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Murad Agha Mosque

Coordinates: 32°52′54″N 13°20′25″E / 32.88167°N 13.34028°E / 32.88167; 13.34028
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Murad Agha Mosque
جامع مراد آغا
The mosque as photographed in 2010
Religion
AffiliationSunni Islam
Location
LocationTajura, Libya
Geographic coordinates32°52′54″N 13°20′25″E / 32.88167°N 13.34028°E / 32.88167; 13.34028
Architecture
TypeMosque
FounderMurad Agha
Date established1550s

The Murad Agha Mosque (Arabic: جامع مراد آغا) is a mosque in Tajura, Libya. Its construction was commissioned by Murad Agha, the first Ottoman Beylerbey of Tripoli, in the 1550s.

History

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The minaret and prayer hall as photographed in 2014

The mosque is named after Murad Agha, an Ottoman ruler of Tajura who commissioned its construction. It was either built in 1552 while Murad was Beylerbey of Tripoli,[1] or in around 1553–1556 when Murad returned to Tajura after being replaced as beylerbey by Dragut.[2] Murad is said to have initially planned to build a fortress,[3] but was compelled to build a mosque instead.[2] The mosque was however built to also function as a fortress against Spanish or Hospitaller incursions.[4][5]

Maghrebi architects and engineers were likely involved in the mosque's construction,[6] as it was built using local materials and building techniques rather than in an Ottoman style.[3] Slave labour was used in its construction,[2] and Murad is said to have offered freedom to 300 Spanish prisoners if they built the mosque in a short period of time.[1] When Murad died in 1556, he was buried in a tomb outside the mosque.[4]

The mosque's minaret collapsed during an earthquake in 1901; the current minaret is a later reconstruction.[7]

In 2011, before the start of the Libyan civil war, anti-Gaddafi protests were held outside the mosque.[7] Murad's tomb was deliberately destroyed by an explosion in 2013; its destruction was condemned by Libyan Prime Minister Ali Zeidan and by UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova.[1][8]

Architecture

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Interior of the prayer hall as photographed in 2010

The mosque's architecture combines Berber and ancient classical features.[3] It has a rectangular plan of about 40 metres (130 ft) by 32 metres (105 ft) with plain but imposing exterior walls.[2] Internally, its prayer hall features a series of barrel vaults supported by horseshoe arches, which are themselves supported by 48 columns of ancient Roman origin reused as spolia.[2][3][4] The ends of the vaults feature apertures which appear to have been built as musketry loopholes.[4]

According to tradition, the columns – which are composed of pink and red breccia, cipolin, black granite, and limestone – originated from Leptis Magna and were salvaged from a ship which had foundered near Tajura while they were being transported to Europe. It is also possible that the columns originated from ruined Roman villas in the vicinity of Tajura.[2]

The mosque includes a courtyard with a minaret built in a traditional Maghrebi style.[3] The minaret has a square plan, and its design bears similarities to the Great Mosque of Kairouan in Tunisia.[7]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Elhasumi, Asma (2018). Evolution of Public Spaces in the Urban Core of Tripoli, Libya: Dynamics of Growth and Change (PDF) (PhD). Welsh School of Architecture, Cardiff University. Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 June 2024.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Ciranna, Simonetta (2017). "Pulcherrima Spolia in the Architecture and Urban Space at Tripoli". In Altekamp, Stefan; Marcks-Jacobs, Carmen; Seiler, Peter (eds.). Perspektiven der Spolienforschung 2. Zentren und Konjunkturen der Spoliierung. Berlin: Edition Topoi. pp. 67–93. ISBN 978-3-9816384-3-1. Archived from the original on 8 February 2025.
  3. ^ a b c d e Sulayman, Mohammed (2023). "Formation of Regional Features of Libyan Mosques under the Influence of External and Internal Factors" (PDF). Wiadomości Konserwatorskie – Journal of Heritage Conservation (74): 51–59. doi:10.48234/WK74LIBYAN. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 February 2025.
  4. ^ a b c d Mallia, David (2011). "The survival of the Knights' Church in Tripoli" (PDF). Proceedings of History Week: 29–45. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 January 2019.
  5. ^ Buhlfaia, Saeid Ali (2006). Historical background of Libyan mosque architecture: assessment and criticism of mosques in Ajdabiya city (M.Arch.). Graduate School of Natural and Applied Sciences, Middle East Technical University. Archived from the original on 18 August 2024.
  6. ^ Sulayman, Mohammed; Ivashko, Yulia; Afshariazad, Somayeh; Dmytrenko, Andrii; Paprzyca, Krystyna; Safronova, Anna; Safronova, Olena; Yevdokimova, Tetiana (2024). "Specific issues of conservation and restoration of Libya mosques (7th century – 1815)" (PDF). International Journal of Conservation Science. 15 (2): 861–878. doi:10.36868/IJCS.2024.02.08. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 November 2024.
  7. ^ a b c Alharathy, Safa (15 April 2017). "The Beauty of Libya's Murad Agha's Mosque". The Libya Observer. Retrieved 8 February 2025.
  8. ^ "تدمير ضريح مراد آغا بضواحي العاصمة الليبية طرابلس". Al-Manar (in Arabic). 27 November 2013. Archived from the original on 27 February 2024.

Further reading

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  • Bartoccini, Renato (1924). "La moschea di Murad Agha in Tagiura (Tripolitania)". Architettura e Arti decorative (in Italian). 3 (8): 337–346.
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Media related to Murad Agha Mosque Tajura at Wikimedia Commons

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