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TheDome of the Prophet (Arabic:قبة النبي,romanized: Qubbat an-Nabi), also known as theDome of the Messenger and theDome of Muhammad[1] (Turkish:Muhammed Kubbesi) is a free-standingdome located on theAl-Aqsa Mosque compound, inJerusalem.[2] It is located on the northwest part ofthe terrace where theDome of the Rock stands and it is near theDome of the Ascension.[3]
Originally, built during the Umayyad period, the dome was subsequently destroyed by the Crusaders. In 1539, the dome was rebuilt by Muhammad Bek,Ottoman Governor of Jerusalem during the reign ofSuleiman the Magnificent.[4][5] Its last renovation was in the reign of Sultan Abdul al-Majid II.[3]
SeveralMuslim writers, most notablyal-Suyuti andal-Vâsıtî claimed that the site of the dome is where Muhammad led the former prophets and angels in prayer on the night ofIsra and Mir'aj before ascending toHeaven.[6][1][7][8][9] Endowment documents from the Ottoman period indicate that a portion of the endowment of theal-Aqsa Mosque and Haseki Sultan Imaret[10] was dedicated to maintain the lighting of an oil-lamp in the Dome of the Prophet each night.[11][6]
The Dome of the Prophet's octagonal structure is built atop eight gray marble columns.[12] The dome, which is covered with sheet lead and being without walls,[7] is hemispherical and is supported by pointed arches decorated with red, black and white stones. The ancientmihrab is made of awhite marble slab embedded in the floor and surrounded by red-colored stones and subsequently delimited by a low wall, that traditionally opened in the north to allow entrance of Muslim believers heading southward toMecca in Muslim prayers.[13][11]
31°46′41.30″N35°14′06.31″E / 31.7781389°N 35.2350861°E /31.7781389; 35.2350861
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