Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque
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The Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque is the main Mosque in all of Oman. It is located in the Bawshar district of Mucast, can hold up to 20,000 worshipers and covers an estimated area of 416,000 square meters.
Waymark Code: WMGE2Q
Location: Oman
Date Posted: 02/20/2013
Views: 4
The Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque is the main Mosque in the Sultanate of Oman. It is located in the Bawshar district of the capital Mucast and was inaugurated by His Majesty the Sultan in 2001, after six years of construction.
The developed part of the site -- including the fully consolidated areas and landscaping -- covers 416,000 square meters. The Mosque complex itself covers 10% of that area, constructed from 300,000 metric tons of Indian sandstone and built on a raised podium in keeping with the tradition of Omani mosques being placed elevated from street level. The complex can accommodate up to 20,000 worshippers and consists of a main prayer hall, a ladies prayer hall, covered passageways, a meeting hall, and a library which will eventually contain up to 20,000 books. The main square-shaped prayer room can accommodate 6,500 worshipers and has a central dome which rises 50 meters above the floor.
The whole interior of the Grand Mosque is panelled with off-white and dark grey marble panelling clothed in cut tile work. Ceramic floral patterns adorn arch framed mural panels set in the marble forming blind niches in a variety of classical Persian, predominantly Safavid, designs. The ceilings are inspired by those of Omani forts. The mihrab in the main prayer hall is framed by a border of Quranic verses and a gilded ceramic surround. The dome comprises a series of ornate, engraved stained glass triangles within a framework of marble columns, and a Swarovski crystal chandelier with gold-plated metalwork hangs down for a length of 14 meters.
A major feature of the main prayer hall is the hand-made Persian carpet consisting of 1.7 billion knots, weighing 21 metric tons and made in a single piece measuring 70 x 60 meters. From design stage it took 4 years and 600 weavers to complete, and as of this posting is the 2nd largest hand-woven carpet in the world.
Sources:
(1) Oman Ministry of Information - (
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(2) Wikipedia - (
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