PERSIAN ARCHITECTURE: A SOURCE OF INSPIRATION FOR MUGHAL IMPERIAL MOSQUES IN NORTH INDIA

Mohammad Saquib, Asif Ali

Abstract


India and Persia have had a strong socio-cultural relationship since the ancient period. There had been a cultural link between the two countries. Indo-Persian cultural amalgamation had increased with the advent of Islam in the Indian subcontinent. The syncretism of these two cultures influenced all aspects of life, including literature, art and architecture. This paper discusses the influence of Persian architecture on Mughal imperial mosques in North India. A review of literature from various scholars on possible influencing factors is presented, accompanied by an observation-based analysis of the architectural features of Persian mosques. Subsequently, the paper identifies and examines various Persian architectural elements existing in Mughal mosques in India. The results indicate that Persian architecture significantly influenced Mughal mosques in North India and using locally available materials made these mosques unique in their architectural styles. 


Keywords


Architectural Elements; Mughal Mosques; Medieval India; Persian Architecture; Safavids

Full Text:

PDF

References


M. Khajehpiri, "Searching for Persian Architecture in India," MANZAR, the Scientific Journal of Landscape, vol. 6, no. 27, pp. 32-33, 2014.

M. Zahirinejad, “Cultural Ties between Iran and India: Exploring the Role of Islam”, Hemispheres, vol. 35, pp. 49-60, 2020.

M. R. Pourfajar and A. A. Taghvaee, "Indo-Iranian Socio-Cultural relations at Past, Present and Future (With special reference to Architecture of Mughals or Gurkanids' Period)," Web Journal on Cultural Patrimony, no. 1, pp. 77-88, 2006.

S. Chandra, History of Medieval India:(800-1700). New Delhi: Orient Longman, 2007.

A. Ali, and A.S. Hassan, “Typological Study of Domes in Islamic Architecture of North India”, in INCoH 2017 - The Second International Conference, The European Proceedings of Social & Behavioural Sciences EpSBS: Parkroyal Penang Resort, Batu Feringghi, Pulau Pinang, Malaysia. p. 646-657, 2019.

M. S. Dar, S. A. Dar, and U. Shah, "Role of Persians in The Religious Life of Mughal India," International Journal of Advanced Research in Management and Social Sciences, vol. 4, no. 12, pp. 124-134, 2015.

N. Saraswathi and V. Jafari, "Reasons causing Persian migration into India during the 16-18th Century," International Research Journal of Management Sociology & Humanities, vol. 10, no. 7, pp. 105-112, 2009.

M. Ziauddin, Role of Persians at the Mughal Court: A Historical Study, ed: During, 2005.

S. M. A. Husain, “Impact of Persian Ghazals on Mughal Monuments”, Art and Architectural Traditions of India and Iran, p. 176-184, India: Routledge, 2021.

A. Ali and A. S. Hassan, "Arabic Calligraphy on Mughal Monuments of North India," Journal of Architecture, Planning & Construction Management, vol. 1, no. 7, pp. 39-47, 2017, DOI: https://doi.org/10.31436/japcm.v7i1.233

F. Zahra, and S. Shahir, “Characteristics Of Islamic Calligraphy: Nasta 'Liq, Persian Calligraphy Influences On Mughal Architecture Of 17th Century”, Hamdard Islamicus, vol. 46, no. 2, 2023, DOI: https://doi.org/10.57144/hi.v46i2.657

N. Zandian, Bridging the worlds through art and culture: An Iranian cultural centre in Washington DC, University of Maryland, College Park, 2007.

M. Chida-Razvi, "Resituating Mughal Architecture in the Persianate World: New Investigations and Analyses," South Asian Studies, vol. 35, no. 1, pp. 1-6, 2019, DOI: 10.1080/02666030.2019.1628690

K. U. Krusche, D.A., S. Anders, I. Dokonal, and J. Kapadia, “History, Morphology and Perfect Proportions of Mughal Tombs: The Secret to Creation of Taj Mahal”, ArchNet-IJAR, vol. 04, issue 01, pp. 158–178, 2010.

F. Jamil, S. Gulzar, “Historical Development of Dado ornamentation in Mughal Architecture”, Structural Studies, Repairs and Maintenance of Heritage Architecture XV, vol. 171: p. 97, Southampton, Boston: WIT Press, 2017.

S. Perveen, “Imperative Role of Nur Jahan and Her Persian Roots in the Evolution of Mughal Garden Tombs”, Art and Architectural Traditions of India and Iran, p. 165-175, India: Routledge, 2021.

S. N. Rezavi, "Mughal Architecture: Organization, Inspiration and Design," Presidential Address, Medieval India Section Indian History Congress, vol. 75, 2014.

H. Stierlin, Islamic art and architecture. London: Thames & Hudson, 2002.

M. Khazaee, N. Yaacob, Z. A. M. Awad, and Z. B. M. Ali, "Typological extent of Timurid mosques in Iran and Central Asia," Journal of Basic and Applied Scientific Research, vol. 3, no. 5, pp. 104-109, 2013.

M. Ashkan and Y. Ahmad, "Persian Domes: History, Morphology and Typologies," ArchNet-IJAR, vol. 3, no. 3, pp. 98-115, 2009. DOI: 10.26687/archnet-ijar.v3i3.192

Ali, A. and A.S. Hassan, “Influence of the Mughal Architectural Style on Malaysian Mosques”, The Arab World Geographer, vol. 21, no. 4, pp. 318-330, 2018, doi: https://doi.org/10.5555/1480-6800-21.4.318

M. Hejazi, Seismic vulnerability of Iranian historical domes, WIT Transactions on The Built Environment, vol. 72, 2003.




DOI: https://doi.org/10.18860/jia.v7i4.21013

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Copyright (c) 2023 Journal of Islamic Architecture

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

EDITORIAL OFFICE

Department of Architecture, Faculty of Science and Technology
Universitas Islam Negeri Maulana Malik Ibrahim Malang
Jalan Gajayana 50 Malang, Jawa Timur, Indonesia 65144
Phone (+62) 341 558933,Facsimile (+62) 341 558933
e-mail: journal.islamicarchitecture@gmail.com / jia@uin-malang.ac.id

 

 Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.