Mashrabiya

Mashrabiyya barriers in the Medersa Attarine in Fes , Morocco

Mashrabiyya ( Arabic مشربية, DMG mašrabīya ) is the name given to decorative wooden grilles in traditional Islamic architecture , which were used as barriers in mosques or as window grilles or as balcony cladding in houses and palaces.

Other terms

Another term that is widespread in the Arab world is Roshan (Rushan, Rawashin) , which is also used to specifically refer to the bay windows on the trading houses of the port cities on the Red Sea such as Jeddah and Sawakin . In Turkey they are called Müşrefiye , in Iraq Shanashil and in Syria Koshke . Similar architectural elements can be found in India as Jali .

function

Maschrabiyyas are usually composed of carved or turned pieces of wood, which are arranged in geometric patterns. They serve to protect against direct sunlight as well as to provide exposure to light , as well as room ventilation while at the same time preserving the religious or private sphere. In residential buildings, they are mostly used from the second floor . Similar to a blind , they allow a view outside without letting the viewer become recognizable. The frequently occurring formation as a bay window favors the view. The open, mostly unglazed construction creates a cooling draft in the interior.

history

The origin of the Mashrabbiyas is obscure; the oldest surviving specimens come from the 12th / 13th centuries. Century and were found in Baghdad . In Morocco , the wooden prayer pulpit ( minbar ) of the Andalusian mosque in Fès , made towards the end of the 10th century, has also been preserved, which shows in one of its five sections twenty turned wooden sticks arranged unconnected next to each other. Stone models could be the Indian Jalis, which have been in Buddhist cave temples (e.g. in Bhaja ) since the 1st to 3rd centuries or from the 6th / 7th centuries. Century at free-standing Hindu temples (e.g. in Nachna or Aihole ) are known; but here too - not preserved - early wooden forms are likely. While stone was mostly worked in India even under Islamic rule , the rest of the Islamic world held on to woodwork for the most part. In the 19th and 20th centuries, Mashrabiya grids were occasionally imitated in cast iron .