Detail view looking up at the concrete dome of Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and opened in 1961. "Wright's circular design uses two important elements from Greek Orthodox churches, the dome and the Greek cross. The shallow concrete dome (106 feet in diameter) is superimposed on a floor plan in the shape of a Greek cross; the Greek cross inscribed within a circle is a key design element in the details of the church as well,"--by Mary Ann Sullivan, Bluffton University.
Interior view of domed at the Blue Mosque in Istanbul, Turkey. Inside, the central dome rests on delicate pendentives (triangular segments of a spherical surface) with its weight supported on four massive fluted columns. In order to extend the prayer space beyond the span of the central dome, a series of half-domes cascade outwards from the center to ultimately join the exterior walls of the mosque. Of the six minarets (towers traditionally built for the call to prayer), four are positioned on the corners of the mosque’s prayer hall while the other two flank the external corners of the courtyard. Each of these "pencil" minarets has a series of balconies adorning its lean form ... The prayer hall itself is punctuated with several architectural features including the sultan’s platform and an arcaded gallery running along the interior walls except on the quibla wall facing Mecca. A carved marble niche set into the center of this wall guides the faithful to the correct direction for prayer. To its right is a tall and thin marble pulpit (mimbar) capped with an ornamental turret,"--by Dr. Radha Dalal, KahnAcademy website.
Detailed view of dome and minaret at the Imam Mosque in Isfahan, Iran. "Following the Iranian traditional mosque plan, the Masjid-i Shah has a court (50 by 67 meters) surrounded by a two-story arcade on four sides with four iwans, one at the center of each side, and a domed sanctuary behind the southwest iwan, oriented towards Mecca. However, the mosque's plan presents an interesting variation: behind each lateral iwan (on the northwest and southeast) is a domed chamber. The domed sanctuary behind the southwest iwan is flanked by rectangular rooms (36 meters by 18 meters each) functioning as winter prayer halls that are entered from the domed sanctuary aligned on the northeast-southwest axis ... Both the main portal iwan, overlooking the maydan, and the sanctuary iwan are flanked by a pair of soaring cylindrical minarets 34 meters in height. These minarets are decorated with tile mosaics of epigraphic elements ("no God but God"),"--ArchNet
View of the Imam Mosque at Isfahan in Iran with dome and 2 minarets. "Following the Iranian traditional mosque plan, the Masjid-i Shah has a court (50 by 67 meters) surrounded by a two-story arcade on four sides with four iwans, one at the center of each side, and a domed sanctuary behind the southwest iwan, oriented towards Mecca. However, the mosque's plan presents an interesting variation: behind each lateral iwan (on the northwest and southeast) is a domed chamber. The domed sanctuary behind the southwest iwan is flanked by rectangular rooms (36 meters by 18 meters each) functioning as winter prayer halls that are entered from the domed sanctuary aligned on the northeast-southwest axis ... Both the main portal iwan, overlooking the maydan, and the sanctuary iwan are flanked by a pair of soaring cylindrical minarets 34 meters in height. These minarets are decorated with tile mosaics of epigraphic elements ("no God but God").,"--ArchNet
View from a distance of the Imam Mosque in Isfahan, Iran with dome and minarets. "The mosque's monumental portal iwan is located exactly opposite the portal iwan on the northern arcade of the maydan, which connects the maydan to the old bazaar to the north. Construction of the Masjid-i Shah began in 1611 under Shah 'Abbas, and was completed around 1630 during the rule of Shah Safi, 'Abbas's successor, who ruled from 1629 to 1642. Later, in 1638, marble dadoes were added to the structure,"--ArchNet.
Interior view of dome and pendentive at the Blue Mosque in Istanbul, Turkey. "Inside, the central dome rests on delicate pendentives (triangular segments of a spherical surface) with its weight supported on four massive fluted columns. In order to extend the prayer space beyond the span of the central dome, a series of half-domes cascade outwards from the center to ultimately join the exterior walls of the mosque. Of the six minarets (towers traditionally built for the call to prayer), four are positioned on the corners of the mosque’s prayer hall while the other two flank the external corners of the courtyard. Each of these "pencil" minarets has a series of balconies adorning its lean form,"--by Radha Dalal, KahnAcademy website.
View of dome and pendentive at the Blue Mosque in Istanbul, Turkey. "Inside, the central dome rests on delicate pendentives (triangular segments of a spherical surface) with its weight supported on four massive fluted columns. In order to extend the prayer space beyond the span of the central dome, a series of half-domes cascade outwards from the center to ultimately join the exterior walls of the mosque. Of the six minarets (towers traditionally built for the call to prayer), four are positioned on the corners of the mosque’s prayer hall while the other two flank the external corners of the courtyard. Each of these "pencil" minarets has a series of balconies adorning its lean form,"--by Radha Dalal, KahnAcademy website.
Measurements
Height: 240 feet, width: 213 feet; dome diameter: 77.1 feet
View of dome of the Pantheon in Rome, with coffered ceiling and oculus at the very top. "The dome seems to rest on the cornice. The columns in the first register do not the support the dome. It is concrete structure. The coffers in the dome are in perspective, diminishing in size as they rise,"--by Mary Ann Sullivan, Bluffton University. "The dome is constructed of stepped rings of solid concrete with less and less density as lighter aggregate (pumice) is used, diminishing in thickness to about 1.2 m (4 feet) at the edge of the oculus. The dome rests on a cylinder of masonry walls 6 m (20 feet). Hidden voids and the interior recesses hollow out this construction, so that it works less as a solid mass and more like three continuous arcades which correspond to the three tiers of relieving arches visible on the building exterior. Originally, these exterior walls were faced with colored marbles,"--The Architecture Week, Great Buildings website.
View of the exterior of the dome of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, Italy. "Michelangelo designed a dome that would actually dwarf the nearby Pantheon. It would be smaller than the Pantheon in diameter, but stand much, much higher. Made almost entirely of heavy masonry, the dome stretches 138 feet in diameter and rises 452 feet above the street. To support such a giant dome, builders placed three iron rings within the masonry of the dome. But even the rings couldn't hold back the outward thrust of tension; significant cracks eventually developed around the dome's base. By the early 18th century, the cracks became serious enough for Vatican engineers to add several more tension rings as an emergency fix,"--Wonders of the World Databank, PBS Online.