Minaret, Minar

Minaret, Minar, a tall turret used in Saracen architecture. It contains a staircase, and is divided into several stories, with balconies from which the muezzins summon the Mohammedans to prayer—bells not being permitted in their religion—and is terminated with a spire or ornamental finial. The minarets are amongst the most beautiful features of Mohammedan architecture, and are an invariable accompaniment of the Mosques (q.v.). For an illustration, see ARABIAN ARCHITECTURE. In India Minars, or pillars of victory, are frequently erected in connection with mosques; some of these are lofty and splendid monuments, that of Kutab, at Old Delhi (q.v.), being 47 feet in diameter at the base and 238 feet high. The form of the minaret was derived from the Pharos (q.v.), the ancient lighthouse of Alexandria; and the name is from the Arabic mandrat, 'a lighthouse.'