The Architectural Art of Uygur Nationality (3)

The Turban Emin Minaret

The Turban Emin Minaret, also built in the early part of theQing Dynasty, is located on a vast stretch of tableland. The most attractive point of the whole minaret is a tall brick pagoda, Emin Minaret, towering in one corner adjacent to the mosque. The minaret is 44 meters high and has a tapering shape, leading to a small dome pavilion at the top. The outline of the minaret is perfectly round. The structure was accomplished in one go, and is very simple and unaffected. Uneven floral bricks were laid up exquisitely and distributed in a ring shape on the exterior. There are more than 1O patterns, which are Succinct and natural. To the front of the mosque is a tall house wall, its composition resembling ordinary salat mosques with a pointed arch shrine at the center Surrounded by small shrines. The shadow inside the shrine, and the exposed skies, giving it an added open and bright atmosphere. The whole mosque, including a big pagoda and house walls, is laid up with ecru bricks.

The vertical and perfectly round tall pagoda, and the horizontal salat mosque formed with straight lines, achieve a rich contrast between round and square, curve and straight line, high and low, and vertical and level. The front part of the house wall is protruding and slightly elevated appropriately adding some change. The courtyard wall between the house wall and the big pagoda is short, while the other side is relatively long, and although not symmetrical. They are even. The whole Emin Mosque presents a single ecru color and is in perfect coordination with the Surrounding loess, reaching a high degree of harmony with the environment.

(Source: chinaculture.org)