GOLD IN KA'ABA

According to Islamic belief, God ordained a place of worship on Earth to reflect a house in heaven. Muslims believe that Adam, the first man, was the first to build such a place of worship. According to the Qur'an, the Ka'ba that stands today was built by the prophet Ibrahim (Abraham) and his son Ismail (Ishmael).

According to archaeologists, the Ka'ba certainly predates Islam. It was rebuilt several times by the tribes ruling Mecca, who used it to house sacred objects, including the Black Stone, and as a shrine to Arabian tribal gods.

At the time of Muhammad, his tribe, the Quraysh, was in charge of the Ka'ba. Desert tribesmen, the Bedouin, and inhabitants of other cities would join the annual pilgrimage to the Ka'ba to worship and to trade. Caravan-raiding, common during the rest of the year, was suspended during the pilgrimage, making it a good time for travel and trade.

The prophet Muhammad, preaching monotheism and the Day of Judgment, faced mounting opposition in Mecca. The Quraysh persecuted and harassed him and he and his followers eventually migrated to Medina in 622 CE. In 630 CE, Muhammad and his followers returned to Mecca as conquerors and rededicated the Ka'ba as an Islamic house of worship. Henceforth, the traditional annual pilgrimage was to be a Muslim rite, the Hajj.

After Muhammad's victory, the Quraysh tribe rebuilt the Ka'ba with alternating courses of stone and wood. The inner space was divided into two rooms, one of which housed the Black Stone. The exterior was covered with the habrat cloth from Yemen.

Early Islamic chroniclers say that the Ka'ba was rebuilt during Muhammad's youth, and that there was some contention among the Quraysh, Mecca's ruling clan, as to who should have the honor of raising the Black Stone to its place in the new structure. Muhammad is said to have suggested that the Stone be placed on a cloak and that the various clan heads jointly lift the cloak and put the Stone into place.

During the conflict between Ibn Zubayr of Mecca and the Umayyad Caliph Mu'awiyah, the Ka'ba was set on fire and the Black Stone broke into three pieces. Its parts were reassembled with silver by Ibn Zubayr, who also ordered the rebuilding of the Ka'ba in stone and in accordance with the original dimensions believed to be set by Abraham, and paved the open space around it. The shrine at this time had two doors and a wooden staircase for roof access.

In 692, after taking over Mecca, Umayyad Caliph Abdul Malik bin demolished the Ka'ba and rebuilt it based on the Qurayshi version. The Abbasid Caliphs contributed the kiswa cover, a black cloth brought from Tanis in Egypt. The kiswa comprised of eight curtains (a pair on each side of the cube) embroidered with gold calligraphy expressing the Muslim shahada, or oath, "There is no God but Allah and Muhammed is the Prophet of Allah."

Following Mamluk rule of the Hijaz, which lasted from 1269 to 1517, Mecca came under the control of the Ottoman Sultans. In 1553, Sultan Süleyman I (1520-1566) renovated the roof of the Ka'ba and ordered the wooden ceiling painted with golden calligraphy and floral patterns.

Damaged in a flood in 1611, the Ka'ba was rebuilt once again by Sultan Murad IV (1623-1640) in 1629. The new foundation was laid according to Abraham's plan, while the upper structure was built with large granite blocks resting on a 25 cm-high marble base.

Three columns were built to support the roof on the inside; they were covered with golden decorations. Silver and golden lamps were suspended from the ceiling. The silver door offered by Sultan Süleyman was placed off-center on the northeast wall, two meters above ground level. The Ka'ba was then covered with two kiswas, a red cloth covered with a black one, that were annually replaced.

During the first Saudi extension to Masjid al-Haram in 1976, the interior of the Ka'ba was decorated with gold geometric motifs and inscribed with Quranic verses.