Noble Sanctuary Online Guide
Glimpses of History
Muslim Jerusalem
The Dome of the Rock
The Al-Aqsa Mosque
Other Structures in the Noble Sanctuary
Islam and the Noble Sanctuary
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The Dome of the Rock
The Dome of the Rock
Jerusalem became known as Al-Quds,
The Holy. Many of the Prophet's Companions travelled to worship at the
blessed spot to which Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, was
brought by night and from which he ascended through the heavens to his
Lord. According to the authenticated tradition of the Prophet, travel
for the sake of worship is undertaken to only three mosques; the Sacred
Mosque in Makkah, the Prophet's Mosque in Madinah, and the Furthest
Mosque in Jerusalem.
In 685AD the Umayyad Khalif, 'Abdul Malik ibn Marwan, commenced work
on the Dome of the Rock. Essentially unchanged for more than thirteen
centuries, the Dome of the Rock remains one of the world's most beautiful
and enduring architectural treasures.
The Dome of the Rock from the East
The gold dome
stretches 20 metres across the Noble Rock,
rising to an apex more than 35 metres above it. The Qur'anic verse 'Ya
Sin' is inscribed across the top in the dazzling
tile work commissioned in the 16th century by Suleiman the Magnificent.
By the wise Qur'an.
Surely you are among those sent on a straight path.
A revelation of the Mighty, the Compassionate.
That you might warn a people whose fathers were never warned, so they are heedless.'
Qur'an, 36:1-6
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