How did early Islamic architecture use mosaics and wall paintings?

In early Islamic architecture, mosaics and wall paintings were primarily utilized in Syria, Palestine, and Spain, following the established practices of antiquity. These decorative techniques were often executed by specialists, including Greek craftsmen summoned from Byzantium, as seen in the Dome of the Rock and the Umayyad Mosque of Damascus.12

Architectural decoration served several purposes:

• Symbolism: In early mosques, mosaics and paintings often featured iconographic programs. For example, the vegetal motifs at the Umayyad Mosque were intended to symbolize an idealized paradise on earth, while the crowns depicted in the Jerusalem sanctuary likely represented conquered empires.1
• Secular Illustration: In palaces such as Qaṣr ʿAmrah and Khirbat al-Mafjar, wall paintings and mosaics illustrated the life of the prince, featuring hunting scenes, musicians, dancers, and depictions of the monarch enthroned.1
• Ornamentation: Many motifs were borrowed from the decorative vocabularies of pre-Islamic Iran and the Mediterranean world, such as marble imitations, vegetal bands, and geometric borders, which emphasized the structural contours of the buildings.1