The heritage mosques of Cochin

Text © Patricia Tusa Fels. Reproduced by permission of Mapin Publishing.

Cochin — the historic port-city on the Malabar coast in Kerala — has for centuries remained a centre of maritime trade along the Indian Ocean. These commercial contacts brought with them the earliest influences of Christianity, Judaism and Islam to India, resulting in a cosmopolitan mosaic of people in the region. Against this backdrop, some of the very first Indian mosques were built, located in compounds replete with coconut palms. The tropical mosques reveal a distinctive legacy in form, acknowledging and celebrating the place, history, and building techniques of the region.

The unique architecture of the Indian Ocean trade settlements, reflecting common climate and building materials, forms its own subset of Islamic architecture. The mosques of Kerala are some of the few remaining examples of a typology that once appeared throughout the tropical Muslim world of South and Southeast Asia. The concentrations of the unique Malabar mosques can be found in the coastal cities of Cochin, Calicut and Ponnani. Most of these vernacular mosques were constructed by resident masons and carpenters who were well versed in local design idioms and methods. Many of them have recently been demolished or remodeled, and replaced by generic concrete structures.

Cochin waterway with a fleet of thoni delivering goods, circa 1950.
©Krishnan Nair Studio / Published in ‘Mosques of Cochin’ by Patricia Tusa Fels.
Until recently, all the products of the region - spices, wood produce, rice, bamboo - arrived by thoni, the country boats, at the portside 'godowns', or warehouses. Foreign goods arrived from China, Southeast Asia and Arabia. The Malabar coast served as an entrepôt for the Middle East and Southeast Asia, a hinge between the western and eastern ends of the Indian Ocean.
Text © Patricia Tusa Fels. Reproduced by permission of Mapin Publishing.

The seaside today with Chinese fishing nets in the background.
©Donald Fels / Published in ‘Mosques of Cochin’ by Patricia Tusa Fels
It was with the arrival of Vasco da Gama and the Portuguese attempt to control all overseas commerce that violence entered the trading world of Malabar. From the sixteenth to the nineteenth century, change swirled around the people of the coast. The Portuguese were replaced by the Dutch and then the English. Fort Cochin, at the northern tip of a peninsula, became the first European settlement in India, and one of the few with a history of Portuguese, Dutch and English presence.

One of the many streetside traders of Kerala.
©Donald Fels / Published in ‘Mosques of Cochin’ by Patricia Tusa Fels
The spice trade, assisted by the trade winds, carried Islam to south India and Southeast Asia. Many of the original Muslims of Kerala came from Gujarat, Yemen and Baghdad. Traders survived and flourished because of their ability to adapt, often accommodating their religious practices with local traditions.

Rooftop view of Cutchi Hanafi Mosque
©Feroze Babu / Published in ‘Mosques of Cochin’ by Patricia Tusa Fels
The indigenous Kerala mosque architecture and the story of its growth from trade across the Arabian Sea provide a valuable historical example of cultural adaptation. From the early trading days of Cochin there has been a Gujarati presence, of Cutchi Memons and Jains, from Kachchh. This mosque, located on Bazar Road, was built by the Cutchi Memon community in 1815.

©Feroze Babu / Published in ‘Mosques of Cochin’ by Patricia Tusa Fels
The ablution pool at Cutchi Hanafi Mosque.

A view of Thakyavu Palli from the water.
©Feroze Babu / Published in ‘Mosques of Cochin’ by Patricia Tusa Fels
South of the Dutch Town and Jewtown areas of Cochin sits Kochangadi, the original Muslim quarter located within Mattancherry area. Found here is this mosque (the taller structure seen in the background), whose entrance faces the backwaters. The mosque was probably built in early nineteenth century.

Carved inscription boards above prayer hall entry doors at Chembitta Palli
©Feroze Babu / Published in ‘Mosques of Cochin’ by Patricia Tusa Fels
Built sometime between the years 1520 and 1540, this is one of the oldest and finest mosques of the area. Elements adopted from Kerala houses and temples define the architecture of the mosque.

Grand entrance gable and balcony at Ponnani Juma Masjid.
©Donald Fels / Published in ‘Mosques of Cochin’ by Patricia Tusa Fels
Ponnani, a port city located north of Cochin, was inhabited from first century AD, and it was a religious centre of temples and mosques. The Ponnani Juma Masjid was built in the 1500s. The fantastic displays of mosques such as this one and Chembitta Palli may have been a direct response to the Portuguese efforts at destruction of the Muslims’ trade dominance and their faith.

Abandoned building along the Cochin waterfront.
©Donald Fels / Published in ‘Mosques of Cochin’ by Patricia Tusa Fels
Cochin is sited on a peninsula, with the Arabian Sea to the west, a sheltered waterway and port to the east, and the river channel’s opening to the sea at the north. The natural harbour connected inland backwaters and global sea-lanes, offering a protected landing for generations of overseas traders and local merchants. As peninsular Cochin slipped into a daydream, the mainland area of Ernakulam and the new port of Willingdon Island became the centres of modern industry.

Entrance to Calvathy Canal from the harbour
©Donald Fels / Published in ‘Mosques of Cochin’ by Patricia Tusa Fels
The bridge across the Calvathy canal separated Fort Cochin, which was under British control, from the native ruler’s domain. Just past the canal, in what was the European preserve, sits the Calvathy Mosque. The mosque and the nearby canal are the meeting point between the historic European compound of Fort Cochin and the ‘native’ city.

A vernacular mosque seen through the tropical palms
©Donald Fels/ Published in ‘Mosques of Cochin’ by Patricia Tusa Fels
Sited in compounds replete with coconut palms, the mosques of Malabar offer an oasis of tranquility in the densely populated neighbourhoods. Large wood-framed pyramidal roofs, deep overhangs, and fine wooden craftsmanship distinguish a Kerala vernacular that reflects the climate, the culture and the materials of the place. The adoption and adaptation of the local vernacular by the Muslim congregations for their mosques is undocumented and unappreciated phenomenon.

About the book
Mosques of Cochin by Particia Tusa Fels (Published in 2011 by Mapin Publishing in association with Centre For Heritage, Environment and Development, Corporation of Cochin) documents the vernacular mosques of Cochin and Ponnani, which stand as powerful and visible expressions of Islam’s integration into the culture of Malabar. The book - with its abundant, beautiful, and detailed photography - documents a rapidly vanishing architecture. It also points the way to a twenty-first century modern Indian city that taps into the uniquely rich local heritage in building, conservation, and urbanism, of which the mosques have been an integral part for many centuries now.

Author Patricia Tusa Fels, architect and conservationist, has written a unique account of an ancient Indian Ocean Islamic architectural heritage.

More information about the book and purchase information available at the website of Mapin Publishing