Al Qal'a of Beni Hammad

贝尼•哈玛德的卡拉城

🇮🇹 Algeria📅 1980 Inscribed

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In a mountainous site of extraordinary beauty, the ruins of the first capital of the Hammadid emirs, founded in 1007 and demolished in 1152, provide an authentic picture of a fortified Muslim city. The mosque, whose prayer room has 13 aisles with eight bays, is one of the largest in Algeria.

Insight I

The Hammadids gained independence from Zirid suzerainty and developed a splendid civilization in Al Qal'a. According to Ibn Khaldun, the city attracted poets, sages, and theologians.

Insight II

The Hammadid mosque was the largest mosque built in North Africa before the 20th century.

Insight III

The buildings of Qal'a are considered documented antecedents and precursors of certain developments in Western Islamic art of the 12th century.