Tindirma

Founded by Amar Komdiago, brother of Askiya Muhammad in 1497 / 902 AH,

The construction of the city was carried out by Manding craftsmen under the direction of Ouahab Bari. Standing remains at Tendirma include the massive palace walls and the Great Mosque, which is substantially unchanged since the Moroccan invasion of the sixteenth century. The mosque is built out of spherical mud bricks with the use of split palm and acacia wood for roof timbers. The most remarkable feature of the mosque is the mihrab tower which consists of a sloping cone with a flat surface on the side facing the mosque. Like the mausoleum of Askiya Muhammad the outer surface of the minaret is covered with projecting toron made of acacia wood.1

Notes:

1 1. Dictionary of Islamic Architecture, p. 55.

Bibliography

Peterson, Andrew. “Gao.” Dictionary of Islamic Architecture, pp. 95–96.

Pradines, Stéphane. Historic Mosques in Sub-Saharan Africa: From Timbuktu to Zanzibar. Brill, 2022. Handbuch Der Orientalistik, volume 163.