habitat rupestre.pdf - Società Friulana di Archeologia

RUPESTRIAN MOSQUESF. dell’AquilaArcheogruppo “E. Jacovelli” Massafra, Taranto, ItaliaThe research on rupestrian mosques in the Mediterraneanarea is sort of like Cinderella. Very few researchers have studiedthis particular subject: Islamic architecture and rupestrianarchitecture are both two brand new fields of investigation,which have been developed only in the last decades.The spread of Islam is bound to Arab invasions in the MiddleEast (the actual states of Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Iraqand Iran) and North Africa (Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, Algeriaand Morocco), which were completed in the 8th century a.C..The new religion is rapidly established, and it is adapted toexisting uses and costumes of the populations. So, the use ofrupestrian architecture is maintained, according to the climateconditions.Rupestrian settlements are more diffused in Libya, Tunisiaand Algeria, especially where Berber populations lived.There, many hypogeal mosques are bound to the Ibadism, aform of Islam present since the 8th century. This sect was diffusedamong Berber tribes, which were prone to appreciatemerits in opposition with the nepotism of Kairouan and Cairo.M’Zab in Algeria is the spiritual site of the Ibadism in NorthAfrica since the 11th century. Its mosques are rupestrian orsemi-rupestrian, which means with a built vault for a betterventilation. They are similar to the houses, but bigger and witha minaret. The bare interiors are divided by arches parallel tothe wall of the qibla, which contains the mihrab. A windingstair leads from the external level to the internal level insidethe mosque. Mosques reflect the religious sense of the Ibadism:the house of God does not need decoration.There are few examples of Algerian rupestrian mosques. Arennu Fighar is a cave in the palm tree oasis in the Zouil wadi;it is prohibited to strangers, where the tradition tells that itis possible to get connected with the imaginary world. TheDaya mosque is much venerated among women. The Chaabamosque is from the 12th century.The rupestrian mosques in the region of Gebel Nefusa (Libya),on the plateau of Dahar and in Djerba (Tunisia) are also boundto Ibadism. Many of these mosques have an external enclosurewith a mihrab , to be used as a mosque in summertime. Thischaracteristic is common in M’Zab, in Djerba and in GebelNefusa.The mosques in the area of Gebel Nefusa are very interestingfor the presence of inscriptions form the Koran and indicationsof the makers. These often represent the only historic documentationsof these populations, and they constitute a staringFig. 1 Algeria, M’Zab.53volumeRicerca_OK_2012-11-15.indd 53 16/11/2012 15:01:08