Books/Amazon
Books/Amazon

Basic definitions : Muqarnas

Muqarnas is basically a three-dimensional decoration of Islamic architecture.It was initially built to be structural in purpose made out of stone, but later on it became of a more crafted decoration and made of plaster, these clusters niches were used to decorate the area between the wall and the dome in Islamic architecture. it can also be defined as : Honeycomb or stalactite vaulting.

ARCHITECTURE BLOG

8/27/20242 min read

Intricate muqarnas ceiling with traditional Persian mosaic tilework and geometric patterns in an Iranian mosque.
Intricate muqarnas ceiling with traditional Persian mosaic tilework and geometric patterns in an Iranian mosque.

Muqarnas :

Muqarnas is basically a three-dimensional decoration of Islamic architecture .It was initially built to be structural in purpose made out of stone, but later on it became of a more crafted decoration and made of plaster, these clusters niches were used to decorate the area between the wall and the dome in Islamic architecture.
it can also be defined as : Honeycomb or stalactite vaulting.

The main pieces used for muqarnas and their flat projections reference website : http://castera.net/
The main pieces used for muqarnas and their flat projections reference website : http://castera.net/

Professor Shiro Takahashi has thoroughly documented the architectural records of the Muqarans with hundereds of details of its geometric plan views, in his documentation he has calssified them into three categories in attempt to clarify the formative styles of Muqarnas.

The three basic classifications are :

The main pieces used for muqarnas and their flat projections
reference website : http://castera.net/entrelacs/public/articles/Z-M-Q.htm

Comparison of square tiling styles showing a 3D isometric cube and complex geometric tessellation patterns.
Comparison of square tiling styles showing a 3D isometric cube and complex geometric tessellation patterns.
2) Pole table Style:
Geometric diagrams showing circular polar and star polygon patterns with four, five, and six segments.
Geometric diagrams showing circular polar and star polygon patterns with four, five, and six segments.
3) Other Styles
1) Square Style:

I would highly recommend going to his website for a complete database of detailed plans for all the types of muqarnas in Islamic architecture thoroughly researched and analyzed.

Collection of geometric Islamic architectural patterns labeled by cities like Berlin, Damascus, Aleppo, and Cairo.
Collection of geometric Islamic architectural patterns labeled by cities like Berlin, Damascus, Aleppo, and Cairo.

A snapshot of Professor Shiro Takahashi's website

On the www.designcoding.net website you will also be able to find a simple grasshopper definition and a rhino file where these patterns are created. The design is simple but it is useful to understand the basics of creating these geometries in 3D.
http://www.designcoding.net/parametric-muqarnas/


If you are interested in creating some of these geometries yourself, you can find a research paper in www.academia.edu called (MUQARNAS RECONCEIVED - A BRIEF SURVEY: An Islamic Space-enclosing System - Techniques for Designing Muqarnas Forms), the paper explains the techniques and geometrical basis on how to design a Muqarnas.

Link of the pdf file here :
https://www.academia.edu/5734042/MUQARNAS_RECONCEIVED_-_A_BRIEF_SURVEY_An_Islamic_Space-enclosing_System_-_Techniques_for_Designing_Muqarnas_Forms

Dana Krystle

Email

danakhalifa@live.com