Religious Diversity
One faith, many denominations – is that always perceptible?
"Islam" is not a uniform bloc. There are many different groupings and denominations. On some objects we can find references to these groupings, on others not. In the comparison of two prayer niches, differences and similarities become clear.
Religious Diversity
One faith, many denominations – is that always perceptible?
"Islam" is not a uniform bloc. There are many different groupings and denominations. On some objects we can find references to these groupings, on others not. In the comparison of two prayer niches, differences and similarities become clear.
Islamic·Art > E-Learning > One faith, many denominations – is that always perceptible?
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One faith, many denominations – is that always perceptible?

hours 2
grade 10 onwards
2 classroom materials
overview

A prayer niche (Arabic: mihrab) can be found in every mosque around the world as it shows believers the direction of prayer, namely the direction of Mecca. Prayer niches (Arabic pl.: maharib) are as diverse as the cultures and religious communities in Islam. All have a common basic form. The unity in the diversity of Muslims is exemplified by two prayer niches in present day Turkey and in present-day Iran.

LEARNING GOALS AND COMPETENCES

  • getting to know the diversity of Islam
  • engaging with calligraphy and geometry
  • becoming creative yourself (designing ornaments and artistic writing)
  • recognizing the correlation between form and function
  • becoming creative yourself (designing your own prayer niche)

Augmented Reality App

In the TAMAM project, mosque communities have been working with the Museum for Islamic Art since 2015 to develop new ways of teaching culture. Following the publication of teaching materials, a free app was released that uses augmented reality to present background information on selected objects in the collection.

Download TAMAM in the Apple APP Store for free

Classroom materials for download

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