The House of God

The Kaaba is a stone building covered by a large, embroidered cloth called the kiswa. The kiswa is replaced every year. It came in many colors in the early Islamic period, including white and red, but has been made of black cloth since the end of the reign of the Abbasid dynasty (750-1258CE). The Arabic script on the kiswa in the painting is an excerpt from the Qur’an, specifically Sura al-Imran which urges all Muslims to perform the mandatory religious rituals, including the hajj:

إِنَّ أَوَّلَ بَيْتٍ وُضِعَ لِلنَّاسِ لَلَّذِي بِبَكَّةَ مُبَارَكًا وَهُدًى لِلْعَالَمِين
فِيهِ آَيَاتٌ بَيِّنَاتٌ مَقَامُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ /

“Surely the first House of Worship established for humanity is the one at Bakkah [Mecca]—a blessed sanctuary and a guide for all people. In it are clear signs and the standing-place of Abraham.” Qur’an 3:96-97translated by Dr. Mustafa Khattab, https://quran.com/3

This picture also shows the elevated golden door and embroidered door curtain (sitara) of the Kaaba, through which only the caretakers of the Masjid al-Haram can enter the building. On the left of the door is the Black Stone (Hajr al-Aswad) embedded in the wall of the Kaaba, a holy relic that pilgrims touch or point to at the beginning of each tawaf. On the right is the hateem, a semi-circular low wall (although in this painting it looks more like a railing) that is said to be a remnant of the original Abrahamic structure.