Hijaz & the Arabian Peninsula
The cradle of revelation and the first mosques in Islamic history: from the Two Sanctuaries to the plain of Arafah and the cave of light.
Masjid al-Haram
Makkah, Saudi ArabiaThe holiest mosque in Islam and the qibla of prayer for fourteen centuries, containing the Kaaba, the well of …
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Masjid an-Nabawi
Madinah, Saudi ArabiaThe second of the Two Sanctuaries, containing the Rawdah and the Prophet's resting place, known for its toweri…
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Masjid Quba
Outskirts of Madinah, Saudi ArabiaThe first mosque built on righteousness — the Prophet ﷺ visited it every Saturday, riding or walking, and esta…
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Masjid al-Qiblatayn
Madinah, Saudi ArabiaA witness to a pivotal moment: where the Prophet ﷺ was commanded mid-prayer to turn from Jerusalem to the Kaab…
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Jabal Arafat
East of Makkah, Saudi ArabiaStanding at Arafah is the greatest pillar of Hajj: pilgrims gather in its plain on the 9th of Dhul-Hijjah for …
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Ghar Hira (Cave of Hira)
Jabal an-Nur near Makkah, Saudi ArabiaHere Gabriel brought the Prophet ﷺ the first verses of Surah al-Alaq. It is a spiritual summit overlooking the…
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Ghar Thawr (Cave of Thawr)
South of Makkah, Saudi ArabiaHere the Prophet ﷺ and his companion hid during the migration as Quraysh pursued them — a spider's web covered…
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Mount Uhud
North of Madinah, Saudi ArabiaThe most famous mountain in the memory of Muslims, for the Battle of Uhud fought at its foot. The Prophet ﷺ sa…
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Masjid al-Ghamama
Near the Prophet's Mosque, Madinah, Saudi ArabiaBuilt where the Prophet ﷺ prayed for rain and clouds soon covered the sky. It is one of the loveliest survivor…
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Masjid al-Taneem (Aisha)
Al-Taneem, north of Makkah, Saudi ArabiaThe nearest miqat to the Grand Mosque. Here Umm al-Mu'minin Aisha (may God be pleased with her) entered ihram …
Significance ←Jerusalem & Palestine
The first qibla and the third sanctuary: the land of the Night Journey and Ascension.
Al-Masjid al-Aqsa
Jerusalem, PalestineThe first qibla and the third sanctuary — here the Prophet ﷺ led the prophets in prayer on the Night Journey. …
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Dome of the Rock
Jerusalem, PalestineThe most beautiful surviving Umayyad building, standing over the blessed rock linked to the Prophet's ﷺ Ascens…
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Nabi Musa Shrine
On the Jerusalem–Jericho road, PalestineA Mamluk mosque and shrine associated with the Prophet Moses (peace be upon him), erected by Sultan Qalawun af…
Significance ←The Levant
Ancient mosques that carried the message of conquest and became schools of refined architecture.
The Umayyad Mosque (Damascus)
Damascus, SyriaAmong the wonders of Umayyad architecture, offering the world the model of the grand ornamented mosque. It con…
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The Ibrahimi Mosque
Hebron, PalestineThe holiest site in Islam after the Two Sanctuaries — it holds the tombs of Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob and t…
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The Great Nuri Mosque
Aleppo, SyriaAleppo's most famous historic mosque, with the celebrated square minaret of Zangid architecture, connected in …
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Khalid ibn al-Walid Mosque
Homs, SyriaHoms' greatest landmark, famed for its cylindrical minaret striped with black and white stone. It is associate…
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Takiyya al-Sulaymaniyya
On the Barada river, Damascus, SyriaSinan's masterpiece outside Anatolia: a great domed mosque with a vaulted summer prayer hall, twin Anatolian-s…
Significance ←Egypt & North Africa
From Fustat to Kairouan to Casablanca: monumental religious architecture that resisted a millennium.
Al-Azhar Mosque
Cairo, EgyptThe oldest working Islamic university and a beacon uniting jurisprudence, language and creed. Its successive m…
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Mosque of Ibn Tulun
Cairo, EgyptThe largest mosque in Cairo by area and a witness to the Abbasid style in Egypt. Its famous spiral minaret rec…
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Mosque of Amr ibn al-As
Fustat, Cairo, EgyptThe first mosque in Egypt and all of Africa, and the seed of Egypt's first Islamic capital. Its successive exp…
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Great Mosque of Kairouan
Kairouan, TunisiaThe third holiest site of the Muslim West, whose Roman columns and minaret document the transfer of Arab archi…
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Hassan II Mosque
Casablanca, MoroccoOne of the largest modern mosques, rising above the sea with a 210-meter minaret — the tallest in the world. A…
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Mosque of Muhammad Ali
Saladin Citadel, Cairo, EgyptThe "Alabaster Mosque," Cairo's highest landmark: a half-dome carried on four semi-domes, two of Egypt's talle…
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Mosque-Madrasa of Sultan Hassan
Central Cairo, EgyptA wonder of Mamluk architecture: a collegiate madrasa for the four schools of law around a vast courtyard, wit…
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Al-Zaytuna Mosque
Medina of Tunis, TunisiaThe second great mosque of old Africa after Kairouan and the scholarly heart of Tunis for centuries; graduates…
Significance ←Turkey & the Balkans
The summit of Ottoman art: domes that race the sky and minarets along the Bosphorus.
Hagia Sophia
Istanbul, TürkiyeA monument uniting Byzantine domes with Islamic art — the first giant dome in history. After the conquest it b…
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Sultan Ahmed Mosque (Blue Mosque)
Istanbul, TürkiyeIstanbul's most famous mosque with its six minarets and blue Iznik tiles that gave it its name. It stands face…
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Suleymaniye Mosque
Istanbul, TürkiyeSinan's greatest work: a dome 26.5 meters wide on semi-domes, with its heritage library and mausoleums holding…
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Selimiye Mosque
Edirne, TürkiyeSinan declared it his masterpiece: a dome 31 meters wide among the widest free-standing domes in the world, an…
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Fatih Mosque
Fatih district, Istanbul, TürkiyeThe first great sultanic mosque of Istanbul after the Conquest, raised by Mehmed II on the site of the Byzanti…
Significance ←Asia
The great mosques of Asia: from Delhi's Grand Mosque to the Taj Mahal to Islamabad.
Taj Mahal
Agra, IndiaThe most beautiful masterpiece of Indo-Islamic architecture, built as a mausoleum for Mumtaz Mahal, set in gar…
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Jama Masjid (Great Mosque of Delhi)
Old Delhi, IndiaIndia's largest mosque hosting the great Friday prayer, standing in Old Delhi near the Red Fort. Its striped m…
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Badshahi Mosque
Lahore, PakistanAmong the greatest Mughal buildings in Pakistan, with its red sandstone walls and three ornamented domes — it …
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Faisal Mosque
Islamabad, PakistanA contemporary mosque breaking the classical mold with a desert-tent form — praised for marrying modern geomet…
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Istiqlal Mosque
Jakarta, IndonesiaThe largest mosque in Southeast Asia and among the largest in the world, with a main dome over 45 meters wide …
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Wazir Khan Mosque
Lahore, PakistanThe pearl of Lahore and the most richly decorated of Mughal mosques: turquoise, blue and orange faience tiles …
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Imam Reza Shrine
Mashhad, IranThe largest mosque and shrine complex in the world by area: a soaring golden dome, vast courtyards, seminaries…
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Bibi-Khanym Mosque
Samarkand, UzbekistanCounted the largest mosque of its age: a gateway above 35 metres, turquoise domes and colossal arches built by…
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Putra Mosque (the Pink Mosque)
Putrajaya, MalaysiaModern Malaysia's icon on the shores of Lake Putrajaya: a rose-granite dome quarried from Borneo, a minaret 11…
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Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque
Muscat, OmanOman's modern masterpiece: a hand-woven carpet among the largest in the world, made in Iran by some 600 artisa…
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Great Mosque of Xi'an
Muslim Quarter, Xi'an, ChinaChina's oldest and largest mosque and the heart of the old Muslim quarter: a courtyard ringed by wooden Chines…
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Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque
Bandar Seri Begawan, BruneiBrunei's icon and among the loveliest mosques of South-East Asia: a gilded dome over Italian marble, a minaret…
Significance ←Al-Andalus & Europe
The shores of Maghrebi architecture in Spain: from Córdoba to Granada to Seville.
Mosque of Córdoba
Córdoba, SpainThe architectural wonder of al-Andalus: a forest of 856 columns of jasper, onyx, marble and granite, and a mih…
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The Alhambra
Granada, SpainThe last and most beautiful palace of Muslim al-Andalus: stucco-carved halls, the Comares palace, the Hall of …
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La Giralda of Seville
Seville, SpainThe minaret of the Great Mosque of Seville — the most famous Maghrebi minaret in Spain, sister to the Hassan T…
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Koutoubia Mosque
Marrakesh, MoroccoMarrakesh's great mosque, its minaret (77 m) the highest landmark of the red city — the Almohad minaret type r…
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Grande Mosquée de Paris
5th arrondissement, Paris, FranceThe first mosque founded in modern France and one of the oldest in Western Europe, raised in honour of colonia…
Significance ←West Africa
The giant earthen mosques of the Niger basin: living architecture renewed every year.
Great Mosque of Djenné
Djenné, MaliThe largest earthen building in the world and the symbol of Sudano-Sahelian architecture: walls of mud and mor…
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Sankore Mosque
Timbuktu, MaliA mosque-school among the centers of learning that led the writing movement in West Africa, beside the histori…
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Larabanga Mosque
Larabanga, northern GhanaGhana's oldest mosque and one of the oldest in West Africa, in the pure Sudanese mud-brick style with twin tow…
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Great Mosque of Agadez
Old city of Agadez, NigerThe heart of the historic caravan city on the Saharan route: a pointed mud minaret 27 metres tall studded with…
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