The Historic Ottoman Kaaba

This painting also shows some of the buildings surrounding the Kaaba in the larger mosque complex of the Masjid al-Haram. The background shows the domed outer wall of the mosque complex.

The smaller architectural structures around the Kaaba represent the maqam-e Ibrahim (“station of Abraham” carrying the stone footprint of Abraham, where Abraham is said to have stood during the construction of the original Kaaba) and the four maqams (“stations”) representing four Sunni schools of Islamic law: Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi’i and Hanbalifor an explanation of the four schools of Islamic law, see: https://www.maslaha.org/UntoldIslam/In-depth/SCHOOLS-OF-ISLAMIC-LAW. Today, only the maqam-e Ibrahim is still standing. This nineteenth-century painting represents the Kaaba as it looked during Ottoman rule.

Now, let’s zoom out.