Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque
{{Short description|Mosque in the Sultanate of Oman}}
{{Other uses|Sultan Qaboos Mosque (disambiguation){{!}}Sultan Qaboos Mosque}}
{{Infobox religious building
| building_name = Sultan Qaboos Grand Masjid
| native_name = {{transliteration|ar|Jāmiʿ As-Sulṭān Qābūs Al-Akbar}} ({{lang|ar|جَامِع ٱلسُّلْطَان قَابُوْس ٱلْأَكْبَر}})
| image = Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque RB.jpg
| image_size = 250px
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| map_type = Oman#Middle East#West Asia
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| map_caption = Location in Muscat, Oman
| map_relief = 1
| location = Muscat
| coordinates = {{coord|23|35|02|N|58|23|21|E|region:OM_type:landmark|display=title}}
| religious_affiliation = Islam
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| region = Eastern Arabia
| country = Oman
| state = Muscat
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| functional_status = Active
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| architect = Edgard Bali (interior)
Quad Design with Mohamed Makiya (exterior)
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| architecture_style = Contemporary Islamic
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| year_completed = May 2001
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| specifications = yes
| capacity = 25,000
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The Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque ({{langx|ar|{{Script|Arab|جَامِع ٱلسُّلْطَان قَابُوْس ٱلْأَكْبَر}}|Jāmiʿ As-Sulṭān Qābūs Al-Akbar}})[http://www.omantourism.gov.om/wps/portal/mot/tourism/oman/details/!ut/p/a0/04_Sj9CPykssy0xPLMnMz0vMAfGjzOItvc1dg40MzAz8Tc0NDTyDAwINvF19DN0DzPULsh0VAek2Ufo!/?WCM_GLOBAL_CONTEXT=/wps/wcm/connect/mot_english_lib/mot/experience/culture/mosques/grand+mousque Official site from the Ministry of Tourism] is the largest mosque in Oman, located in the capital city of Muscat.{{cite news |publisher=Times Now |title=PM Narendra Modi visits Oman's Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque - Know its India connection |location=Muscat |url=https://www.timesnownews.com/the-buzz/article/narendra-modi-oman-sultan-qaboos-grand-mosque-muscat-shiva-temple-pm-modi-in-muscat-mosque/197507 |date=2018-02-12 |access-date=2019-01-21}}
Construction
In 1992, the then Sultan of Oman, Qaboos bin Said Al Said, directed that his country should have a Grand Mosque. In 1993, a competition for the design of the proposed mosque took place. The building contract was awarded to Carillion Alawi LLC.{{cite web |title=Oman Green Awards picks Carillion as 'Green Guardian' |url=http://www.omaninfo.com/news/oman-green-awards-picks-carillion-green-guardian.asp |website=Oman Information Center |access-date=1 May 2017 |language=en |date=June 25, 2011}} Construction commenced in December 1994, after a site was chosen at Bausher, and it took six years and seven months to build the mosque.{{cite web |title=Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque |url=http://www.carillionalawi.com/projects/grandmosque.html |website=Carillion |access-date=1 May 2017}}
The mosque is made of different type of stones, with doors, windows and embellishments made of wood and glass. Around 300,000 tons of Indian sandstone was imported for the building. Five minarets have been built around the premises of the mosque: the main minaret ({{convert|90|m}}) in height, and the four flanking minarets ({{convert|45.5|m}}) are the mosque’s chief visual features from the exterior. In the interior, the main musalla is the focus of both prayer and tourism. The prayer hall is square in shape and {{convert|74.4|x|74.4|m|ft|abbr=off}} has a central dome rising to a height of {{convert|50|m}} above the floor.{{cite web|title=Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque|url=http://www.omantourism.gov.om/wps/portal/mot/tourism/oman/details/!ut/p/a0/04_Sj9CPykssy0xPLMnMz0vMAfGjzOItvc1dg40MzAz8Tc0NDTyDAwINvF19DN0DzPULsh0VAek2Ufo!/?WCM_GLOBAL_CONTEXT=/wps/wcm/connect/mot_english_lib/mot/experience/culture/mosques/grand+mousque|website=Sultanate of Oman|accessdate=1 May 2017}} The dome is embellished spectacularly from the inside and it is a major tourist attraction in itself. The main musalla can hold over 6500 worshippers, while the women's musalla can accommodate 750 worshipers. The outer paved ground can hold 8000 worshipers and there is additional space available in the interior courtyard and the passageways, making a total capacity of up to 20,000 worshipers.{{cite web|title=A photo journey of the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque|url=http://gulfnews.com/multimedia/framed/travel/a-photo-journey-of-the-sultan-qaboos-grand-mosque-1.798831|website=GulfNews|accessdate=1 May 2017|date=April 25, 2011}}
The mosque is built on a site occupying {{cvt|416,000|m2}}, and the complex extends to cover an area of {{cvt|40,000|m2}}. The newly built Grand Mosque was inaugurated by Sultan of Oman on May 4, 2001 to celebrate 30 years of his reign.{{cite news |last1=Rayner |first1=Gordon |title=Watch: Prince Harry given tour of Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque in Muscat |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/prince-harry/11242518/Watch-Prince-Harry-given-tour-of-Sultan-Qaboos-Grand-Mosque-in-Muscat.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141120122634/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/prince-harry/11242518/Watch-Prince-Harry-given-tour-of-Sultan-Qaboos-Grand-Mosque-in-Muscat.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=20 November 2014 |accessdate=8 July 2019 |work=Telegraph.co.uk |date=20 November 2014 |language=en}}
Interior
File:Oman3-011 (8481240348).jpg
A major feature of the design of the interior is the prayer carpet which covers the floor of the prayer hall. It contains, 1,700,000,000 knots, weighs 21 tonnes and took four years to produce with over 600 workers and handmade , and brings together the classical Persian Tabriz, Kashan and Isfahan design traditions. 28 colors in varying shades were used, the majority obtained from traditional vegetable dyes. It used to be the largest single-piece carpet in the world, but is now the second{{cite web |last=Batra |first=Ashish |title=Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque, Muscat: An Iconic Architectural Wonder |publisher=Worldarchitecture.org |url=https://worldarchitecture.org/architecture-news/ehnem/sultan_qaboos_grand_mosque_muscat_an_iconic_architectural_wonder.html |date=2018-08-10 |access-date=2019-01-21}} after the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi, the UAE.{{cite news |publisher=Web India 123 |title=Iran weaves world's largest carpet |url=http://news.webindia123.com/news/Articles/World/20070728/726654.html |date=2007-07-28}} This hand-woven carpet was produced by Iran Carpet Company (ICC) at the order of the Diwan of the Royal Court of Sultanate. The carpet measures over {{convert|70|×|60|m|ft|abbr=off}}, and covers the {{cvt|4,343|m2}} area of the praying hall.
The chandelier above the praying hall is {{convert|14|m|ft|abbr=off}} tall and was manufactured by the Italian company Faustig. Since the mosque is {{convert|90|m|ft|abbr=off}} high, the chandelier looks proportional, but it used to be the world's largest chandelier, before again being replaced in this respect by the Sheikh Zayed Mosque in Abu Dhabi.{{cite web|title=World Record 2007 – Abu Dhabi|url=http://www.faustig.de/referenzen/world-record-2007/|website=Faustig|accessdate=1 May 2017|language=de}} It weighs 8.5 tons, includes 600,000 crystals, 1,122 halogen bulbs complete with a dimming system, and includes a staircase for maintenance within the chandelier. Thirty-four smaller chandeliers of the same design are hung in other parts of the building.[https://www.classicalchandeliers.co.uk/the-biggest-chandelier-in-the-world Classical chandeliers in the World]
Gallery
File:Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque Entrance 2019.jpg|View of the minaret from the entrance
File:Grand Mosque Muscat (19) (40275047024).jpg|The mihrab
File:Grand Mosque Muscat (25) (40275044984).jpg|The chandelier in the main prayer hall
File:Flickr - JB London - Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque..jpg|Corridor
File:Oman 2014 (16037903977).jpg|Carpet
File:Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque (19).jpg|Electric lighting
File:Grand Mosque Muscat (22) (40275045734).jpg|Window design
File:Moschea di Muscat.jpg|Detail of the inner dome
See also
{{portal|Oman}}
References
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External links
{{commons category}}
- In Arabic
- [https://www.classicalchandeliers.co.uk/the-biggest-chandelier-in-the-world Biggest Chandelier in the World]
- [http://www.sultanqaboosgrandmosque.com/ Official Panoramic virtual tour of the Grand Mosque by the Diwan of Royal Court]
{{Mosques in Oman}}
Category:2001 establishments in Oman
Category:Mosques completed in 2001
Category:Buildings and structures in Muscat, Oman
Category:Mosque buildings with domes in Asia
Category:Culture in Muscat, Oman