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mihrab

Arabic mihrab

Semicircular prayer niche in the qiblah wall (the wall facing Mecca) of a mosque, reserved for the prayer leader (imam). The mihrab originated in the reign of the Umayyad caliph al-Walid I (705–715), when the famous mosques at Medina, Jerusalem, and Damascus were built. It was adapted from the prayer niches common in Coptic Christian monasteries. Mihrabs are usually ornately decorated.

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