Sidi Belahcen Mosque Explained

Building Name:	Sidi Bellahsen Mosque
Native Name:	مسجد سيدي بلحسن
Native Name Lang:	Arabic
Location:	Tlemcen, Algeria
Map Type:	Algeria
Map Relief:	1
Coordinates:	34.8829°N -1.3113°W
Religious Affiliation:	Islam
Province:	Tlemcen
Architecture Type:	mosque
Minaret Quantity:	1

Sidi Belahcen Mosque (Arabic: مسجد سيدي بلحسن), also known as Sidi Bel Hasan Mosque^{[1] [2] [3]} or Sidi Abu al-Hasan Mosque^{[4] [5]} is a historic mosque in the city of Tlemcen, Algeria. The mosque is located in the southwest of the square next to the Great Mosque of Tlemcen. Today it serves as a museum.

History

The mosque was founded in 1296 by the emir Abi Ibrahim ibn Yahya during the Zayyanid era as inscribed on the plank of the western wall in the prayer hall, as well as the two groves made of gypsum on top of the mihrab. The current name of the mosque is considered derived from the name of the local qadi and ulama Abi al-Hassan who served under the rule of the Sultan Abi Sayeed Uthman (1283-1303).

Architecture

The mosque has rather modest appearance compared to the other mosques of the same era. The mosque has no sahn and uses similar tiles for the floor and the qibla wall. The ceiling was consisted of interlocking logs made of cedar trees, which is the first of its kind in Algeria and predates three or four centuries the style employed in the Andalusian Moorish architecture.

Gallery

File:Mosquée Sidi belahssen Interieur.jpg|Muqarnas of the mosqueFile:Mihrab 1.JPG|Mihrab of the mosqueFile:Entrée de La mosquée de Sidi Bellahsen.JPG|Entrance

See also

• Lists of mosques
• List of mosques in Africa
• List of mosques in Algeria

Bibliography

• Bourouiba, R., L’art religieux musulman en Algérie, Alger : S.N.E.D., 1981, p. 108-129.
• Bourouiba, A., Apports de l'Algérie à l'architecture arabo-islamique, Alger : S.N.E.D., 1986. Basset, H. ; Terrasse, H., « Sanctuaires et Forteresses almohades », in Hespéris, V, Paris : 1932.
• Marçais, G., L'architecture musulmane d'Occident, Tunisie, Algérie, Maroc, Espagne et Sicile, Paris : Arts et métiers graphiques, 1954.
• Marçais, G., Tlemcen, Paris : H. Laurens, « Les villes d'art célèbres », 1950.
• Marçais, G., Les monuments arabes de Tlemcen, Paris : Fontemoing, 1905.

Notes and References

1. Web site: Lafer. Ali. Djama'a Sidi Bel-Hasan (mosque). 2021-03-30. Discover Islamic Art, Museum With No Frontiers. 2023-04-28. https://web.archive.org/web/20230428185451/http://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=monument;ISL;dz;Mon01;5;en. live.
2. Book: Bloom, Jonathan M.. Architecture of the Islamic West: North Africa and the Iberian Peninsula, 700-1800. Yale University Press. 2020. 9780300218701. 183–184. 2021-05-04. 2024-01-14. https://web.archive.org/web/20240114130754/https://books.google.com/books?id=IRHbDwAAQBAJ&q=Architecture+of+the+Islamic+West%3A+North+Africa+and+the+Iberian+Peninsula%2C+700-1800&pg=PP1#v=snippet&q=Architecture%20of%20the%20Islamic%20West%3A%20North%20Africa%20and%20the%20Iberian%20Peninsula%2C%20700-1800&f=false. live.
3. Book: Marçais, Georges. L'architecture musulmane d'Occident. Arts et métiers graphiques. 1954. Paris. 272.
4. Web site: Qantara - Mosque of Sidi Bel Hasan (Sayyidī Abū al-Hasan). 2021-03-30. www.qantara-med.org.
5. Web site: Jami' Sidi Abi Hasan. 2021-03-30. Archnet. 2021-11-27. https://web.archive.org/web/20211127104624/https://www.archnet.org/sites/9170. live.