Umayyad Mosque / Best Mosque

Umayyad Mosque

The Umayyad Mosque, also known as the Great Mosque of Damascus Romanization Gami Bani Umayya al-Kabir), located in the old city of Damascus, is one of the largest and oldest mosques in the world. It is considered by some Muslims to be the fourth-holiest place in Islam.

After the Arab conquest of Damascus in 634, the mosque was built on the site of a Christian basilica dedicated to John the Baptist (Yahya), honored as a prophet by Christians and Muslims alike. A legend dating to the 6th century holds that the building contains the head of John the Baptist. The mosque is also believed by Muslims to be the place whereJesus (Isa) will return at the End of Days. The tomb of Saladin stands in a small garden adjoining the north wall of the mosque.

Grande Mosquée Hassan II / Best Mosque

Grande Mosquée Hassan II

The Hassan II Mosque or Grande Mosquée Hassan II "Casablanca Hajj" colloquial, microblogging and social networking language is a mosque in Casablanca, Morocco. It is the largest mosque in Morocco and the 7th largest in the world. Its minaret is the world's tallest at 210 metres (689 ft). Completed in 1993, it was designed by Michel Pinseau and built by Bouygues. The minaret is 60 stories high topped by a laser, the light from which is directed towards Mecca. The mosque stands on a promontory looking out to the Atlantic Ocean, the sea bed being visible through the glass floor of the building's hall. The walls are of hand-crafted marble and the roof is retractable. A maximum of 105,000 worshippers can gather together for prayer: 25,000 inside the mosque hall and another 80,000 on the mosque's outside grounds.

Great Mosque in Djenne / Best Mosque

Great Mosque in Djenne

The Great Mosque of Djenne is a large banco or adobe building that is considered by many architects to be one of the greatest achievements of the Sudano-Sahelian architectural style. The mosque is located in the city of Djenne, Mali, on the flood plain of the Bani River. The first mosque on the site was built around the 13th century, but the current structure dates from 1907. As well as being the centre of the community of Djenne, it is one of the most famous landmarks in Africa. Along with the Old Towns of Djenne it was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1988.

The actual date of construction of the first mosque in Djenne is unknown, but dates as early as 1200 and as late as 1330 have been suggested.  The earliest document mentioning the mosque is Abd al-Sadi's Tarikh al-Sudan which gives the early history, presumably from the oral tradition as it existed in the mid seventeenth century. The tarikh states that a Sultan Kunburu became a Muslim and had his palace pulled down and the site turned into a mosque. He built another palace for himself near the mosque on the east side. His immediate successor built the towers of the mosque while the following Sultan built the surrounding wall.

There is no other written information on the Great Mosque until the French explorer Rene Caillie visited Djenne in 1828 and wrote In Jenne is a mosque built of earth, surmounted by two massive but not high towers; it is rudely constructed, though very large. It is abandoned to thousands of swallows, which build their nests in it. This occasions a very disagreeable smell, to avoid which, the custom of saying prayers in a small outer court has become common.

Tokyo Mosque (Tokyo, Japan) / Best Mosque

Tokyo Mosque (Tokyo, Japan)

Tokyo Camii, also known as Tokyo Mosque, is a mosque with an adjoining Turkish culture center located in the Ōyama-chō district of Shibuya ward in Tokyo, Japan. It is the largest mosque in Japan. The mosque was originally built along with an adjoining a school on May 12, 1938 by Tatar immigrants from Russia who had come to Japan after the October Revolution. It was made under the direction of Abdurresid Ibrahim, the first Imam of the mosque, and Abdulhay Kurban Ali.

In 1986, the mosque had to be demolished because of severe structural damage. Under the direction and support of Diyanet Isleri Baskanlıgı a new building was begun in 1998. The architect for the building was Muharrem Hilmi Senalp . The ornamentation was based on Ottoman religious architecture. Around 70 Turkish craftsmen performed the finishing details, and a considerable quantity of marble was imported from Turkey. The construction was completed in 2000 at a cost of around 1.5 billion yen. The inauguration was held on June 30, 2000.

Tokyo Camii is 734 square meters in area and has one basement floor and three above-ground floors with a total floor area of 1,477 square meters. Its main dome is 23.25 meters tall and is supported by six pillars, while the adjacent minaret is 41.48 meters tall.

Sunshine Mosque (Victoria, Australia) / Best Mosque

Sunshine Mosque (Victoria, Australia) 

In 1985, the Turkish Cypriot community in Melbourne saw the potential to build a mosque on a vacant block on Ballarat Road in Sunshine, Melbourne. Three members of the Cyprus Turkish Islamic Society offered their homes as guarantors to the Bank and became the proprietors of the lot for $191,000. Construction of the Turkish Cypriot Mosque began in 1992. The Mosque was designed to mirror the Sultan Ahmed Mosque in Istanbul, Turkey. According to a recent calculation by the committee of the Cyprus Turkish Islamic Society, the total expenditure of the Mosque exceeds $2,500,000. 

Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque (Muscat, Oman)/ Best Mosque

Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque (Muscat, Oman)

In 1992 Sultan Qaboos directed that his country of Oman should have a Grand Mosque. A competition for its design took place in 1993 and after a site was chosen at Bausher construction commenced in 1995. Building work, which was undertaken by Carillion Alawi LLC  took six years and four months.

The Mosque is built from 300,000 tonnes of Indian sandstone. The main musalla (prayer hall) is square (external dimensions 74.4 x 74.4 metres) with a central dome rising to a height of fifty metres above the floor. The dome and the main minaret (90 metres) and four flanking minarets (45.5 metres) are the mosque’s chief visual features. The main musalla can hold over 6,500 worshippers, while the women’s musalla can accommodate 750 worshipers. The outer paved ground can hold 8,000 worshipers and there is additional space available in the interior courtyard and the passageways, making a total capacity of up to 20,000 worshipers.

Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddin Mosque (Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei) / Best Mosque

Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddin Mosque (Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei)

Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque is an Islamic mosque located in Bandar Seri Begawan, the capital of the Sultanate of Brunei. Considered as one of the most beautiful mosques in the Asia Pacific, it is a place of worship for the Muslim community, a major landmark and a tourist attraction of Brunei.

Named after Omar Ali Saifuddien III, the 28th Sultan of Brunei who also initiated its construction, the mosque serves as a symbol of the Islamic faith in Brunei and dominates the skyline of Bandar Seri Begawan. The building was completed in 1958 and is an example of modern Islamic architecture.

The mosque unites Mughal architecture and Italian styles. The plans were done by Booty and Edwards Chartered Architects according to designs by the Italian architect Cavaliere Rudolfo Nolli, who had already for decades been working at the gulf of Siam.

Built in an artificial lagoon on the banks of the Brunei River at Kampong Ayer- the "village in the water", the mosque has marble minarets and golden domes, a courtyard and is surrounded by a large number of trees and floral gardens. A bridge reaches across the lagoon to Kampong Ayer in the middle of the river. Another marble bridge leads to a structure in the lagoon meant as a replica of a 16th Century Sultan Bolkiah Mahligai Barge. The barge itself was completed in 1967 to commemorate the 1,400th anniversary of Nuzul Al-Quran (coming down of the Quran) and was used to stage the Quran reading competitions.

The mosque's most recognizable feature - the main dome, is covered in pure gold. The mosque stands 52 m (171 ft) high and can be seen from virtually anywhere in Bandar Seri Begawan. The main minaret is the mosque's tallest feature. In a unique way it mixes Renaissance and Italian architectural style. The minaret has an elevator to the top, where a visitor can enjoy a panoramic view of the city.

The interior of the mosque is for prayer only, with features such as stained glass windows, arches, semi-domes and marble columns. Nearly all the material used for the building were imported from abroad: the marble from Italy, the granite from Shanghai, the crystal chandeliers from England and the carpets from Saudi Arabia.