Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology
The Creswell Archive
Copyright
The Archive Biography Browse the Archive Search the Archive
Back to Search Page
TERMINOLOGY

Function

Function describes the purpose(s) of the building or building complex as a whole,

e.g. Mausoleum of Amir Tarabay al-Sharafi = mausoleum, sabil-kuttab, gateway.

Where a building complex is of a single period, all its functions are listed,

e.g. Maristan of Qalawun = 'madrasa, maristan, mausoleum'

The function of a unit added at a later date is listed only where it is the exclusive subject of the photograph,

e.g. Mosque of al-Azhar = 'mosque' (not 'mosque and madrasa')
but
Madrasa al-Taibarsiyya (within the complex of al-Azhar) = 'madrasa'.

Architectural elements are listed under function only if they are discrete free-standing monuments,

e.g. the 'minaret' of the Great Mosque of Samarra,
OR objects of individual importance,
e.g. the 'minbar' in the Great Mosque of Qairawan.

 

Dates

Dates are shown in AD and AH timescale. In the case of aerial views and cityscapes dates are omitted.

All dates refer to the construction phase which gave the building its definitive form. In most cases the range is less than a decade. In some, where the building sequences have been complex (for example the Aqsa Mosque), the range is considerably more.

Where the exclusive subject of the photograph is a free-standing item of furnishing within the building (for example, a minbar), the date given is that of the object.

A single date appearing twice refers to the completion date of the building.

Where a single date is given in one of the AH and AD fields, this should be used as a terminus post quem or terminus ante quem, as appropriate.

Where the exact date of completion is unknown, an approximate date range is given in intervals of 25 years.

 

Transliteration

Diacritical marks have been omitted.

The initial hamza has been omitted.

The ta marbuta of -at in a construct state has been omitted, e.g. Madrasa al-Zahiriyya

Diphthongs ai e.g. Shaikh
  au e.g. Jauhar
Doubled forms iyy (final form i)
  uww (final form u)
alif + ya' ay e.g. Qaytbay
alif + waw aw e.g. al-Jawli

For monuments within the modern boundaries of Turkey, modern Turkish spellings have been used. However, not all systems may be able to read these correctly.

Back to Search Page
©2003 Ashmolean Museum