Mosque: Did you mean...?

The Gar Minaret, Gar (east of Isfahan), Iran. An inscription reveals its date as 1121 CE. Decorated with square Kufic inscriptions that are carved into the brick shaft.

The Sarban ('Camel-driver') minaret at Isfahan (Jubareh area), Iran (1130-1155 CE). The shafts are decorated with alternate bands of decorative brick and blue tile work in geometric patterns, and two girdles of stalactite ornament. The...

A view of the Ka'ba in Medina.

An illustration by F.AlSulaiti of the Kirat Minaret, Khurasan, Iran (11th century CE). Seljuk era patron unknown. Balcony at the middle of the shaft missing which was supported on corbelled brick and decorated with Muqarnas vaulting, and...

The Songhai Empire (aka Songhay, c. 1460 - c. 1591) covered what is today southern Mauritania and Mali. It replaced the Mali Empire (1240-1645) as the most important state in West Africa. Originating as a smaller kingdom along the eastern...

The Knights Templar were established c. 1119 and given papal recognition in 1129. It was a Catholic medieval military order whose members combined martial prowess with a monastic life to defend Christian holy sites and pilgrims in the Middle...

Ali ibn Abi Talib, or simply Ali, (l. 601-661 CE) was among the first Muslims, a cousin and son-in-law of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad (l. 570-632 CE), and later reigned as the fourth Caliph of Islam from 656 CE to 661 CE, when he was murdered...

The Iranian Revolution (1978-1979) was the social movement that arose from widespread and diverse discontent with the monarchic government of Iran. The revolution was fought against the regime of Mohammad Reza Shah (r. 1941-1979), and it...

Muhammad ibn Abdullah (l. 570-632 CE) is venerated today as the Prophet of Islam and the “seal of Prophets” by his followers – the Muslims. Muslims believe that Muhammad was the last – hence the “seal” – of many prophets before him in Judaism...

An acropolis is any citadel or complex built on a high hill. The name derives from the Greek akro, "high" or "extreme/extremity" or "edge", and polis, "city", translated as "high city", "city on the edge" or "city in the air", the most famous...