometry and the laws of statistics allowed Muslims to
develop both horseshoe arch, (first seen in Damascus Umayyad Mosque then further developed
by the Umayyads in Andalusia 9n the Cordoba Mezquita), and the pointed arch to give more
height than the classical arch. The first building to use them in Europe was the Abbey of Monte
Cassino in 1071, financed by Amalfi merchants. It then moved north to the Church of Cluny
which boasted 150 pointed arches in its aisles. The fashion quickly spread from two of the most
influential churches in Europe, as this pointed ‘Gothic’ arch was stronger than the rounded arch
used by the Romans and the Normans, so allowed the construction of bigger, taller, grander
and more complex buildings like the great cathedrals of Europe. Further influences of the
pointed arch can be seen in earlier gothic architecture as well, which were influenced by
contemporary and earlier Islamic buildings: the ones in Diyarbakir, (late 11th and 12th century),
includes arcades with pointed arches on columns and other architecture in a strongly,
classicizing two-storeyed facade

Other borrowings from Muslim designs, also to be found in Notre Dame, including ribbed
vaulting (traced to the 8th century Abbasid Palace of Ukhaydar in Iraq and later entering Europe
via the Toledo and Cordoba mosques in Muslim Spain), rose windows (first seen at the 8th
century Umayyad palace of Khirbat Mafjar (Hisham’s Palace) in the West Bank near Jericho,
and the spire (which collapsed so spectacularly on Notre Dame as the timber roof gave way
beneath it). The earliest known spire is on top of the northern Minaret of the Bride in the
Umayyad Mosque of Damascus, built in the early 8th century.   (Darke, 2020)

In England, the first-ever spire was on top of St Paul’s Cathedral in 1221. It was destroyed in the
Great Fire of London then rebuilt in 1710 by Sir Christopher Wren, an avowed admirer of
Muslim architecture who conducted an extensive comparative study of Gothic, Moorish and
Ottoman styles. 

“The Goths,” he said, “were rather destroyers than builders: I think it should with more reason
be called the Saracen (Arab Muslim) style.”
What does it mean for two styles to be so interlinked?
During the revival of the Gothic style, nationalistic concerns rose over the origins of pointed
arches in Gothic architecture, which led to great rivalry between scholars in France, Germany
and England in their anxiety to establish the origins of the style. Such debate made it seem that
the Gothic style of architecture was solely European.

No civilization can hold a monopoly over science and the arts. Even the pointed arches
pioneered in Islamic architecture have their roots in the colloquial Rome style. The Christendom
in Europe and the Moorish kingdoms in the Middle East and beyond have clashed but
intermixed so much so that even architecture is heavily connected. The connection between
Gothic architecture and Islamic architecture shows how societies in each period influence each
other.
 

Reflection
The entire process required a lot of gathering. Through the research, I gained a lot of knowledge
that I hadn’t come across while simply just reading the textbook. Though the question was
specific, it was surprising to find a lot of information about it.

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