Jami' al-Kabir (Ma'arrat al-Nu'man)

Ma'arrat al-Nu'man, Syria

The Great Mosque of Ma'arrat al-Nu'man (or Ma'arra) was rebuilt in the first half of the twelfth century/sixth century AH. As was the case with many early Syrian mosques, Ma'arrat al-Nu'man's mosque stands on the site of an earlier sanctuary: a church and, before that, likely a pagan temple. This history is evident in the numerous examples of architectural materials from pre-Islamic buildings of the Roman and Byzantine periods re-used in the mosque. 

The mosque's plan is centered on a large rectangular courtyard with a long, shallow prayer hall on its south side. Six domes cover the central bays of the prayer hall before the mihrab. The large rectangular courtyard, the wide and shallow prayer hall, and the domed central axis of the prayer hall are all features reminiscent of the layout of the Umayyad Mosque of Damascus, whose plan inspired numerous mosques in Syria and Northern Mesopotamia.1 At the center of the courtyard stood a water tank covered by a canopy resting on ten columns with antique Corinthian capitals.