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For my last blog post, I decided to talk about one of the new seven wonders of the world: the Taj Mahal.

Combining architectural and decorative elements from Indian, Persian, and Islamic influences, the Taj Mahal is the most famous example of Mughal architecture in the world.  This was a distinctive style of architecture developed and used by the Mughal empire in northern and central India from the 16th century to the 18th century.  

The Taj Mahal was built by Emperor Shah Jahan in order to immortalize his favorite wife, Arjuman Banu, also known as Mumtaz Mahal.  It is located in Agra, India and was originally constructed on the banks of the Yamuna river.

Built in 1632 and taking about 22 years to complete construction, the Taj Mahal functions as a mausoleum complex.  Despite being relatively large, comprising about 35,000 square feet, the intricate monument only holds the tombs for two people: Jahan and his wife.  

With a perfectly symmetrical form, the Taj Mahal is made entirely out of white marble and inlaid with semi-precious jewels and stones.  It is flanked on both sides with identical red sandstone buildings.  

The well known mausoleum complex displays some of the most prominent characteristics of Mughal architecture, especially domes.  The central onion shaped dome, which has a height of over 200 feet, is surrounded by four smaller domes, or chhatri.  These are elevated pavilions utilized heavily throughout Indian structures.  

Taking inspiration from Islamic architecture, the Taj Mahal is also surrounded by four minarets.  These architectural elements, which are slender towers with stairs leading to one or more balconies, were often incorporated into mosque complexes and used to call faithful Muslims to prayer.

Also influenced by the early Islamic decoration style, the Taj Mahal features Arabic calligraphic inscriptions (also called Thuluth script), or passages and verses from the sacred Islamic book of Quran, throughout the entire complex.  

Another decorative feature prominently used across the mausoleum is known as pietra dura, a type of mosaic that is formed by inlaying and fitting highly polished, colorful stones, such as jade, crystal, amethyst, and turquoise.  The resulting stonework created highly formalized designs often depicting intertwining geometric, abstract, and floral designs.  

In addition to being an impressive architectural work featuring different formal and decorative elements, the Taj Mahal is also very symbolic in the way it was designed and built.

Not only being a monumental symbol of Jahan’s love for his wife, the mausoleum complex paints a picture of Paradise, as defined by the Muslim religion.  The most explicit example of this paradise (or an everlasting afterlife) is the complex’s garden and two water channels.  Oriented to the cardinal points of the compass and forming the shape of a cross, the four canals symbolize the four rivers of paradise.

The Taj Mahal is a national symbol of India and was recognized as an UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1982. 

If you live in Pennsylvania, you have probably heard of the iconic Fallingwater house at one point or another.

This is the only architectural work that I have talked about in my blog that I have actually visited.  

Fallingwater was designed in 1935 by renowned American architect, Frank Lloyd Wright.  Taking about three years to construct, this impressive structure was commissioned by Edgar Kaufmann, a Pittsburgh businessman, philanthropist, department store owner, and one of Wright’s friends.  

Located in the Pennsylvanian wilderness near the villages of Mill Run and Ohiopyle, Fallingwater was originally built to be a holiday home for the Kaufmann family.  The only request made by the Kaufmann’s when they tasked Wright with building the house was that they wanted it to face a thirty-foot tall waterfall in the forest area.

Wright did one better and incorporated the waterfall into the construction of the house.  This unique approach made Fallingwater one of Frank Lloyd Wright’s most acclaimed and famous works.

Inspired by Japanese architecture and its intense focus on the harmony between man and nature, Wright decided to build Fallingwater in such a way that the waterfall flows under the structure.  He further integrated nature and the surrounding environment into the construction by utilizing the natural rock formations and boulders.  Other building materials include wood, concrete, steel, and glass.  For these reasons, Fallingwater is known as a prominent example of organic architecture.  

The color scheme of Fallingwater features two main colors: light ochre for the concrete and Cherokee red for the steel.  These paints were made to be eco-friendly, as they were constantly being exposed to changes in temperature and humidity. 

Fallingwater comprises three floors, making up about 5,330 square feet.    

This transcendent structure heavily utilized cantilever construction, evident in its many concrete terraces.  A cantilever is a type of structural element that extends horizontally and is only supported on one end.  Making up about half of the building, the cantilevered terraces hang over the forested area surrounding the house and the stream flowing below.  

Another interesting feature of the Fallingwater house is its “invisible” corner windows, where glass meets glass and no vertical supports are used for the corners of rooms.  This provides visitors with a seamless and unadulterated view of the outside.  

After Edgar Kaufmann’s death, his son and sole inheritor, Edgar Kaufmann Jr., donated the architectural marvel and its accompanying acreage to the nonprofit organization, Western Pennsylvania Conservancy.  It was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2019.  

Fallingwater receives thousands of visitors every year from all around the world.  

 

Click here to learn more about Fallingwater.

One cannot write a blog about architecture without mentioning the Notre-Dame Cathedral, arguably the most famous church in the world.

I love this building.

Not only is Notre-Dame one of the finest and most well known examples of gothic architecture, but it also gives me nostalgic feelings even though I have never physically been there.  Seeing pictures of the giant, intricately decorated Roman Catholic cathedral immediately brings me back to my childhood living room.  

Weird how an 850 year old monument reminds me of my living room, right?  Well, it is partially due to the many memories I have sitting on the carpeted floor in front of my boxy television after putting in a VHS tape of Disney’s The Hunchback of Notre-Dame.  

The Notre-Dame Cathedral, also called Notre-Dame de Paris, started construction in 1163 during the reign of King Louis VII.  It was completed in multiple building phases over the course of two hundred years.  

Notre-Dame was consecrated to the Virgin Mary and named after her.  The phrase “Notre Dame” translates to “Our Lady,” which is a common title associated with the biblical woman.

The cathedral has many of the same architectural and decorative elements present in other churches and places of worship during the time it was built.  For instance, the structure features a long nave flanked on both sides with double aisles, a high altar, a transept and crossing, pointed arches, and a cruciform, or cross-shaped, floor plan.  

The cathedral also has a large clerestory level, which is the upper portion of a wall filled with windows to admit light into the interior space.  This was supported by single-arch flying buttresses.   

Notre Dame features other types of windows common amongst Gothic cathedrals.  The north transept wall features a large rose window, or a circular stained glass window, that is 43 feet in diameter.  This extravagant window sits above 18 tall stained glass lancet windows.  There are three of these windows throughout the cathedral.  

Even though the impressive cathedral is an example of the French Gothic style, it incorporates many architectural elements from the Romanesque period, including symmetrical rounded arches, heavy buttressing, and a tympanum, or a recessed and sculpted triangular space, in the portal.  The tympanum, which is located on the west façade, features a depiction of the Last Judgment.  

While Notre-Dame has suffered damage and natural deterioration throughout its many centuries of existence, it was recently destroyed by a fire on April 15, 2019.  Luckily, many of the valuable religious artifacts and cultural relics were saved.  However, many of its notable architectural elements were severely damaged.  The Gothic spire, or the steeply pointed pyramidal form elongating from the roof, and the roof with ribbed vaulting, which gives the interior the iconic Gothic feel, collapsed.

In order to preserve the history and cultural and religious significance of the site, restoration campaigns are planning to begin in 2021.  As of right now, all reconstruction plans are historically accurate, using similar materials and building techniques from the original 12th century construction. 

When I think of ancient works of architecture, some famous structures immediately come to mind, such as rock formations like Stonehenge and extravagant Roman temples like the Parthenon.

Today, we will be talking about another ancient work that is lesser known but equally as impressive.

It all begins in Mesopotamia.

The term Mesopotamia, which translates to “in between the rivers,” refers to the part of the world we call the Middle East.  This includes parts of present day Turkey, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Syria, Armenia, and Saudi Arabia.  

Many Mesopotamian communities were governed by oligarchs known as priest kings.  Because of the common belief that humans were created solely to serve the gods, who were thought to be based on natural phenomena, these rulers heavily incorporated religion and worship into their rule.  Subsequently, like in many other cultures and areas of the world during this time period, religion played an important role in architectural innovations and developments.

The main architectural work in Mesopotamia was the ziggurat: a temple tower that rose in multiple stages, with each level diminishing in area and increasing in height.

Ziggurats were often built using mud and then covered with baked brick to protect against weathering.  Some ziggurats were also reinforced and decorated with cone mosaics.  These were repetitive zigzag or geometric patterns created by embedding many small, colorfully glazed terracotta cones into the mud walls prior to them hardening.  

The largest and best-preserved ziggurat from the Mesopotamian period is the Great Ziggurat at Ur, or present day Tall al-Muqayyar, Iraq.  

Like many other ziggurats in Mesopotamian architecture, the Temple at Ur, which was dedicated to the moon god and patron deity, Nanna, appears as a natural outcropping of the earth, meant to be understood as an “artificial” mountain of sorts.  This height allows the temple, which is located on the highest tier of the ziggurat, to be raised up towards the heavens, acting as a meeting place or bridge between humans and the gods.

The levels of the ziggurat at Ur mimic and symbolize the stratification of Mesopotamian society, as only the most elite individuals were permitted to enter the temple room.  This obvious division was implemented to demonstrate the status of their culture’s leaders, showing how the rulers and other high ranking community members were the only ones viewed worthy enough to “mingle” with the gods.  

Ziggurats were the first architectural works where people manipulated the landscape and surrounding topography to create ritual spaces that would endure for a long period of time.  

These stepped pyramids, while lesser known than some other ancient architectural developments, are just as important in both a historical and cultural sense.   

 

Click here to watch a virtual tour of a ziggurat.

What type of structure comes to mind when thinking about the modernist architecture movement?

As a first year architecture student (who doesn’t know that much about architecture yet), I immediately think of a rectilinear shaped building that is defined by its use of vertical and horizontal lines.  This hypothetical house is also coated in a white eggshell color, to further convey the ‘clean’ and ‘simplistic’ aesthetic of the modernist movement.

While I solely associate modernism in architecture with straight lines, rectangles, and cubes, many works in the modern style often incorporate curvilinear and more unconventional abstract forms.

One unique architectural work that disproves my preconceptions about modernist architecture is the Casa Milà in Barcelona, Spain.  

Located on the Paseo de Gracia, one of the major and most commercial avenues in Barcelona, the Casa Milà has six floors and spans across more than two blocks.  The impressive building was commissioned by the wealthy businessman and politician Pere Milà i Camps and his wife, Roser Segimon.  In addition to serving as the family’s residence, the large scale building also had multiple apartments available for rent, as the neighborhood had become a popular area for Barcelona’s upper class.   

Designed by famous Catalan architect Antoni Gaudi between 1906 and 1912, the Casa Milà features architectural forms and ornamentation that draw inspiration from nature. 

Like the naturally occurring shapes and curves found across the natural world, the stone façade of Casa Milà undulates organically.  Some compare the interesting shapes and textures to waves in the ocean.  Others liken it to a chunk of weathered stone, as the façade’s irregularities make the building appear as though it emerged from the earth. For that reason, Casa Milà is also known as La Pedrera, or “the stone quarry.”

The façade has no load bearing function, meaning it is not a structural element but rather a curtain wall, or decorative outer covering.  Steel beams were used to attach the façade to the main support.  

Besides its impressive façade, the Casa Milà has a number of other interesting decorative and architectural elements.

The front entry, for example, was made big enough to allow both people and vehicles in and out of the building.  Once again taking inspiration from irregular shapes and curves found in nature, Gaudi used panes of glass and ironwork to create an abstract pattern. 

While the Casa Milà was criticized and ridiculed during the time it was built, today it is commonly referred to as one of the most imaginative houses in the history of architecture, in part due to its whimsical exterior. It is also recognized as one of Gaudi’s most iconic works.  In 1984, UNESCO listed the Casa Milà as a World Heritage Site. 

 

Click here to watch a short video about the Casa Mila.    

It appears as though I am once again talking about a religiously affiliated work of architecture.

I promise I am not trying to make this a trend in my writings.

Many extant and prominent structures and buildings from past historical periods and communities hold religious significance, so it is difficult to not bring faith up in the conversation.  

While this week’s post focuses on a Christian chapel, it also heavily deals with the concept of patronage.  

Financially supported by Charlemagne, or Charles the Great, as part of his palatial complex, the Palatine Chapel was designed by Odo of Metz, an Armenian architect who was trained in the byzantine tradition.  It was most likely built by Lombard masons with stones spoliated, or reused, from nearby ancient Roman structures.  

This structure is part of the Carolingian Renaissance chronology.  This period occurred roughly between the years 768 and 900 AD in central Europe.  

Like many other Carolingian works of architecture, the Palatine Chapel took inspiration from the  Early Christian and Byzantine buildings Charlemagne visited through his travel and pilgrimage.  Specifically, while traveling to Italy to get crowned as the new emperor of the West, Charlemagne visited the Basilica of San Vitale, a late antique sixth century church in Ravenna.  

Many see the Palatine Chapel as a scaled down version of San Vitale.

That being said, the Palatine Chapel shares many similarities with San Vitale not only in its ground plan, but also in the decorative program.  

The central form of the chapel is an octagon, which fractures into a larger sixteen-sided polygon.  With square and triangular bays covered by barrel and groin vaults, the interior volume is supported by a cloister vault.  The semicircular arches of the main floor utilize polychrome masonry, the use of different colored bricks to create decorative patterns and geometric designs.  Also, sixteen marble columns from the Palace of the Exarchs in Ravenna were reused in the arcade of the gallery.  

As for decoration, the chapel features a lower portion made out of marble revetment, that was brought from the Mediterranean or spoliated from Roman works, and an upper portion displaying mosaics.  This bifurcation was a common design pattern in byzantine architecture. 

Located in the Carolingian capital of Aachen, Germany (also known as Aix-la-chappelle), the chapel functioned as a Christian place of worship in addition to serving as the seat of Charlemagne’s power.  

The structure housed Charlemagne’s throne, which was set on the gallery level on axis with the altar.  This placement symbolized a link between the emperor and Christ, demonstrating Charlemagne’s power and great status.