Q 01/05

Which white marble mausoleum in Agra did Mughal emperor Shah Jahan commission to house the tomb of his late wife?

A) Bibi Ka Maqbara

B) Taj Mahal

C) Gol Gumbaz

D) Humayun's Tomb

Answer · why

B) Taj Mahal

The Taj Mahal took more than 20,000 workers and artisans to build, under a board of architects led by the emperor's court architect. Shah Jahan's own ...

Q 02/05

Which sixth-century Byzantine church in Istanbul was converted into a mosque by Mehmed the Conqueror in 1453?

A) Hagia Sophia

B) Hagia Irene

C) Chora Church

D) Pammakaristos Church

Answer · why

A) Hagia Sophia

Hagia Sophia remained the principal mosque of Istanbul for more than 150 years after the conquest. Its minarets were Ottoman additions, not part of th...

Q 03/05

Which Nasrid palace-fortress above Granada takes its name from the Arabic for the reddish colour of its walls?

A) Aljafería

B) Málaga Alcazaba

C) Seville Alcázar

D) Alhambra

Answer · why

D) Alhambra

The Alhambra was begun in 1238 by the first Nasrid emir, and its walls of rammed earth gave it a name meaning the red one. Granada's last sultan surre...

Q 04/05

Which octagonal Jerusalem shrine of the 690s is the oldest surviving work of Islamic architecture?

A) Al-Aqsa Mosque

B) Dome of the Chain

C) Dome of the Rock

D) Tower of David

Answer · why

C) Dome of the Rock

The Dome of the Rock was built on the orders of the Umayyad caliph Abd al-Malik. Its gold-plated roof is a modern addition, fitted in 1959–64 and agai...

Q 05/05

The Kaaba in Mecca is draped each year in a new silk cloth, embroidered in gold, of which colour?

A) Black

B) Green

C) White

D) Crimson

Answer · why

A) Black

Black silk embroidered with gold Qur'anic verses forms the covering, known as the kiswa. A fresh one is made and fitted every year.