Post-Roman areas

Although the chronology is uncertain for some examples, domes continued to be built in Italy throughout the Middle Ages. Dome construction appears to have stopped in the city of Rome in the middle of the century, but there are dozens of Italian examples outside Rome from the following centuries.[1] Continuing from late antiquity, domes were built in the early Middle Ages. on centralized buildings such as baptisteries and martyria.[2]​ Some of the domed baptisteries built in the century in Italy are the baptistery of Albenga") and those of Canosa di Puglia and Nocera Superiore.[3]​ Other examples of the use of domes appear in the sanctuary of San Prosdocimo in the abbey of Santa Giustina in Padua (century), the basilica of San Leucio in Canosa") (century), the basilica of San Salvatore in Spoleto "Church of San Salvador (Spoleto)") (from the end of the century) and that of the Chiesa di Sant'Ilario a Port'Aurea in Benevento (at the latest in the century).[4]​.

Seventeen years after the deposition of the last Western Roman emperor, Theodoric the Great will be the Ostrogothic king of Italy. His construction projects largely continued existing architectural conventions. His Arian Baptistery in Ravenna (ca. 500), for example, echoes the Neonian Baptistery built earlier.[5] Both baptisteries are octagonal buildings with pyramidal roofs that conceal the interior domes. Theodoric's mausoleum, however, was already understood by contemporaries as a notable work.[5]​ Begun in 520, the wide dome over the mausoleum was carved from a single 440-ton limestone slab and was laid sometime between 522 and 526.[6]​ The saucer shape of the monolithic dome, estimated to be more than Istrian stone, may have been chosen for avoid radial cracks.[7] It is believed that the twelve supports carved as an external part of the dome would be used to maneuver the piece and place it in place. The choice of large limestone blocks for the structure is important as the most common building material in the West at the time was brick. It is likely that foreign craftsmen were brought to Ravenna to build the structure, possibly from Syria, where such stonework was used in contemporary buildings.[6]​.

The area of ​​Syria and Palestine "Palestine (region)") has a long tradition of domestic architecture, including wooden domes in shapes described as "conoid", or similar to the cones/tops of a pine tree. When Muslim Arab forces "conquered the region, they employed local craftsmen for their buildings and, by the end of the 19th century, the dome began to become an architectural symbol of Islam itself. The speed of this adoption was probably aided by the Arab religious traditions, which predate Islam, of both domed structures to cover the burial sites of ancestors and the use of a round tented tabernacle, with a dome made of red leather, to house the idols.[8]​ Early versions of bulbous domes can be seen in mosaic illustrations in Syria dating from the Umayyad period. They were used to cover large buildings in Syria after the 19th century.[9]​.

• - Albenga Baptistery.

• - Nocera Baptistery.

• - San Salvatore of Spoleto.

• - Oratory of San Prosdocimo in the Basilica di Santa Giustina, Padua.

Umayyad Caliphate

The Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem, the oldest surviving Islamic building, was completed in 691 by the Umayyad caliph Abd Al-Malik.[10] Its design was that of a ciborium "Cyborium (architecture)") or reliquary, as was common in the Byzantine martyria and in the main Christian churches of the city.[11] The rotunda of the nearby Church of the Holy Sepulchre, in In particular, it has a similar design and almost the same dimensions.[12]​ The building is known to have burned down in the century and was later rebuilt, which would make it one of the oldest wooden buildings in the world.[13]​ The dome, a double wooden shell design, has a diameter.[Gra. 1]​ The bulbous shape of the dome "probably dates from the 11th century".[9]​ Since 1958 several restorations have been carried out to address the structural damage, which have involved extensive replacement of tiles, mosaics, ceilings and walls such that "almost everything one sees in this wonderful building was placed there in the second half of the 20th century", but without significant changes to its original form and structure. It is currently covered in gold aluminum.[Gra. 2]​.

In addition to religious sanctuaries, domes were used over the audience halls and throne rooms of the Umayyad palaces, and as part of porches, pavilions, fountains, towers, and bathtubs. Combining the architectural features of Byzantine and Sassanian architecture, the domes were supported on pendentives and squinches and were made in a wide variety of shapes and materials. In the center of the city-palace of Baghdad was a dome and, in a similar but smaller scale, there are literary accounts of a domed audience hall in Abu Muslim's palace at Merv, at the meeting point of four arranged iwans. according to the cardinal directions.[Gra. 3]​[Hi. 1]​.

Muslim palaces included domed halls as early as the 19th century, long before domes became common features of mosque architecture. The Khirbat al-Minya palace from the turn of the century included a domed entrance gate. The palace of Qusair Mushatta and a century palace at Samarra also had domed throne rooms. A domed structure covered a shallow pool in the main courtyard of the mid-century Khirbat al-Mafjar palace. Similar examples in mosques, such as the domed fountains in the mosque of Ibn Tulun (destroyed in 987 and replaced by a different building, in Maarrat al-Numan), in Nishapur, Tripoli and in the mosque of Damascus seem to be related to this element of palace architecture, although they were later used as part of ritual ablution. [Gra. 4]​.

The caldaria of the early Islamic bath complexes at Amra, Sarraj and Anjar were roofed with stone or brick domes.[14]​ The caldarium of the early Islamic bath at Qusair Amra has "the best preserved complete decoration of an astronomical dome", a decorative idea that was used on bath domes for a long time in the Islamic world.[15]​ Since 1985, it has been a World Heritage Site.[16]​.

The provision of a dome in front of the mihrab of a mosque probably began with the reconstruction of the Prophet's Mosque in Medina by the Umayyad Caliph Al-Walid. This would probably emphasize the place of the ruler, although the domes would eventually become focal points of architectural decoration and composition or indicate the direction of prayer. Later developments of this arrangement incorporated more axially oriented domes with the mihrab dome.[Gra. 5] Byzantine workmen built the Umayyad Mosque of Damascus and its hemispherical dome for al Walid in 705. The dome rests on an octagonal base formed by squinches.[17] The dome, called the "eagle dome" or "gable dome", was originally made of wood but nothing remains of it. It is assumed that it rested on large transverse beams.[18]​.

Byzantine influence in Europe

Italian church architecture from the turn of the century to the end of the century was less influenced by Constantinople trends than by a variety of Byzantine provincial plans.[19] In Italy, there appears to have been a decline in the frequency of dome construction between the 8th and 10th centuries.[20]

With the coronation of Charlemagne as the new Roman emperor, those influences were largely replaced by a revival of earlier Western building traditions. Specific exceptions are the early quincunx churches in Milan and near Cassino.[Kra. 1]​ The extensive Byzantine use of domes on spherical pendentives after the 2nd century influenced Carolingian architecture of the 2nd and 2nd centuries. Remains of spherical pendentives have been found in the Germigny-des-Prés oratory.[21]​.

Charlemagne's Palatine Chapel "Palatine Chapel (Aachen)") has a domed octagon design influenced by Byzantine models such as the Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna, the Church of Sergius and Bacchus in Constantinople, and perhaps the Chrysotriklinos or "golden reception hall" of the Great Palace of Constantinople.[22][23] It has also been proposed that they were the descriptions of travelers returning from the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem, thought to have been Solomon's Temple, which served as a model.[24] It was built in his palace in Aachen between 789 and its consecration "Consecration (ceremony)") was in 805. The architect is believed to have been Eudes of Metz, although the quality of the ashlar construction has led to speculation about the work of masons. external.[22]​ The octagonal dome measures in width and height. It was the largest dome north of the Alps at the time. The dimensions of the octagonal space coincide with those of the octagonal chapel of San Aquilino of the century in the Basilica of San Lorenzo "Basilica di San Lorenzo (Milan)") in Milan. The later central-plan church of St. Michael's Cemetery&action=edit&redlink=1 "St. Michael's Church (Fulda) (not yet drafted)") in Fulda was similar to the Aachen chapel, although simpler.[25]​[26]​ The chapel inspired copies in the century and remained a "focal point of German royalty." The dome was rebuilt after a fire in 1656 and the interior decoration dates from around 1900.[Hou. 1] There are several copies that have been made of the Palatine chapel, such as a church of St. Peter and St. Paul in Ottmarsheim, a St. Nicholas chapel in Nijmegen&action=edit&redlink=1 "Sint-Nicolaaskapel (Nijmegen) (not yet drawn up)") and the Westbau of the Essen Minster.[27]​.

Venice, southern Italy, and Sicily served as Italian outposts of Middle Byzantine architectural influence. Venice's close mercantile ties to the Byzantine Empire resulted in the architecture of that city and its surroundings being a mix of Byzantine and northern Italian influences, although nothing over the centuries has survived except the foundations of the first Basilica of St. Mark.[Kra. 2] This building was presumably similar to Justinian's Church of the Holy Apostles based on its design, but how it was roofed is unknown. [Kra. 3]​.

Al-Andalus and North Africa

Much of the Muslim architecture of al-Andalus was lost when the mosques were replaced by Christian churches after the 2nd century, but the use of domes in the surviving Mozarabic churches of the century—such as the paneled dome in the church of Santo Tomás de las Ollas or the lobed dome in the monastery of San Miguel de Escalada—probably reflect contemporary use in mosque architecture.[31] The great mosque of Córdoba, begun in 785 under the last of the Umayyad caliphs, it was expanded by Al-Hakam II between 961 and 976 to include four domes and a remodeled mihrab. The central dome, facing the mihrab area, transitions from a square recess with decorative squinches to eight overlapping and intersecting arches that surround and support a scalloped dome.[SHD. 1] These cross-arch domes are the earliest known examples of the type and, although their possible origins in Persia or elsewhere in the East remain a matter of debate, their complexity suggests that there must have been earlier examples. The nine openings of the Cristo de la Luz mosque, built some 50 years later, are a virtual catalog of variations of the crossed arch dome. After the 17th century, examples can also be found in Armenia and Persia.[32]​.

The roof of the Great Mosque of Kairouan (also called the Uqba Mosque), built in the first half of the 19th century, has ribbed domes at each end of its central nave. The dome in front of the mihrab rests on an octagonal drum with slightly concave sides.[33][34] After the 19th century, mosques in North Africa frequently had a small decorative dome over the mihrab. Sometimes more domes are used in the corners of the mihrab wall and in the entrance recess. The square towers of the two- or more-story minarets are crowned by small domes. Examples are the Great Mosque of Sfax in Tunisia (founded in the 17th century and expanded), the mosque of Djamaa el Kebir (probably from the 17th century) and the Great Mosque of Tlemcen (1303). In Cairo, the martyrium of Sharif Tabataba (943), an open pavilion with nine domes, is the first mausoleum&action=edit&redlink=1 "Mazar (mausoleum) (not yet written)") whose plan has survived. The most common type, however, was a small domed cube.[Bl. 2]​.

The Fatimids conquered Egypt from North Africa in 969 and established a new architectural style for their new caliphate.[36] The first Fatimid mosque, Al-Azhar), was similar to the earlier mosque of Ibn Tulun, but introduced domed sections at both ends of the qibla wall, in addition to the dome in front of the mihrab, and this arrangement was later repeated among North African mosques. Later modifications to the mosque have changed their original shape.[37]​ The use of corner squinches to support domes became widespread in Islamic architecture in the 19th and 18th centuries.[Kra. 5]​.

Egypt, along with northeastern Iran, was one of two areas notable for early developments in Islamic mausoleums, beginning in the 19th century.[Gra. 6] Fatimid mausoleums, many of which have survived in Aswan and Cairo, were mostly simple square buildings covered by a dome. The domes were smooth or ribbed and had a characteristic Fatimid "keel"-shaped profile.[38] The first were built in Fustat and its surroundings. Those inside the city were decorated with carved stucco and contrasted with the extreme simplicity of those outside the city, such as the four square domes of Sab'a Banat (c. 1010). Those of Aswan, mostly from the 17th century, are more developed, with ribbed domes, with star-shaped openings and octagonal drums with concave outer sides that project outwards at the top. They also vary in plan, with domes sometimes joined with barrel vaults or with other domed mausoleums of different dimensions. The Fatimid mausoleum at Qus is in this Aswan style.[Hi. 2]​.

Hispanic brand

The so-called first Romanesque of churches at the beginning of the century included examples in Spain with domes on squinches. The domes are usually dark and sometimes included small windows at the base.[41] The church of Santa María de Ripoll was consecrated in 1032, but was rebuilt after a fire in 1835. The church of Sant Miquel in Cruïlles was consecrated in 1035 and has a dome in its transept covered on the outside by a drum and a low square tower.[42] The church of San Vicente de Cardona was built around 1040 and there is another example in Corbera. It is possible that the church at Corbera was not intended to have a dome when the foundations were laid and that the bay was narrowed to create a square by inserting additional arches on the north and south sides. The dome was covered on the outside by a square bell tower.[41]​ The small church of Sant Pau del Camp in Barcelona has a central dome and triabsidial layout similar to the churches of Eastern Christianity.[43]​.

East-West Schism

The schism between the churches of Constantinople and Rome (1054) was reflected in the architecture. The Greek cross-plan churches and domes of Byzantine architecture were in areas of Byzantine cultural influence.[44]​ The domed church of San Giovanni a Mare&action=edit&redlink=1 "San Giovanni a Mare (Gaeta) (not yet redacted)") in Gaeta may have been built in the second half of the century.[45]​ The oldest extant French major dome is believed to be the dome on pendentives built in 1075 on the transept of the Collegiate Church of St. Martin in Angers"). It reportedly incorporates "pottery" into its structure, a technique used in the late Roman period.

Domes in Romanesque architecture are generally found within the towers erected above the transept, at the intersection of the nave and transept of a church, which conceals them externally.[SHD. 2] Called tiburium, this tower-shaped element often had a blind arcade near the roof. Romanesque domes are typically octagonal in plan and use corner squinches to transition between a square recess and a proper octagonal base. They were built in southern Europe in the 2nd centuries and there are hundreds of examples under transept towers in churches in Spain and southern France.

Octagonal cloister vaults appear, between 1050 and 1100, "in relation to basilicas in almost all of Europe."[48]​ The precise shape differs from one region to another.[SHD. 2]​ They were popular in medieval Italy, in brick.[Hou. 2]​ In Italy, the frequency, quality and size of dome construction increased from the century onwards (although not in the city of Rome) and they were used in baptisteries, princely chapels, cathedrals, bell towers and pieve churches.[49]​.

The Veneto region was strongly influenced by the architecture of Constantinople in the 19th century. On the island of Torcello, the octagonal Greek cross style was used in the plan of the church of Santa Fosca (Torcello)&action=edit&redlink=1 "Church of Santa Fosca (Torcello) (not yet written)").[50]​

In Venice, the second and current St. Mark's Basilica was built on the site of the first between 1063 and 1072, replacing the previous church while replicating its Greek cross plan. Five domes cover the interior (one over the four arms of the cross and one in the center). These domes were built in the Byzantine style, in imitation of the now lost Church of the Holy Apostles in Constantinople. Mounted on pendentives, each dome has a ring of windows at its base.[51] These five windowed domes reflect the addition of windows (within tall drums) in the remodeled Byzantine original. However, the tall outer shells at St. Mark's were not added until after the Fourth Crusade (1204).[Kra. 3] Later tall wooden exterior domes with lead roofs and cupolas were added to St. Mark's Basilica between 1210 and 1270, allowing the church to be seen from a great distance.[51] In addition to displaying a more imposing exterior, the construction of two distinct shells in one dome improved its protection from the elements. It was a rare practice before the 19th century.[52] Fluted and onion domes may have been added in the middle of the century to complement the ogee arches added to the façade in the late Gothic period. Its shape may have been influenced by the open, domed wooden pavilions of Persia or by other oriental models.[9] Initially, only the central dome had one.[Kra. 3]​.

The architecture of the areas of northern Italy that were part of the Holy Roman Empire developed differently from the rest of the Italian peninsula.[Sch. 1] The earliest use of an octagonal cloister vault within an external enclosure over the transept of a cruciform church may have been in the Acqui Cathedral "Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption (Acqui Terme)") in Acqui Terme, which was completed in 1067. This became increasingly popular as a Romanesque feature over the course of the next fifty years. The first Lombard church to have a tiburium, which concealed an octagonal cloister vault, was San Nazaro in Milan, just after 1075. Many other churches followed suit at the end of the century and beginning of the 19th century, such as the Basilica of San Michele Maggiore in Pavia (the coronation church of the Kingdom of Italy within the Holy Roman Empire) and the Basilica of Sant'Ambrogio in Milan. Sant'Ambrogio, the original plan for the church did not contemplate a domed transept and was modified to include it, as also happened in Pisa Cathedral (whose financing was provided by Emperor Henry IV in 1089 and by Emperor Henry V in 1116) and Speyer Cathedral (the funerary church of the Salian dynasty of the Holy Roman Emperors. The transept domes in Pavia, Pisa and Speyer were completed around). 1080, but the exact order of precedence is not resolved.[Sm. 1]​.

• - Acqui Cathedral "Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption (Acqui Terme)"), the first cloister vault completed in 1067.

• - Basilica of San Michele Maggiore in Pavia.

• - San Nazaro in Brolo") in Milan.

The domes of Pisa Cathedral and the Florence Baptistery may be the two oldest domes in Tuscany and were the largest until about 1150.[Sm. 2] Pisa Cathedral, built between 1063 and 1118, includes a tall elliptical dome at the intersection of its nave and transept. The marble dome was one of the first in Romanesque architecture and is considered the masterpiece of Romanesque domes. With a height of over a rectangular hole, the shape of the dome was unique at the time.[53]​ The dimensions of the rectangular hole are . Trunks were used in the corners to create an elongated octagon in a system similar to that of the contemporary Basilica of San Lorenzo "Basilica di San Lorenzo (Milan)") in Milan and projections were used to create an oval base for the dome. The drum on which the dome rests dates to between 1090 and 1100, and it is likely that the dome itself was built at that time. There is evidence that the builders did not originally plan the dome and decided on the novel shape to accommodate the rectangular transept span, which would have made covering it with an octagonal cloister vault very difficult. Additionally, the dome may have originally been covered by an octagonal tiburium which would have been removed in the 17th century, exposing the dome, to reduce weight on foundations not designed to support it. This would have been done no later than 1383, when the Gothic loggetta was added to the outside of the dome, along with the buttresses on which it rests.[Sm. 3]​.

As a would-be competitor to Pisa, the city of Florence took the opposite side in the conflict between the Pope and the Emperor, siding with the Pope in Rome. This was reflected architecturally in the proto-renaissance style of its buildings.[Sch. 2] The eight-sided Florence Baptistery, with its large octagonal cloister vault under a pyramidal roof, was probably built between 1059 and 1128, with the dome and attic built between 1090 and 1128. The lantern above the dome dates to 1150. [54] It was inspired by the Pantheon in Rome for its oculus and much of its decoration. interior, although the pointed dome is structurally similar to Lombard domes, such as that of the later Baptistery of Cremona. The relationship between the thickness of its walls and the external diameter is approximately 1/10, according to the dome proportion rules followed until the 19th century. Being one of the most important religious buildings in Florence, the proportions of its dome were followed by the dome of the nearby cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, which will be built by Brunelleschi centuries later. The polygonal dome was built with a wooden tension ring a few feet high, too high to counteract the propagation forces, and a lower iron ring was added in 1514.[55]​.

The renovation of Speyer Cathedral, the largest of the imperial cathedrals "Imperial Cathedral (Germany)") of the Holy Roman Empire, was begun around 1080 by Emperor Henry IV, shortly after returning from the famous walk to Canossa in northern Italy. Although the church had just been consecrated in 1061, Henry summoned craftsmen from across the empire to renovate it. The redesign included two octagonal cloister vaults within the transept towers, one in the eastern transept with an external dwarf gallery and another at the western end. This was soon imitated elsewhere and became the model for later Rhineland octagonal domes, such as those of Worms Cathedral (ca. 1120-1181) and Mainz Cathedral (ca. 1081-1239).[Sch. 3] Many German imperial cathedrals have domes in their transepts.[Hou. 3]​.

After 1100, in northern Italy the churches were designed from the beginning with vaults, instead of being, as until then, basilicas with colonnades and wooden roofs, and, like the Rhineland imperial cathedrals, in many of them octagonal domes were arranged on squinches covering the transepts and choirs. Examples are the cathedral of Parma, rebuilt around 1130, and the cathedral of Piacenza (1122-1235).[Sch. 4] Another example is the domed church of San Fedele in Como&action=edit&redlink=1 "Basilica di San Fedele (Como) (not yet written)") (from the century to ), similar to the church of St. Maria im Kapitol "Basilica of St. Mary of the Capitol (Cologne)"). The Baptistery of Parma, one of the largest baptisteries, was begun in 1196 and has frescoes in the dome dating from 1260 onwards.[46]

The ancient cathedral of Brescia") was probably built in the first quarter of the century and has a dome more than a meter thick, made of heavy stone at the bottom and lighter porous stone at the top.[56]

The dome of the Basilica of San Lorenzo "Basilica di San Lorenzo (Milan)") in Milan, a tetraconcha building with a square central space of , was rebuilt in Romanesque style after a fire in 1124. Much admired in the Renaissance, its dome collapsed in 1573 and was rebuilt with the current cloister vault.[Hou. 4]​ Documentary evidence indicates that the Romanesque dome of San Lorenzo was a thin hemisphere of light material over a cubic space of about (40 braccia Milanese) on a side. The dome was supported by four corner squinches that rested on the four exedrae arches of the square space with another eight smaller squinches between each of them to create a sixteen-sided base. It was covered on the outside by a cylindrical or polygonal drum and a wooden roof. The outer drum was probably polygonal, with eight or sixteen sides, and had two tiers of dwarf galleries beneath a row of hanging arches. In the eastern corner towers of the building there remains evidence of flying buttresses that would extend diagonally to the drum. The existence of a small lantern at the top of the dome is uncertain and the date the dome was completed is unknown.[57]​.

• - The ancient cathedral of Brescia").

• - Interior of Brescia.

• - Basilica of San Lorenzo "Basilica di San Lorenzo (Milan)") in Milan.

In southern Italy, then largely dependent on the county of Apulia and Calabria), the Basilica of San Sabino in Canosa di Puglia was built around 1080 with five domes in a "T-shaped design", with three domes in the transept and another two in the nave.[Sch. 5]​ Its cruciform plan, use of domes and the later addition of an external mausoleum suggest that it may have been a Norman analogue of the Byzantine church of the Holy Apostles. It appears to have inspired a series of churches in Apulia with domed naves.[58] The date of construction has been questioned as being decades too late. The multi-domed churches of Cyprus have been proposed as inspiration for the domes of the basilica and for the three-domed naves of later churches in the region, dating mainly from the period of Norman rule, but this is also a topic of debate. San Benedetto in Conversano&action=edit&redlink=1 "Monastero di San Benedetto (Conversano) (not yet drafted)"), the Ognissanti of Valenzano&action=edit&redlink=1 "Church of Ognissanti (Valenzano) (not yet drafted)"), San Francesco in Trani&action=edit&redlink=1 "Church of San Francesco (Trani) (not yet redacted)") and the cathedral of San Corrado in Molfetta") were built in the 11th to 13th centuries with domes on pendentives. San Corrado also incorporates "horn-shaped niches" between the pendentives and the drums in two of its three domes.[59]​.

In France, the centuries-old cathedral of Le Puy-en-Velay uses an unusual row of six octagonal domes on squinches to cover its nave, the domes at the western end being at least a century later than those at the eastern end. A seventh dome is located in the normal position of a Romanesque dome on squinches: above the transept. Other examples of this use on ships are rare and scattered. One is the great church of Saint Hilary the Great in Poitiers, which appears to have been influenced by Le Puy's own cathedral. In 1130, its wide nave was narrowed with additional pillars to form proper square bays, which were roofed with octagonal domes whose corner sides on trumpet squinches were so narrow that the domes resemble square cloister vaults with chamfered corners.[60]

The oldest large French dome is believed to be the pendentive dome built c. 1075 over the transept of the collegiate church of St. Martin in Angers. It reportedly incorporates "pottery" into its structure, a technique used in the late Roman period.[Co. 1]​.

The dome over the transept of the abbey church of Tournus rests on squinches and may date from the 17th century. The Basilica of Saint-Martin d'Ainay") has similar features. The largest church in France at the time was that of Cluny Abbey, but it has been destroyed.[61] The surviving arm of the southern transept, built at the turn of the century, has an octagonal dome on squinches under an octagonal tower and spire and is flanked on both sides by barrel vaults.[62] The cathedral of Autun has a nave arrangement similar to that of Cluny Abbey.[63]​.

In Auvergne, there are several Romanesque churches with domed transepts using squinches, the domes being supported by 'flying screen' walls in the transept section and hidden on the outside under octagonal "shouldered" towers with buttresses on either side. Examples are the church of Notre-Dame de Saint-Saturnin and the abbey of Sainte-Marie de Cruas"), which has a rotunda over the domed transept.[64] In the cathedral of Avignon, probably from the middle of the century, the rectangular section of the transept is narrowed to a square by means of two sets of four arches on opposite sides to provide a dome on squinches.[65]​.

• - The six octagonal domes on squinches of the nave of the cathedral of Le Puy-en-Velay.

• - Dome over the choir in San Hilario el Grande.

• - Dome of the tower of the transept of Saint Martin of Angers").

• - Dome of the transept of the church of Notre-Dame de Saint-Saturnin.

• - Dome of Sainte-Marie de Cruas.

The Crusades and the Reconquest

The Crusades, which began in 1095, also appear to have influenced domed architecture in Western Europe, particularly in the areas around the Mediterranean Sea.[66] The Mausoleum of Bohemond (ca. 1111–1118), a Norman leader of the First Crusade, was built adjacent to the Basilica of San Sabino in the province of Apulia, southern Italy, and has a Byzantine-style hemispherical dome on a square building. with a Greek cross plan.[Hou. 5] The Baptistery of Padua is believed to have been built simultaneously with the 1120 reconstruction of Padua Cathedral, a revision of the traditional founding date of 1260. It has a dome on pendentives spanning a square space of , with a small altar chapel across the east wall. It served as a model for the later Old Sacristy of San Lorenzo.[67]​.

The Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem appears to have had a wooden dome of two leaves or shells until the 17th century, with some interruptions. After controlling the city, the Crusaders added a domed choir to the side of the existing rotunda.[68] A French Romanesque addition replaced the rotunda's eastern apse and a courtyard marking the center of the world and was consecrated on July 15, 1149, the fiftieth anniversary of the city's capture. The diameter of the new dome was half that of the rotunda and rested on four pointed arches on four pillars. It served as the coronation site of the Crusader kings of Jerusalem.[69]​

The rotunda itself was covered by a conical structure from the 19th to the early 19th century. The Baptistery of Pisa was built in 1153 with a truncated cone in clear imitation of the Holy Sepulchre; and an exterior dome was added in the 17th century. The domed baptisteries of Cremona (1176) and Parma (1196) also seem to have been influenced by the rotunda.[Kra. 6]​ The rotunda of the Holy Sepulcher of the century in Santo Stefano&action=edit&redlink=1 "Santo Stefano (Bologna) (not yet redacted)"), Bologna, and the basilica of Neuvy-Saint-Sépulchre are imitations of the church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, although, like many of the imitations in Europe, they differ in their details, including their domes.[Kra. 7].

The Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem were taken by the Crusaders as models to represent the Temple of Solomon and Solomon's Palace, respectively. The Knights Templar, who had their headquarters at the site, built a series of central-plan churches throughout Europe inspired by the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, with the Dome of the Rock also being an influence.[70] Examples include the Church of the True Cross. "Iglesia de la Vera Cruz (Segovia)") in Segovia, the church of the convent of Christ in Tomar, a rotunda church in Paris destroyed during the French Revolution, and the Temple church "Iglesia del Temple (London)") in London. The church of Saint Mary of Eunate was originally a pilgrim funerary church, rather than a Templar church, but may have been influenced by them.[Co.

Kingdom of Sicily

The domed Christian basilicas built in Sicily after the Norman Conquest also incorporate distinctly Islamic architectural elements. They include hemispherical domes located directly in front of the apses, similar to the common positioning in mosques of domes directly in front of the mihrabs, and the domes use four squinches for support, much like the Islamic domes of the Maghreb and Egypt. In other cases, the domes show Byzantine influences with tall drums, attached columns and blind arcades.[90] The influence of the domed mosques of the Aghlabids has been cited to explain the design of the domes. Representative examples of North African Islamic domes can be seen at the Al-Hakim Mosque and the Great Mosque of Susa.[91]​.

Domes were used in a variety of compositions and were often not the center or focus of the architecture. In the region of Val Demone"), its churches of Santa Maria di Mili") (1090, but rebuilt in the restored in 1172) are well preserved. The three domes on squinches of Santa Maria in Mili San Pietro, one of the first Norman buildings, are together in a row above the prosthesis "Prothesis (architecture)"), chancel and the diaconicon, with the largest and tallest in the middle. The church of San Pietro in Itala has a central tower-shaped dome. two domes, with a smaller eight-sided umbrella dome with muqarnas-like supports in the space before the altar and a larger squinched umbrella dome over the nave.[92]​ The dome over the nave has a circular base and the dome over the altar has an octagonal base.[93]​.

Examples in Palermo are the Cappella Palatina (1132-1143), La Martorana (ca. 1140s) and Zisa Palace (17th century).[94]​[95]​ The church of San Giovanni degli Eremiti has five domes in a T-shaped arrangement and the church of San Cataldo (1154-1160) has three domes on squinches, and both show a clear influence Islamic.[Sch. 7].

All these churches are part of the "Arab-Norman Palermo and the cathedrals of Cefalú and Monreale", a UNESCO World Heritage Site.[96]

• - Domes in Palermo, Sicily.

• - Cappella Palatina (1132-1143), Palermo.

• - La Martorana (ca. 1140s).

• - Church of Santissima Trinità of the Zisa palace.

• - The five domes of the church of San Giovanni degli Eremiti.

• - Church of San Cataldo (1154-1160).

North Africa, Syria and Al-Jazira

The so-called shrine of Imam al-Dawr in the village of al-Dawr), Iraq, is the earliest known example of a muqarnas dome, although it is unlikely to have been the first of its kind. The dome rests on an octagonal base created by four squinches on a square span. Three tiers of muqarnas rise above this and are covered by a small dome. The muqarnas cells are very large and resemble small squinches. It was completed in 1090 by the court of an Uqaylid vassal") of the Abbasid caliphate of Baghdad and, although there are no surviving examples in Baghdad from that time, the large number of muqarnas domes known to exist there in the late Middle Ages suggests that it may have been the source of the type.[97]

In Islamic North Africa, there are several early muqarna domes dating from the 17th century. The first may be an Almoravid restoration from between 1135 and 1140 of a series of stucco muqarna domes over the axial nave of the mosque of Qarawiyyin in Fez. The existence of a near-contemporaneous example from 1154 in the Maristan of Nur al-din in Damascus, Syria, and the earlier example of a muqarna dome in al-Dawr, Iraq, suggests that the style would reach imported from Baghdad.[98]​.

Most examples of muqarna domes are found in Iraq and Al-Jazira, dating from the middle of the century to the Mongol invasion. The use of stucco to form the muqarnas pattern, suspended by a wooden frame from the outer vault, was the least common in Iraq, although it will be very popular in North Africa and Spain. However, because its construction required the use of two shells, the window arrangement was restricted to the bases of the domes. Even so, they were frequently used in this type. In Iraq, the most common form was a single brick shell, with the reverse of the interior pattern visible on the outside. Examples of this type are the mausoleum of Nur al-Din in Damascus (1172) and the shrine of Zumurrud Khatun in Baghdad. A third type is found only in Mosul since the beginning of the 19th century. It has a pyramidal brick roof, usually covered with green glazed tiles. Of the five surviving examples, the most successful is that of the shrine of Awn al-Din, which uses small colored tiles to cover the cells of [99]

The architecture of Syria and Al Jazira includes the widest variety of forms in the medieval Islamic world, influenced by surviving architecture from Late Antiquity, contemporary Christian buildings, and Eastern Islamic architecture. There are some muqarna domes of the Iraqi type, but most domes are slightly pointed hemispheres on muqarna pendentives or double zones of squinches and masonry, rather than brick and plaster. Domes cover single-span buildings or are only part of larger buildings. The Syrian mausoleums consist of a square stone chamber with a single entrance and a mihrab and a lobed brick dome with two rows of squinches. The dome in the Silvan Mosque "Silvan (Turkey)"), wide and built between 1152 and 1157, has an unusual design similar to the dome added to the Friday Mosque of Isfahan in 1086-1087: once surrounded by roofless corridors on three sides, it may have been designed to be a free-standing building. The congregational mosque in Kızıltepe, with its well-integrated dome of about , is the masterpiece of Artúquid architecture.[Bl. 3]​.

Late Romanesque and early Gothic Europe

The use of domes declined in Western Europe with the rise of Gothic architecture.[100] Gothic domes were uncommon due to the use of groin vaults over the naves, and because the transepts of churches were generally reserved for a tall bell tower, although there are examples of small octagonal cross domes in cathedrals such as the style developed from the Romanesque.[SHD. 4]​ The domes of Romanesque and early Gothic Latin cross churches rarely extend beyond the width of the nave.[101]​.

Spaces with a circular or octagonal plan were sometimes covered with "double head" style vaults, similar to the vaulting of the head apse in Gothic cathedrals. The transept of Saint Nicholas in Blois") is an example,[82]​ as are those of the cathedral of Worms and the cathedral of Coutances.[102]​ The ribbed dome in the transept on horns of the church of Saint Peter "Iglesia de San Pedro (Ávila)") in Ávila (Spain) "Ávila (Spain)"), from the 1st century, is another.[103]​ The dome of the cathedral of Tarragona was built in the French Gothic style and includes alternating sets of three and four windows at the base.[104] The "Decagon" domed nave of the Basilica of St. Gereon, in Cologne, Germany, covered a ten-sided oval-shaped space between 1219 and 1227, resting on the low walls preserved from an ancient Roman mausoleum of the 17th century. above the floor, covering an oval area of length and width.[Hou. 6]​ It is unique among the twelve Romanesque basilicas of Cologne, and in European architecture in general, and may have been the largest dome built in that period in Western Europe until the completion of the dome of the cathedral of Florence.[105][106] Later examples are the domes of the Pazzi chapel in Florence (c. 1420), of the cathedral of Évreux (second half of the century), the Cathedral of the Savior of Zaragoza (after 1500), and the Cathedral of Burgos (completed in 1568).[107] To house the royal tombs at the Batalha monastery in Portugal, an octagonal Gothic dome 65 feet in diameter was planned, but was never completed.[108]

• - gallon dome of the Pazzi chapel (1441-1478, unfinished).

• - Dome of Évreux Cathedral (second half of the 15th century).

• - La Seo Dome (Zaragoza).

• - Detail of the virtuosity of the dome of the Cathedral of Burgos (1539-1568), work of Juan de Vallejo.

In Italy, the dome of Siena Cathedral had an exposed profile as early as 1224, and this feature was preserved in its reconstruction around 1260.[Sm. 4]​ The dome has two shells and was completed in 1264. It stands on an irregular hexagon wide with squinches to form a twelve-sided irregular base.[109]​ A large dome has never before been built over a hexagonal transept.[110]​ The current lantern dates from the century and the current outer dome is a replacement from the century.[111]​ An octagonal dome for Florence Cathedral may have been part of Arnolfo's original design di Cambio for the church, construction of which began in 1296.[112] The Basilica of Saint Anthony of Padua was built between 1231 and 1300, at the beginning of the period of Italian Gothic architecture, and features seven domes with a mix of Gothic and Byzantine elements. Similar to the Basilica of Saint Mark in Venice, its nave, transepts, transept and the intermediate section before the choir are covered by domes on pendentives in the Byzantine style. Externally, the transept dome is covered with a conical spire. The choir dome, which may be later than the others, is uniquely rib Gothic.[113] An eighth dome covers the attached Relics Chapel, adjacent to the choir dome. The masonry domes are covered externally by wooden structures and several were repaired after a lightning strike in 1347 and a fire in 1748. The two closest to the façade may be in their original state. of Saint John and Saint Paul (Venice)") in Venice was built between 1333 and 1430 and features a domed transept with Byzantine and Romanesque influences, like the domed Romanesque cathedrals of the Po Valley plain.[116]

Spain

Star-shaped domes are found in the Moorish Alhambra palace in Granada, Spain, which has domed audience halls built to reflect celestial constellations. The Hall of the Abencerrajes (c. 1333-1391) and the Hall of the Two Sisters (c. 1333-1354) are extraordinarily developed examples of domes with muqarnas, taking the tradition of the horn in Islamic architecture from a functional element in the transition zone to a highly ornamental covering for the dome itself. The structural elements of these two domes are actually brick vaults, but they are completely covered by intricate muqarnas stalactites. The lace, star-shaped transept dome of Burgos Cathedral (1567) may have been inspired by these examples, in addition to those built over the octagonal chapel of the Condestable Cathedral (1482-1494) in the Gothic style.[SHD. 4]​.

In the Mudejar style of Seville after the Christian reconquest of the city, a type of dome made of intricately interlocking pieces of painted and gilded wood was known as a half-orange. The most famous example covers the throne room of the Hall of Ambassadors in the Royal Palace Complex of Seville, a 15-wide space built in 1427.[121]

Mamluk Sultanate

In the first half of the century, stone blocks replaced bricks as the main building material in dome construction in Mamluk Egypt, and brick domes were only 20% of those built around 1322. Over the course of 250 years, around 400 domes were built in Cairo to cover the tombs of Mamluk sultans and emirs. Although they maintained approximately the same proportions, the change from brick to stone is also associated with an increase in the dimensions of the section to be covered and in the average height of approximately , and with a decrease in the thickness of the domes. Stone domes generally have a diameter and a height. The mausoleum of Farag Ibn Barquq (1398-1411) is an exceptional case, with a dome of width and height.[122]​.

Stone domes are generally single shells except in the conical crown, where there is a space between the inner and outer layers filled with earth and rubble and housing the bases of the metal spiers. Double-shell domes were rare, an example being that of the Al-Sultanyya Madrasa of 1360. The domes were built in circular rings, with sizes decreasing towards the top and, because of this, it was possible that they did not require elaborate centering. The collapsed remains of some domes have revealed the existence of a layer of brick beneath the outer layer of stone, which could have supported and aligned the heavier stone during construction. Although the first stone domes do not have them, horizontal connections between ashlar stone blocks were introduced in the 19th century, such as the dovetail-shaped teak domes used in the mausoleum of Farag Ibn Barquq. The profiles of the domes were varied, with "keel-shaped", bulbous, ogee, stilt domes and others used. On the drum, externally the angles were chamfered, or sometimes stepped, and triple windows in a tri-lobed arrangement were used on the faces.[Hi. 4]​.

The decoration of these early stone domes was initially the same external rib as on earlier brick domes, and such brick domes would continue to be built throughout the Mamluk period, although more elaborate carving patterns were introduced at the turn of the century. Early stone domes were externally rendered when they had not been carved with sufficient precision, but improvements in technique over time would make that unnecessary. Spiral ribs were developed in the 1370s and zigzag patterns were developed both at the end of the century and again at the end of the century. In the 19th century, interlocking designs of stars and flowers were used in a mosaic pattern. The uniqueness of the pattern used on the dome of a mausoleum helped associate that dome with the individual buried there.[124]

The twin domes of the Sultaniyya complex (c. 1360) and the narrow dome of Yunus al-Dawadar (c. 1385) are unusual in that they have muqarnas at the base of their outer ribs, a characteristic of ribbed domes in Persia. The first example of a zigzag pattern appears on the dome of Mahmud al-Kurdi (1394-1395), and at least fourteen later domes also used it. The first example of a dome in Cairo with a star pattern is that of the mausoleum of al-Ashraf Barsbay"). The Qaytbay dome in the northern cemetery of Cairo combines geometric and arabesque patterns&action=edit&redlink=1 "Arabesque (Islamic art) (not yet drafted)") and is one of the most successful.[125] Miniaturized and pointed versions, which were used row by row over the entire enlarged area and bordered above and below by flat surfaces.[Hi. 5]​ Bulbous domes on minarets were used in Egypt from 1330, spreading to Syria in the following century.[126]​.

Italy

Domes visible from the outside were common in Tuscany and were a source of regional distinction in the 1380s.[Sm. 5]​ The exterior dome of the Baptistery of Pisa was built in the century on a previous interior conical roof.[Kra. 8] If an external lantern was also removed from Pisa Cathedral in the 1300s, exposing the dome, one reason may have been to keep up with more recent projects in the region, such as the domed cathedrals of Siena and Florence.[Sm. 5] Rapid progress on a radical expansion of Siena Cathedral, which would have involved replacing the existing dome with a larger one, was halted shortly after the city was hit by an outbreak of the Black Death in 1348. Its dome was originally crowned with a copper orb, similar to that of the dome of Pisa today, but it was replaced in 1385 by a dome surmounted by a smaller sphere and cross.[128]

Only a few years after the city of Siena decided to abandon the major expansion and redesign of its cathedral in 1355, Florence decided to expand its own.[129]​ In 1357, a plan for the dome of Florence Cathedral was established.[Sm. 5] However, in 1367 it was proposed to alter the plan of the church at the eastern end to increase the scale of the octagonal dome, enlarging it from 62 to 72 braccia, with the intention of further surpassing the domes of Pisa and Siena, and this modified plan was ratified in 1368, under the master builder Francesco Talenti.[130] The construction guilds of Florence had sworn adhere to the model of the dome created in 1367, with a pointed "quinto acuto" profile, but the scale of this new dome was so ambitious that the experts of the Opera del Duomo, the board that supervised the construction, expressed as early as 1394 the opinion that the dome could not be realized.[131] Discussion in the century revolved mainly around the cost of the project and, secondly, about the style.[112]​ The expanded dome would span the entire width of the three naves, only less than that of the Roman Pantheon, the largest dome in the world.[Sch. 9]​ And because the distances between the angles of the octagon were even further apart, a , the middle span of the dome would be marginally wider than that of the Pantheon.[132]​ The 144 braccia, the height of the dome, would evoke the sacred number of the heavenly Jerusalem mentioned in the Book of Revelation. By 1413, the eastern end of the church had been completed up to the octagonal drum with windows, except for one of the three apses, but the problem of building the great dome still had no solution.[Sch. 9]​ In 1417, with the drum already completed, the master builder in charge of the project retired and in August 1418 a competition was called for projects on how to build the dome.[133][134]​.

Brunelleschi's dome, designed in 1418, follows the height and shape ordered in 1367. Filippo Brunelleschi and Lorenzo Ghiberti were named joint leaders of the project to build the dome of Florence Cathedral in 1420. Brunelleschi's plan to use suspended scaffolding for the workers triumphed over alternatives such as building a temporary stone support column in the center of the transept or to fill all the space under the dome with earth. The octagonal brick vault was built between 1420 and 1436, with Ghiberti resigning in 1433.[Sch. 10]​ The dome can be described as a cloister vault, the eight ribs concentrating the weight at the angles on the supporting pillars.[Hou. 7]​ The dome is wide and made of two leaves or shells.[Sch. 9]​ A staircase winds between them. Eight external ribs of white stone mark the edges of the eight sides, next to the red tile roof, and extend from the base of the drum to the base of the dome. Each of the eight sides of the dome also conceals a pair of intermediate stone ribs that are connected to the main ribs by a series of masonry rings. A temporary wooden tension ring near the bottom of the dome is still preserved. Three horizontal chains of sandstone blocks notched together and reinforced with lead-coated iron staples also extend to the entire circumference of the dome: one at the base (where the radial struts of this chain protrude outward), one one-third up, and a third two-thirds the way up.[133]

The Netherlands of northwestern Europe

In the 2nd century, pilgrimages and flourishing trade relations with the Near East exposed the northwestern European Netherlands to the use of bulbous domes in Eastern architecture. Although the first expressions of its European use are in the backgrounds of paintings, architectural uses continued. The Dome of the Rock and its bulbous dome are so prominent in Jerusalem, that the domes apparently became associated by visitors with the city itself. In Bruges, the Church of the Holy Cross&action=edit&redlink=1 "Jeruzalemkerk (Brugge) (not yet drawn up)"), designed to symbolize the Holy Sepulcher, was completed with a Gothic church tower surmounted by a bulbous dome over a hexagonal recess in 1428. Sometime between 1466 and 1500, a tower added to the Basilica of the Holy Blood in Bruges was covered by a dome bulbous very similar to Syrian minarets. Similarly, in Ghent, an octagonal stair tower for the church of St. Martin of Ackerghem, built at the beginning of the 19th century, has a bulbous dome like a minaret. These domes were made of wood covered with copper, as were examples on turrets and towers in the Netherlands at the turn of the century, many of which have been lost. The earliest surviving example from the Netherlands is the bulbous dome built in 1511 over the town hall of Middelburg. Multi-story spiers with truncated bulbous domes supporting smaller domes or crowns became popular in the following decades.[152]​.

• - History of early and simple domes").

• - History of domes of the early modern period.

• - History of the domes of the modern period").

• - This work contains a translation derived from «History of Medieval Arabic and Western European domes» from Wikipedia in English, published by its editors under the GNU Free Documentation License and the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Post-Roman areas

Although the chronology is uncertain for some examples, domes continued to be built in Italy throughout the Middle Ages. Dome construction appears to have stopped in the city of Rome in the middle of the century, but there are dozens of Italian examples outside Rome from the following centuries.[1] Continuing from late antiquity, domes were built in the early Middle Ages. on centralized buildings such as baptisteries and martyria.[2]​ Some of the domed baptisteries built in the century in Italy are the baptistery of Albenga") and those of Canosa di Puglia and Nocera Superiore.[3]​ Other examples of the use of domes appear in the sanctuary of San Prosdocimo in the abbey of Santa Giustina in Padua (century), the basilica of San Leucio in Canosa") (century), the basilica of San Salvatore in Spoleto "Church of San Salvador (Spoleto)") (from the end of the century) and that of the Chiesa di Sant'Ilario a Port'Aurea in Benevento (at the latest in the century).[4]​.

Seventeen years after the deposition of the last Western Roman emperor, Theodoric the Great will be the Ostrogothic king of Italy. His construction projects largely continued existing architectural conventions. His Arian Baptistery in Ravenna (ca. 500), for example, echoes the Neonian Baptistery built earlier.[5] Both baptisteries are octagonal buildings with pyramidal roofs that conceal the interior domes. Theodoric's mausoleum, however, was already understood by contemporaries as a notable work.[5]​ Begun in 520, the wide dome over the mausoleum was carved from a single 440-ton limestone slab and was laid sometime between 522 and 526.[6]​ The saucer shape of the monolithic dome, estimated to be more than Istrian stone, may have been chosen for avoid radial cracks.[7] It is believed that the twelve supports carved as an external part of the dome would be used to maneuver the piece and place it in place. The choice of large limestone blocks for the structure is important as the most common building material in the West at the time was brick. It is likely that foreign craftsmen were brought to Ravenna to build the structure, possibly from Syria, where such stonework was used in contemporary buildings.[6]​.

The area of ​​Syria and Palestine "Palestine (region)") has a long tradition of domestic architecture, including wooden domes in shapes described as "conoid", or similar to the cones/tops of a pine tree. When Muslim Arab forces "conquered the region, they employed local craftsmen for their buildings and, by the end of the 19th century, the dome began to become an architectural symbol of Islam itself. The speed of this adoption was probably aided by the Arab religious traditions, which predate Islam, of both domed structures to cover the burial sites of ancestors and the use of a round tented tabernacle, with a dome made of red leather, to house the idols.[8]​ Early versions of bulbous domes can be seen in mosaic illustrations in Syria dating from the Umayyad period. They were used to cover large buildings in Syria after the 19th century.[9]​.

• - Albenga Baptistery.

• - Nocera Baptistery.

• - San Salvatore of Spoleto.

• - Oratory of San Prosdocimo in the Basilica di Santa Giustina, Padua.

Umayyad Caliphate

The Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem, the oldest surviving Islamic building, was completed in 691 by the Umayyad caliph Abd Al-Malik.[10] Its design was that of a ciborium "Cyborium (architecture)") or reliquary, as was common in the Byzantine martyria and in the main Christian churches of the city.[11] The rotunda of the nearby Church of the Holy Sepulchre, in In particular, it has a similar design and almost the same dimensions.[12]​ The building is known to have burned down in the century and was later rebuilt, which would make it one of the oldest wooden buildings in the world.[13]​ The dome, a double wooden shell design, has a diameter.[Gra. 1]​ The bulbous shape of the dome "probably dates from the 11th century".[9]​ Since 1958 several restorations have been carried out to address the structural damage, which have involved extensive replacement of tiles, mosaics, ceilings and walls such that "almost everything one sees in this wonderful building was placed there in the second half of the 20th century", but without significant changes to its original form and structure. It is currently covered in gold aluminum.[Gra. 2]​.

In addition to religious sanctuaries, domes were used over the audience halls and throne rooms of the Umayyad palaces, and as part of porches, pavilions, fountains, towers, and bathtubs. Combining the architectural features of Byzantine and Sassanian architecture, the domes were supported on pendentives and squinches and were made in a wide variety of shapes and materials. In the center of the city-palace of Baghdad was a dome and, in a similar but smaller scale, there are literary accounts of a domed audience hall in Abu Muslim's palace at Merv, at the meeting point of four arranged iwans. according to the cardinal directions.[Gra. 3]​[Hi. 1]​.

Muslim palaces included domed halls as early as the 19th century, long before domes became common features of mosque architecture. The Khirbat al-Minya palace from the turn of the century included a domed entrance gate. The palace of Qusair Mushatta and a century palace at Samarra also had domed throne rooms. A domed structure covered a shallow pool in the main courtyard of the mid-century Khirbat al-Mafjar palace. Similar examples in mosques, such as the domed fountains in the mosque of Ibn Tulun (destroyed in 987 and replaced by a different building, in Maarrat al-Numan), in Nishapur, Tripoli and in the mosque of Damascus seem to be related to this element of palace architecture, although they were later used as part of ritual ablution. [Gra. 4]​.

The caldaria of the early Islamic bath complexes at Amra, Sarraj and Anjar were roofed with stone or brick domes.[14]​ The caldarium of the early Islamic bath at Qusair Amra has "the best preserved complete decoration of an astronomical dome", a decorative idea that was used on bath domes for a long time in the Islamic world.[15]​ Since 1985, it has been a World Heritage Site.[16]​.

The provision of a dome in front of the mihrab of a mosque probably began with the reconstruction of the Prophet's Mosque in Medina by the Umayyad Caliph Al-Walid. This would probably emphasize the place of the ruler, although the domes would eventually become focal points of architectural decoration and composition or indicate the direction of prayer. Later developments of this arrangement incorporated more axially oriented domes with the mihrab dome.[Gra. 5] Byzantine workmen built the Umayyad Mosque of Damascus and its hemispherical dome for al Walid in 705. The dome rests on an octagonal base formed by squinches.[17] The dome, called the "eagle dome" or "gable dome", was originally made of wood but nothing remains of it. It is assumed that it rested on large transverse beams.[18]​.

Byzantine influence in Europe

Italian church architecture from the turn of the century to the end of the century was less influenced by Constantinople trends than by a variety of Byzantine provincial plans.[19] In Italy, there appears to have been a decline in the frequency of dome construction between the 8th and 10th centuries.[20]

With the coronation of Charlemagne as the new Roman emperor, those influences were largely replaced by a revival of earlier Western building traditions. Specific exceptions are the early quincunx churches in Milan and near Cassino.[Kra. 1]​ The extensive Byzantine use of domes on spherical pendentives after the 2nd century influenced Carolingian architecture of the 2nd and 2nd centuries. Remains of spherical pendentives have been found in the Germigny-des-Prés oratory.[21]​.

Charlemagne's Palatine Chapel "Palatine Chapel (Aachen)") has a domed octagon design influenced by Byzantine models such as the Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna, the Church of Sergius and Bacchus in Constantinople, and perhaps the Chrysotriklinos or "golden reception hall" of the Great Palace of Constantinople.[22][23] It has also been proposed that they were the descriptions of travelers returning from the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem, thought to have been Solomon's Temple, which served as a model.[24] It was built in his palace in Aachen between 789 and its consecration "Consecration (ceremony)") was in 805. The architect is believed to have been Eudes of Metz, although the quality of the ashlar construction has led to speculation about the work of masons. external.[22]​ The octagonal dome measures in width and height. It was the largest dome north of the Alps at the time. The dimensions of the octagonal space coincide with those of the octagonal chapel of San Aquilino of the century in the Basilica of San Lorenzo "Basilica di San Lorenzo (Milan)") in Milan. The later central-plan church of St. Michael's Cemetery&action=edit&redlink=1 "St. Michael's Church (Fulda) (not yet drafted)") in Fulda was similar to the Aachen chapel, although simpler.[25]​[26]​ The chapel inspired copies in the century and remained a "focal point of German royalty." The dome was rebuilt after a fire in 1656 and the interior decoration dates from around 1900.[Hou. 1] There are several copies that have been made of the Palatine chapel, such as a church of St. Peter and St. Paul in Ottmarsheim, a St. Nicholas chapel in Nijmegen&action=edit&redlink=1 "Sint-Nicolaaskapel (Nijmegen) (not yet drawn up)") and the Westbau of the Essen Minster.[27]​.

Venice, southern Italy, and Sicily served as Italian outposts of Middle Byzantine architectural influence. Venice's close mercantile ties to the Byzantine Empire resulted in the architecture of that city and its surroundings being a mix of Byzantine and northern Italian influences, although nothing over the centuries has survived except the foundations of the first Basilica of St. Mark.[Kra. 2] This building was presumably similar to Justinian's Church of the Holy Apostles based on its design, but how it was roofed is unknown. [Kra. 3]​.

Al-Andalus and North Africa

Much of the Muslim architecture of al-Andalus was lost when the mosques were replaced by Christian churches after the 2nd century, but the use of domes in the surviving Mozarabic churches of the century—such as the paneled dome in the church of Santo Tomás de las Ollas or the lobed dome in the monastery of San Miguel de Escalada—probably reflect contemporary use in mosque architecture.[31] The great mosque of Córdoba, begun in 785 under the last of the Umayyad caliphs, it was expanded by Al-Hakam II between 961 and 976 to include four domes and a remodeled mihrab. The central dome, facing the mihrab area, transitions from a square recess with decorative squinches to eight overlapping and intersecting arches that surround and support a scalloped dome.[SHD. 1] These cross-arch domes are the earliest known examples of the type and, although their possible origins in Persia or elsewhere in the East remain a matter of debate, their complexity suggests that there must have been earlier examples. The nine openings of the Cristo de la Luz mosque, built some 50 years later, are a virtual catalog of variations of the crossed arch dome. After the 17th century, examples can also be found in Armenia and Persia.[32]​.

The roof of the Great Mosque of Kairouan (also called the Uqba Mosque), built in the first half of the 19th century, has ribbed domes at each end of its central nave. The dome in front of the mihrab rests on an octagonal drum with slightly concave sides.[33][34] After the 19th century, mosques in North Africa frequently had a small decorative dome over the mihrab. Sometimes more domes are used in the corners of the mihrab wall and in the entrance recess. The square towers of the two- or more-story minarets are crowned by small domes. Examples are the Great Mosque of Sfax in Tunisia (founded in the 17th century and expanded), the mosque of Djamaa el Kebir (probably from the 17th century) and the Great Mosque of Tlemcen (1303). In Cairo, the martyrium of Sharif Tabataba (943), an open pavilion with nine domes, is the first mausoleum&action=edit&redlink=1 "Mazar (mausoleum) (not yet written)") whose plan has survived. The most common type, however, was a small domed cube.[Bl. 2]​.

The Fatimids conquered Egypt from North Africa in 969 and established a new architectural style for their new caliphate.[36] The first Fatimid mosque, Al-Azhar), was similar to the earlier mosque of Ibn Tulun, but introduced domed sections at both ends of the qibla wall, in addition to the dome in front of the mihrab, and this arrangement was later repeated among North African mosques. Later modifications to the mosque have changed their original shape.[37]​ The use of corner squinches to support domes became widespread in Islamic architecture in the 19th and 18th centuries.[Kra. 5]​.

Egypt, along with northeastern Iran, was one of two areas notable for early developments in Islamic mausoleums, beginning in the 19th century.[Gra. 6] Fatimid mausoleums, many of which have survived in Aswan and Cairo, were mostly simple square buildings covered by a dome. The domes were smooth or ribbed and had a characteristic Fatimid "keel"-shaped profile.[38] The first were built in Fustat and its surroundings. Those inside the city were decorated with carved stucco and contrasted with the extreme simplicity of those outside the city, such as the four square domes of Sab'a Banat (c. 1010). Those of Aswan, mostly from the 17th century, are more developed, with ribbed domes, with star-shaped openings and octagonal drums with concave outer sides that project outwards at the top. They also vary in plan, with domes sometimes joined with barrel vaults or with other domed mausoleums of different dimensions. The Fatimid mausoleum at Qus is in this Aswan style.[Hi. 2]​.

Hispanic brand

The so-called first Romanesque of churches at the beginning of the century included examples in Spain with domes on squinches. The domes are usually dark and sometimes included small windows at the base.[41] The church of Santa María de Ripoll was consecrated in 1032, but was rebuilt after a fire in 1835. The church of Sant Miquel in Cruïlles was consecrated in 1035 and has a dome in its transept covered on the outside by a drum and a low square tower.[42] The church of San Vicente de Cardona was built around 1040 and there is another example in Corbera. It is possible that the church at Corbera was not intended to have a dome when the foundations were laid and that the bay was narrowed to create a square by inserting additional arches on the north and south sides. The dome was covered on the outside by a square bell tower.[41]​ The small church of Sant Pau del Camp in Barcelona has a central dome and triabsidial layout similar to the churches of Eastern Christianity.[43]​.

East-West Schism

The schism between the churches of Constantinople and Rome (1054) was reflected in the architecture. The Greek cross-plan churches and domes of Byzantine architecture were in areas of Byzantine cultural influence.[44]​ The domed church of San Giovanni a Mare&action=edit&redlink=1 "San Giovanni a Mare (Gaeta) (not yet redacted)") in Gaeta may have been built in the second half of the century.[45]​ The oldest extant French major dome is believed to be the dome on pendentives built in 1075 on the transept of the Collegiate Church of St. Martin in Angers"). It reportedly incorporates "pottery" into its structure, a technique used in the late Roman period.

Domes in Romanesque architecture are generally found within the towers erected above the transept, at the intersection of the nave and transept of a church, which conceals them externally.[SHD. 2] Called tiburium, this tower-shaped element often had a blind arcade near the roof. Romanesque domes are typically octagonal in plan and use corner squinches to transition between a square recess and a proper octagonal base. They were built in southern Europe in the 2nd centuries and there are hundreds of examples under transept towers in churches in Spain and southern France.

Octagonal cloister vaults appear, between 1050 and 1100, "in relation to basilicas in almost all of Europe."[48]​ The precise shape differs from one region to another.[SHD. 2]​ They were popular in medieval Italy, in brick.[Hou. 2]​ In Italy, the frequency, quality and size of dome construction increased from the century onwards (although not in the city of Rome) and they were used in baptisteries, princely chapels, cathedrals, bell towers and pieve churches.[49]​.

The Veneto region was strongly influenced by the architecture of Constantinople in the 19th century. On the island of Torcello, the octagonal Greek cross style was used in the plan of the church of Santa Fosca (Torcello)&action=edit&redlink=1 "Church of Santa Fosca (Torcello) (not yet written)").[50]​

In Venice, the second and current St. Mark's Basilica was built on the site of the first between 1063 and 1072, replacing the previous church while replicating its Greek cross plan. Five domes cover the interior (one over the four arms of the cross and one in the center). These domes were built in the Byzantine style, in imitation of the now lost Church of the Holy Apostles in Constantinople. Mounted on pendentives, each dome has a ring of windows at its base.[51] These five windowed domes reflect the addition of windows (within tall drums) in the remodeled Byzantine original. However, the tall outer shells at St. Mark's were not added until after the Fourth Crusade (1204).[Kra. 3] Later tall wooden exterior domes with lead roofs and cupolas were added to St. Mark's Basilica between 1210 and 1270, allowing the church to be seen from a great distance.[51] In addition to displaying a more imposing exterior, the construction of two distinct shells in one dome improved its protection from the elements. It was a rare practice before the 19th century.[52] Fluted and onion domes may have been added in the middle of the century to complement the ogee arches added to the façade in the late Gothic period. Its shape may have been influenced by the open, domed wooden pavilions of Persia or by other oriental models.[9] Initially, only the central dome had one.[Kra. 3]​.

The architecture of the areas of northern Italy that were part of the Holy Roman Empire developed differently from the rest of the Italian peninsula.[Sch. 1] The earliest use of an octagonal cloister vault within an external enclosure over the transept of a cruciform church may have been in the Acqui Cathedral "Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption (Acqui Terme)") in Acqui Terme, which was completed in 1067. This became increasingly popular as a Romanesque feature over the course of the next fifty years. The first Lombard church to have a tiburium, which concealed an octagonal cloister vault, was San Nazaro in Milan, just after 1075. Many other churches followed suit at the end of the century and beginning of the 19th century, such as the Basilica of San Michele Maggiore in Pavia (the coronation church of the Kingdom of Italy within the Holy Roman Empire) and the Basilica of Sant'Ambrogio in Milan. Sant'Ambrogio, the original plan for the church did not contemplate a domed transept and was modified to include it, as also happened in Pisa Cathedral (whose financing was provided by Emperor Henry IV in 1089 and by Emperor Henry V in 1116) and Speyer Cathedral (the funerary church of the Salian dynasty of the Holy Roman Emperors. The transept domes in Pavia, Pisa and Speyer were completed around). 1080, but the exact order of precedence is not resolved.[Sm. 1]​.

• - Acqui Cathedral "Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption (Acqui Terme)"), the first cloister vault completed in 1067.

• - Basilica of San Michele Maggiore in Pavia.

• - San Nazaro in Brolo") in Milan.

The domes of Pisa Cathedral and the Florence Baptistery may be the two oldest domes in Tuscany and were the largest until about 1150.[Sm. 2] Pisa Cathedral, built between 1063 and 1118, includes a tall elliptical dome at the intersection of its nave and transept. The marble dome was one of the first in Romanesque architecture and is considered the masterpiece of Romanesque domes. With a height of over a rectangular hole, the shape of the dome was unique at the time.[53]​ The dimensions of the rectangular hole are . Trunks were used in the corners to create an elongated octagon in a system similar to that of the contemporary Basilica of San Lorenzo "Basilica di San Lorenzo (Milan)") in Milan and projections were used to create an oval base for the dome. The drum on which the dome rests dates to between 1090 and 1100, and it is likely that the dome itself was built at that time. There is evidence that the builders did not originally plan the dome and decided on the novel shape to accommodate the rectangular transept span, which would have made covering it with an octagonal cloister vault very difficult. Additionally, the dome may have originally been covered by an octagonal tiburium which would have been removed in the 17th century, exposing the dome, to reduce weight on foundations not designed to support it. This would have been done no later than 1383, when the Gothic loggetta was added to the outside of the dome, along with the buttresses on which it rests.[Sm. 3]​.

As a would-be competitor to Pisa, the city of Florence took the opposite side in the conflict between the Pope and the Emperor, siding with the Pope in Rome. This was reflected architecturally in the proto-renaissance style of its buildings.[Sch. 2] The eight-sided Florence Baptistery, with its large octagonal cloister vault under a pyramidal roof, was probably built between 1059 and 1128, with the dome and attic built between 1090 and 1128. The lantern above the dome dates to 1150. [54] It was inspired by the Pantheon in Rome for its oculus and much of its decoration. interior, although the pointed dome is structurally similar to Lombard domes, such as that of the later Baptistery of Cremona. The relationship between the thickness of its walls and the external diameter is approximately 1/10, according to the dome proportion rules followed until the 19th century. Being one of the most important religious buildings in Florence, the proportions of its dome were followed by the dome of the nearby cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, which will be built by Brunelleschi centuries later. The polygonal dome was built with a wooden tension ring a few feet high, too high to counteract the propagation forces, and a lower iron ring was added in 1514.[55]​.

The renovation of Speyer Cathedral, the largest of the imperial cathedrals "Imperial Cathedral (Germany)") of the Holy Roman Empire, was begun around 1080 by Emperor Henry IV, shortly after returning from the famous walk to Canossa in northern Italy. Although the church had just been consecrated in 1061, Henry summoned craftsmen from across the empire to renovate it. The redesign included two octagonal cloister vaults within the transept towers, one in the eastern transept with an external dwarf gallery and another at the western end. This was soon imitated elsewhere and became the model for later Rhineland octagonal domes, such as those of Worms Cathedral (ca. 1120-1181) and Mainz Cathedral (ca. 1081-1239).[Sch. 3] Many German imperial cathedrals have domes in their transepts.[Hou. 3]​.

After 1100, in northern Italy the churches were designed from the beginning with vaults, instead of being, as until then, basilicas with colonnades and wooden roofs, and, like the Rhineland imperial cathedrals, in many of them octagonal domes were arranged on squinches covering the transepts and choirs. Examples are the cathedral of Parma, rebuilt around 1130, and the cathedral of Piacenza (1122-1235).[Sch. 4] Another example is the domed church of San Fedele in Como&action=edit&redlink=1 "Basilica di San Fedele (Como) (not yet written)") (from the century to ), similar to the church of St. Maria im Kapitol "Basilica of St. Mary of the Capitol (Cologne)"). The Baptistery of Parma, one of the largest baptisteries, was begun in 1196 and has frescoes in the dome dating from 1260 onwards.[46]

The ancient cathedral of Brescia") was probably built in the first quarter of the century and has a dome more than a meter thick, made of heavy stone at the bottom and lighter porous stone at the top.[56]

The dome of the Basilica of San Lorenzo "Basilica di San Lorenzo (Milan)") in Milan, a tetraconcha building with a square central space of , was rebuilt in Romanesque style after a fire in 1124. Much admired in the Renaissance, its dome collapsed in 1573 and was rebuilt with the current cloister vault.[Hou. 4]​ Documentary evidence indicates that the Romanesque dome of San Lorenzo was a thin hemisphere of light material over a cubic space of about (40 braccia Milanese) on a side. The dome was supported by four corner squinches that rested on the four exedrae arches of the square space with another eight smaller squinches between each of them to create a sixteen-sided base. It was covered on the outside by a cylindrical or polygonal drum and a wooden roof. The outer drum was probably polygonal, with eight or sixteen sides, and had two tiers of dwarf galleries beneath a row of hanging arches. In the eastern corner towers of the building there remains evidence of flying buttresses that would extend diagonally to the drum. The existence of a small lantern at the top of the dome is uncertain and the date the dome was completed is unknown.[57]​.

• - The ancient cathedral of Brescia").

• - Interior of Brescia.

• - Basilica of San Lorenzo "Basilica di San Lorenzo (Milan)") in Milan.

In southern Italy, then largely dependent on the county of Apulia and Calabria), the Basilica of San Sabino in Canosa di Puglia was built around 1080 with five domes in a "T-shaped design", with three domes in the transept and another two in the nave.[Sch. 5]​ Its cruciform plan, use of domes and the later addition of an external mausoleum suggest that it may have been a Norman analogue of the Byzantine church of the Holy Apostles. It appears to have inspired a series of churches in Apulia with domed naves.[58] The date of construction has been questioned as being decades too late. The multi-domed churches of Cyprus have been proposed as inspiration for the domes of the basilica and for the three-domed naves of later churches in the region, dating mainly from the period of Norman rule, but this is also a topic of debate. San Benedetto in Conversano&action=edit&redlink=1 "Monastero di San Benedetto (Conversano) (not yet drafted)"), the Ognissanti of Valenzano&action=edit&redlink=1 "Church of Ognissanti (Valenzano) (not yet drafted)"), San Francesco in Trani&action=edit&redlink=1 "Church of San Francesco (Trani) (not yet redacted)") and the cathedral of San Corrado in Molfetta") were built in the 11th to 13th centuries with domes on pendentives. San Corrado also incorporates "horn-shaped niches" between the pendentives and the drums in two of its three domes.[59]​.

In France, the centuries-old cathedral of Le Puy-en-Velay uses an unusual row of six octagonal domes on squinches to cover its nave, the domes at the western end being at least a century later than those at the eastern end. A seventh dome is located in the normal position of a Romanesque dome on squinches: above the transept. Other examples of this use on ships are rare and scattered. One is the great church of Saint Hilary the Great in Poitiers, which appears to have been influenced by Le Puy's own cathedral. In 1130, its wide nave was narrowed with additional pillars to form proper square bays, which were roofed with octagonal domes whose corner sides on trumpet squinches were so narrow that the domes resemble square cloister vaults with chamfered corners.[60]

The oldest large French dome is believed to be the pendentive dome built c. 1075 over the transept of the collegiate church of St. Martin in Angers. It reportedly incorporates "pottery" into its structure, a technique used in the late Roman period.[Co. 1]​.

The dome over the transept of the abbey church of Tournus rests on squinches and may date from the 17th century. The Basilica of Saint-Martin d'Ainay") has similar features. The largest church in France at the time was that of Cluny Abbey, but it has been destroyed.[61] The surviving arm of the southern transept, built at the turn of the century, has an octagonal dome on squinches under an octagonal tower and spire and is flanked on both sides by barrel vaults.[62] The cathedral of Autun has a nave arrangement similar to that of Cluny Abbey.[63]​.

In Auvergne, there are several Romanesque churches with domed transepts using squinches, the domes being supported by 'flying screen' walls in the transept section and hidden on the outside under octagonal "shouldered" towers with buttresses on either side. Examples are the church of Notre-Dame de Saint-Saturnin and the abbey of Sainte-Marie de Cruas"), which has a rotunda over the domed transept.[64] In the cathedral of Avignon, probably from the middle of the century, the rectangular section of the transept is narrowed to a square by means of two sets of four arches on opposite sides to provide a dome on squinches.[65]​.

• - The six octagonal domes on squinches of the nave of the cathedral of Le Puy-en-Velay.

• - Dome over the choir in San Hilario el Grande.

• - Dome of the tower of the transept of Saint Martin of Angers").

• - Dome of the transept of the church of Notre-Dame de Saint-Saturnin.

• - Dome of Sainte-Marie de Cruas.

The Crusades and the Reconquest

The Crusades, which began in 1095, also appear to have influenced domed architecture in Western Europe, particularly in the areas around the Mediterranean Sea.[66] The Mausoleum of Bohemond (ca. 1111–1118), a Norman leader of the First Crusade, was built adjacent to the Basilica of San Sabino in the province of Apulia, southern Italy, and has a Byzantine-style hemispherical dome on a square building. with a Greek cross plan.[Hou. 5] The Baptistery of Padua is believed to have been built simultaneously with the 1120 reconstruction of Padua Cathedral, a revision of the traditional founding date of 1260. It has a dome on pendentives spanning a square space of , with a small altar chapel across the east wall. It served as a model for the later Old Sacristy of San Lorenzo.[67]​.

The Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem appears to have had a wooden dome of two leaves or shells until the 17th century, with some interruptions. After controlling the city, the Crusaders added a domed choir to the side of the existing rotunda.[68] A French Romanesque addition replaced the rotunda's eastern apse and a courtyard marking the center of the world and was consecrated on July 15, 1149, the fiftieth anniversary of the city's capture. The diameter of the new dome was half that of the rotunda and rested on four pointed arches on four pillars. It served as the coronation site of the Crusader kings of Jerusalem.[69]​

The rotunda itself was covered by a conical structure from the 19th to the early 19th century. The Baptistery of Pisa was built in 1153 with a truncated cone in clear imitation of the Holy Sepulchre; and an exterior dome was added in the 17th century. The domed baptisteries of Cremona (1176) and Parma (1196) also seem to have been influenced by the rotunda.[Kra. 6]​ The rotunda of the Holy Sepulcher of the century in Santo Stefano&action=edit&redlink=1 "Santo Stefano (Bologna) (not yet redacted)"), Bologna, and the basilica of Neuvy-Saint-Sépulchre are imitations of the church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, although, like many of the imitations in Europe, they differ in their details, including their domes.[Kra. 7].

The Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem were taken by the Crusaders as models to represent the Temple of Solomon and Solomon's Palace, respectively. The Knights Templar, who had their headquarters at the site, built a series of central-plan churches throughout Europe inspired by the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, with the Dome of the Rock also being an influence.[70] Examples include the Church of the True Cross. "Iglesia de la Vera Cruz (Segovia)") in Segovia, the church of the convent of Christ in Tomar, a rotunda church in Paris destroyed during the French Revolution, and the Temple church "Iglesia del Temple (London)") in London. The church of Saint Mary of Eunate was originally a pilgrim funerary church, rather than a Templar church, but may have been influenced by them.[Co.

Kingdom of Sicily

The domed Christian basilicas built in Sicily after the Norman Conquest also incorporate distinctly Islamic architectural elements. They include hemispherical domes located directly in front of the apses, similar to the common positioning in mosques of domes directly in front of the mihrabs, and the domes use four squinches for support, much like the Islamic domes of the Maghreb and Egypt. In other cases, the domes show Byzantine influences with tall drums, attached columns and blind arcades.[90] The influence of the domed mosques of the Aghlabids has been cited to explain the design of the domes. Representative examples of North African Islamic domes can be seen at the Al-Hakim Mosque and the Great Mosque of Susa.[91]​.

Domes were used in a variety of compositions and were often not the center or focus of the architecture. In the region of Val Demone"), its churches of Santa Maria di Mili") (1090, but rebuilt in the restored in 1172) are well preserved. The three domes on squinches of Santa Maria in Mili San Pietro, one of the first Norman buildings, are together in a row above the prosthesis "Prothesis (architecture)"), chancel and the diaconicon, with the largest and tallest in the middle. The church of San Pietro in Itala has a central tower-shaped dome. two domes, with a smaller eight-sided umbrella dome with muqarnas-like supports in the space before the altar and a larger squinched umbrella dome over the nave.[92]​ The dome over the nave has a circular base and the dome over the altar has an octagonal base.[93]​.

Examples in Palermo are the Cappella Palatina (1132-1143), La Martorana (ca. 1140s) and Zisa Palace (17th century).[94]​[95]​ The church of San Giovanni degli Eremiti has five domes in a T-shaped arrangement and the church of San Cataldo (1154-1160) has three domes on squinches, and both show a clear influence Islamic.[Sch. 7].

All these churches are part of the "Arab-Norman Palermo and the cathedrals of Cefalú and Monreale", a UNESCO World Heritage Site.[96]

• - Domes in Palermo, Sicily.

• - Cappella Palatina (1132-1143), Palermo.

• - La Martorana (ca. 1140s).

• - Church of Santissima Trinità of the Zisa palace.

• - The five domes of the church of San Giovanni degli Eremiti.

• - Church of San Cataldo (1154-1160).

North Africa, Syria and Al-Jazira

The so-called shrine of Imam al-Dawr in the village of al-Dawr), Iraq, is the earliest known example of a muqarnas dome, although it is unlikely to have been the first of its kind. The dome rests on an octagonal base created by four squinches on a square span. Three tiers of muqarnas rise above this and are covered by a small dome. The muqarnas cells are very large and resemble small squinches. It was completed in 1090 by the court of an Uqaylid vassal") of the Abbasid caliphate of Baghdad and, although there are no surviving examples in Baghdad from that time, the large number of muqarnas domes known to exist there in the late Middle Ages suggests that it may have been the source of the type.[97]

In Islamic North Africa, there are several early muqarna domes dating from the 17th century. The first may be an Almoravid restoration from between 1135 and 1140 of a series of stucco muqarna domes over the axial nave of the mosque of Qarawiyyin in Fez. The existence of a near-contemporaneous example from 1154 in the Maristan of Nur al-din in Damascus, Syria, and the earlier example of a muqarna dome in al-Dawr, Iraq, suggests that the style would reach imported from Baghdad.[98]​.

Most examples of muqarna domes are found in Iraq and Al-Jazira, dating from the middle of the century to the Mongol invasion. The use of stucco to form the muqarnas pattern, suspended by a wooden frame from the outer vault, was the least common in Iraq, although it will be very popular in North Africa and Spain. However, because its construction required the use of two shells, the window arrangement was restricted to the bases of the domes. Even so, they were frequently used in this type. In Iraq, the most common form was a single brick shell, with the reverse of the interior pattern visible on the outside. Examples of this type are the mausoleum of Nur al-Din in Damascus (1172) and the shrine of Zumurrud Khatun in Baghdad. A third type is found only in Mosul since the beginning of the 19th century. It has a pyramidal brick roof, usually covered with green glazed tiles. Of the five surviving examples, the most successful is that of the shrine of Awn al-Din, which uses small colored tiles to cover the cells of [99]

The architecture of Syria and Al Jazira includes the widest variety of forms in the medieval Islamic world, influenced by surviving architecture from Late Antiquity, contemporary Christian buildings, and Eastern Islamic architecture. There are some muqarna domes of the Iraqi type, but most domes are slightly pointed hemispheres on muqarna pendentives or double zones of squinches and masonry, rather than brick and plaster. Domes cover single-span buildings or are only part of larger buildings. The Syrian mausoleums consist of a square stone chamber with a single entrance and a mihrab and a lobed brick dome with two rows of squinches. The dome in the Silvan Mosque "Silvan (Turkey)"), wide and built between 1152 and 1157, has an unusual design similar to the dome added to the Friday Mosque of Isfahan in 1086-1087: once surrounded by roofless corridors on three sides, it may have been designed to be a free-standing building. The congregational mosque in Kızıltepe, with its well-integrated dome of about , is the masterpiece of Artúquid architecture.[Bl. 3]​.

Late Romanesque and early Gothic Europe

The use of domes declined in Western Europe with the rise of Gothic architecture.[100] Gothic domes were uncommon due to the use of groin vaults over the naves, and because the transepts of churches were generally reserved for a tall bell tower, although there are examples of small octagonal cross domes in cathedrals such as the style developed from the Romanesque.[SHD. 4]​ The domes of Romanesque and early Gothic Latin cross churches rarely extend beyond the width of the nave.[101]​.

Spaces with a circular or octagonal plan were sometimes covered with "double head" style vaults, similar to the vaulting of the head apse in Gothic cathedrals. The transept of Saint Nicholas in Blois") is an example,[82]​ as are those of the cathedral of Worms and the cathedral of Coutances.[102]​ The ribbed dome in the transept on horns of the church of Saint Peter "Iglesia de San Pedro (Ávila)") in Ávila (Spain) "Ávila (Spain)"), from the 1st century, is another.[103]​ The dome of the cathedral of Tarragona was built in the French Gothic style and includes alternating sets of three and four windows at the base.[104] The "Decagon" domed nave of the Basilica of St. Gereon, in Cologne, Germany, covered a ten-sided oval-shaped space between 1219 and 1227, resting on the low walls preserved from an ancient Roman mausoleum of the 17th century. above the floor, covering an oval area of length and width.[Hou. 6]​ It is unique among the twelve Romanesque basilicas of Cologne, and in European architecture in general, and may have been the largest dome built in that period in Western Europe until the completion of the dome of the cathedral of Florence.[105][106] Later examples are the domes of the Pazzi chapel in Florence (c. 1420), of the cathedral of Évreux (second half of the century), the Cathedral of the Savior of Zaragoza (after 1500), and the Cathedral of Burgos (completed in 1568).[107] To house the royal tombs at the Batalha monastery in Portugal, an octagonal Gothic dome 65 feet in diameter was planned, but was never completed.[108]

• - gallon dome of the Pazzi chapel (1441-1478, unfinished).

• - Dome of Évreux Cathedral (second half of the 15th century).

• - La Seo Dome (Zaragoza).

• - Detail of the virtuosity of the dome of the Cathedral of Burgos (1539-1568), work of Juan de Vallejo.

In Italy, the dome of Siena Cathedral had an exposed profile as early as 1224, and this feature was preserved in its reconstruction around 1260.[Sm. 4]​ The dome has two shells and was completed in 1264. It stands on an irregular hexagon wide with squinches to form a twelve-sided irregular base.[109]​ A large dome has never before been built over a hexagonal transept.[110]​ The current lantern dates from the century and the current outer dome is a replacement from the century.[111]​ An octagonal dome for Florence Cathedral may have been part of Arnolfo's original design di Cambio for the church, construction of which began in 1296.[112] The Basilica of Saint Anthony of Padua was built between 1231 and 1300, at the beginning of the period of Italian Gothic architecture, and features seven domes with a mix of Gothic and Byzantine elements. Similar to the Basilica of Saint Mark in Venice, its nave, transepts, transept and the intermediate section before the choir are covered by domes on pendentives in the Byzantine style. Externally, the transept dome is covered with a conical spire. The choir dome, which may be later than the others, is uniquely rib Gothic.[113] An eighth dome covers the attached Relics Chapel, adjacent to the choir dome. The masonry domes are covered externally by wooden structures and several were repaired after a lightning strike in 1347 and a fire in 1748. The two closest to the façade may be in their original state. of Saint John and Saint Paul (Venice)") in Venice was built between 1333 and 1430 and features a domed transept with Byzantine and Romanesque influences, like the domed Romanesque cathedrals of the Po Valley plain.[116]

Spain

Star-shaped domes are found in the Moorish Alhambra palace in Granada, Spain, which has domed audience halls built to reflect celestial constellations. The Hall of the Abencerrajes (c. 1333-1391) and the Hall of the Two Sisters (c. 1333-1354) are extraordinarily developed examples of domes with muqarnas, taking the tradition of the horn in Islamic architecture from a functional element in the transition zone to a highly ornamental covering for the dome itself. The structural elements of these two domes are actually brick vaults, but they are completely covered by intricate muqarnas stalactites. The lace, star-shaped transept dome of Burgos Cathedral (1567) may have been inspired by these examples, in addition to those built over the octagonal chapel of the Condestable Cathedral (1482-1494) in the Gothic style.[SHD. 4]​.

In the Mudejar style of Seville after the Christian reconquest of the city, a type of dome made of intricately interlocking pieces of painted and gilded wood was known as a half-orange. The most famous example covers the throne room of the Hall of Ambassadors in the Royal Palace Complex of Seville, a 15-wide space built in 1427.[121]

Mamluk Sultanate

In the first half of the century, stone blocks replaced bricks as the main building material in dome construction in Mamluk Egypt, and brick domes were only 20% of those built around 1322. Over the course of 250 years, around 400 domes were built in Cairo to cover the tombs of Mamluk sultans and emirs. Although they maintained approximately the same proportions, the change from brick to stone is also associated with an increase in the dimensions of the section to be covered and in the average height of approximately , and with a decrease in the thickness of the domes. Stone domes generally have a diameter and a height. The mausoleum of Farag Ibn Barquq (1398-1411) is an exceptional case, with a dome of width and height.[122]​.

Stone domes are generally single shells except in the conical crown, where there is a space between the inner and outer layers filled with earth and rubble and housing the bases of the metal spiers. Double-shell domes were rare, an example being that of the Al-Sultanyya Madrasa of 1360. The domes were built in circular rings, with sizes decreasing towards the top and, because of this, it was possible that they did not require elaborate centering. The collapsed remains of some domes have revealed the existence of a layer of brick beneath the outer layer of stone, which could have supported and aligned the heavier stone during construction. Although the first stone domes do not have them, horizontal connections between ashlar stone blocks were introduced in the 19th century, such as the dovetail-shaped teak domes used in the mausoleum of Farag Ibn Barquq. The profiles of the domes were varied, with "keel-shaped", bulbous, ogee, stilt domes and others used. On the drum, externally the angles were chamfered, or sometimes stepped, and triple windows in a tri-lobed arrangement were used on the faces.[Hi. 4]​.

The decoration of these early stone domes was initially the same external rib as on earlier brick domes, and such brick domes would continue to be built throughout the Mamluk period, although more elaborate carving patterns were introduced at the turn of the century. Early stone domes were externally rendered when they had not been carved with sufficient precision, but improvements in technique over time would make that unnecessary. Spiral ribs were developed in the 1370s and zigzag patterns were developed both at the end of the century and again at the end of the century. In the 19th century, interlocking designs of stars and flowers were used in a mosaic pattern. The uniqueness of the pattern used on the dome of a mausoleum helped associate that dome with the individual buried there.[124]

The twin domes of the Sultaniyya complex (c. 1360) and the narrow dome of Yunus al-Dawadar (c. 1385) are unusual in that they have muqarnas at the base of their outer ribs, a characteristic of ribbed domes in Persia. The first example of a zigzag pattern appears on the dome of Mahmud al-Kurdi (1394-1395), and at least fourteen later domes also used it. The first example of a dome in Cairo with a star pattern is that of the mausoleum of al-Ashraf Barsbay"). The Qaytbay dome in the northern cemetery of Cairo combines geometric and arabesque patterns&action=edit&redlink=1 "Arabesque (Islamic art) (not yet drafted)") and is one of the most successful.[125] Miniaturized and pointed versions, which were used row by row over the entire enlarged area and bordered above and below by flat surfaces.[Hi. 5]​ Bulbous domes on minarets were used in Egypt from 1330, spreading to Syria in the following century.[126]​.

Italy

Domes visible from the outside were common in Tuscany and were a source of regional distinction in the 1380s.[Sm. 5]​ The exterior dome of the Baptistery of Pisa was built in the century on a previous interior conical roof.[Kra. 8] If an external lantern was also removed from Pisa Cathedral in the 1300s, exposing the dome, one reason may have been to keep up with more recent projects in the region, such as the domed cathedrals of Siena and Florence.[Sm. 5] Rapid progress on a radical expansion of Siena Cathedral, which would have involved replacing the existing dome with a larger one, was halted shortly after the city was hit by an outbreak of the Black Death in 1348. Its dome was originally crowned with a copper orb, similar to that of the dome of Pisa today, but it was replaced in 1385 by a dome surmounted by a smaller sphere and cross.[128]

Only a few years after the city of Siena decided to abandon the major expansion and redesign of its cathedral in 1355, Florence decided to expand its own.[129]​ In 1357, a plan for the dome of Florence Cathedral was established.[Sm. 5] However, in 1367 it was proposed to alter the plan of the church at the eastern end to increase the scale of the octagonal dome, enlarging it from 62 to 72 braccia, with the intention of further surpassing the domes of Pisa and Siena, and this modified plan was ratified in 1368, under the master builder Francesco Talenti.[130] The construction guilds of Florence had sworn adhere to the model of the dome created in 1367, with a pointed "quinto acuto" profile, but the scale of this new dome was so ambitious that the experts of the Opera del Duomo, the board that supervised the construction, expressed as early as 1394 the opinion that the dome could not be realized.[131] Discussion in the century revolved mainly around the cost of the project and, secondly, about the style.[112]​ The expanded dome would span the entire width of the three naves, only less than that of the Roman Pantheon, the largest dome in the world.[Sch. 9]​ And because the distances between the angles of the octagon were even further apart, a , the middle span of the dome would be marginally wider than that of the Pantheon.[132]​ The 144 braccia, the height of the dome, would evoke the sacred number of the heavenly Jerusalem mentioned in the Book of Revelation. By 1413, the eastern end of the church had been completed up to the octagonal drum with windows, except for one of the three apses, but the problem of building the great dome still had no solution.[Sch. 9]​ In 1417, with the drum already completed, the master builder in charge of the project retired and in August 1418 a competition was called for projects on how to build the dome.[133][134]​.

Brunelleschi's dome, designed in 1418, follows the height and shape ordered in 1367. Filippo Brunelleschi and Lorenzo Ghiberti were named joint leaders of the project to build the dome of Florence Cathedral in 1420. Brunelleschi's plan to use suspended scaffolding for the workers triumphed over alternatives such as building a temporary stone support column in the center of the transept or to fill all the space under the dome with earth. The octagonal brick vault was built between 1420 and 1436, with Ghiberti resigning in 1433.[Sch. 10]​ The dome can be described as a cloister vault, the eight ribs concentrating the weight at the angles on the supporting pillars.[Hou. 7]​ The dome is wide and made of two leaves or shells.[Sch. 9]​ A staircase winds between them. Eight external ribs of white stone mark the edges of the eight sides, next to the red tile roof, and extend from the base of the drum to the base of the dome. Each of the eight sides of the dome also conceals a pair of intermediate stone ribs that are connected to the main ribs by a series of masonry rings. A temporary wooden tension ring near the bottom of the dome is still preserved. Three horizontal chains of sandstone blocks notched together and reinforced with lead-coated iron staples also extend to the entire circumference of the dome: one at the base (where the radial struts of this chain protrude outward), one one-third up, and a third two-thirds the way up.[133]

The Netherlands of northwestern Europe

In the 2nd century, pilgrimages and flourishing trade relations with the Near East exposed the northwestern European Netherlands to the use of bulbous domes in Eastern architecture. Although the first expressions of its European use are in the backgrounds of paintings, architectural uses continued. The Dome of the Rock and its bulbous dome are so prominent in Jerusalem, that the domes apparently became associated by visitors with the city itself. In Bruges, the Church of the Holy Cross&action=edit&redlink=1 "Jeruzalemkerk (Brugge) (not yet drawn up)"), designed to symbolize the Holy Sepulcher, was completed with a Gothic church tower surmounted by a bulbous dome over a hexagonal recess in 1428. Sometime between 1466 and 1500, a tower added to the Basilica of the Holy Blood in Bruges was covered by a dome bulbous very similar to Syrian minarets. Similarly, in Ghent, an octagonal stair tower for the church of St. Martin of Ackerghem, built at the beginning of the 19th century, has a bulbous dome like a minaret. These domes were made of wood covered with copper, as were examples on turrets and towers in the Netherlands at the turn of the century, many of which have been lost. The earliest surviving example from the Netherlands is the bulbous dome built in 1511 over the town hall of Middelburg. Multi-story spiers with truncated bulbous domes supporting smaller domes or crowns became popular in the following decades.[152]​.

• - History of early and simple domes").

• - History of domes of the early modern period.

• - History of the domes of the modern period").

• - This work contains a translation derived from «History of Medieval Arabic and Western European domes» from Wikipedia in English, published by its editors under the GNU Free Documentation License and the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.