Joanna James
Ever heard of the Sultan Qaboos Mosque in Oman? Nope, well here's your guide to one of the most fantastic mosques that are well worth a visit when you're in Oman.
Dominating the Muscat skyline, the Sultan Grand Mosque once laid claim to having the largest chandelier and carpet in the world. Even though these titles have been given away to new mosques in Emirates and Qatar, the Sultan Qaboos Mosque is still impressive. Take the spectacular chandelier in the men's prayer hall for example; measuring 14 metres and weighing 1,5 tonnes the chandelier features 24-carat gold plating, 600,000 Swarovski crystals and took 4 years to complete!
Worried about being turned away at the entrance because you're non-Muslim? There's no need to fret, the Sultan Qaboos Mosque opens its grand doors to all. However, you'll still need to follow some rules to get in. First and foremost, no kids under the age of 10 are allowed. You cannot use your cell phone, eat or drink within the prayer halls. Both men and women must be dressed modestly covering their shoulders and wear long skirts or trousers and women must cover their hair.
Love books? Well then, you're going to be delighted to hear that the Sultan Qaboos Mosque has an immense value for literature as well as art. There is a spectacular bar connecting the internal courtyard and the top of the mosque's wall that has elaborate inscriptions of the Thuluth script from the Koran. Filling the corridor archways are exquisite frameworks of Islamic geometrics. The front walls of the corridors feature Diwani script detailing the names of Allah.
Along the walls of the southern corridor, you will see a visible screen that holds the mosque's many facilities including the magnificent library which has an impressive number of over 20,000 reference volumes in Islamic culture, science and humanity. There's a section by the name of the Institute of Islamic Sciences that are dedicated to teaching young minds of the disciplines of religious knowledge.
There's the saying "Rome wasn't built in a day" and that is never truer in the case of the Sultan Qaboos Mosque which took six years to build! It's made from 300,000 tonnes of sandstone. Declared open in 2001, this majestic mosque covers an expanse of 416,000 square meters with the facility to hold up to 20,000 worshippers. The mosque is in the heart of Muscat city, just 13.9 kilometres away from Salalah International Airport and within a convenient distances of many hotels in Salalah the likes of Al Baleed Resort Salalah by Anantara. The mosque consists of four main sections namely the women's prayer hall, the main prayer hall, the lecture theatre and the library. It's open for non-Muslims for Saturday to Thursday from 8 am to 11 am. You can visit the library between Saturdays to Thursdays from 9 am to 2 am and 4 pm to 9 pm.
After doing all that exploring in the magnificent mosque, you're bound to feel a little hungry. Not to fret, there are many vendors selling delicious dates and coffee at the mosque. It's a great way to relax, refresh and learn about Omani life and culture from these vendors who will be delighted to share their stories with you.
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