Dome of the Rock

This structure was built by Caliph Abd al-Malik from 685 to 692 CE and houses the sacred rock from which it is said the Prophet Muhammed (ﷺ) ascended to heaven (Mi’raj) after the night journey to Jerusalem (Isra’).
The octagon shaped building was the cutting edge of design at the time, built on a marble base with the remainder being made out of wood rather than stone. The two planners were Raja ibn Haywah, a Muslim scholar and Yazid ibn Salam, a non-Arab Muslim native of Jerusalem.

Four of the eight sides have doors and there are seven windows on each side. The dome itself is 25 meters high and covered with gold. The interior is decorated with mosaic, marble and verses from the Quran. The architecture is regarded as a masterpiece due to the mathematical rhythm of its proportions. For example, each of the outer walls is 67 feet long, which is exactly the same as the dome’s diameter and which is also the height from the base to the drum.

When the Crusaders took over Jerusalem, the Dome of the Rock mosque was re-named Templum Domini and had a cross placed on top of the golden dome. The rock inside was covered to make an altar and the Quranic inscriptions were covered with Latin texts. The Qibly mosque was re-named Templum Solomonis. This kingdom was to last 87 years, during which time neither Jew nor Muslim was allowed to dwell within the walls of the city.

When the Dome of the Rock was first built the outside was covered in mosaics. The beautiful external tile work which can be seen today was commissioned by Sulayman II Qanuni (the Lawgiver), known throughout Europe as Sulayman the Magnificent. With the incomparable skills of Persian master ceramicists, 40,000 tiles were fired and put into place. The inscription surrounding the top is Surah Yasin, regarded as the heart of the Quran. This was commissioned by Sultan Abdul Hamid II.

When the Dome of the Rock was originally built, there was a surplus of 100,000 gold dinars left from the budget. Caliph Abd al-Malik decided to have these dinars melted down and turned into plates to cover the dome. Almost 400 years later, the dome was severely damaged by an earthquake and the plates were replaced by blackened lead. From 1955 major restoration work, lead by King Hussein of Jordan, was carried out during which the dome was covered with a durable aluminium bronze alloy. In 1994 King Hussein donated the money to have it replaced with the gold plated metal we see today.

The dome is topped by a full moon decoration which is aligned so that if you could look through it, you would be looking straight towards Makkah.

Jews and Christians believe this is the place where the Prophet Ebrahim (عليه السلام) was prepared to sacrifice his son Ishaq (عليه السلام) after seeing a dream indicating for him to do so. This is a fundamental difference to the Muslim belief that it was actually his elder son Ismail (عليه السلام) who he was prepared to sacrifice and that this happened in Mina, Saudi Arabia.

Orthodox Jews believe the Dome of the Rock to be the centre of the world.