Great Mosque of Xi'an

Great Mosque of Xi'an
西安大清真寺

Great Mosque of Xi'an

A walkway in the Great Mosque of Xi'an
Basic information
Location Xi'an, China
Geographic coordinates 34°15′48″N 108°56′11″E / 34.2633°N 108.9364°E / 34.2633; 108.9364Coordinates: 34°15′48″N 108°56′11″E / 34.2633°N 108.9364°E / 34.2633; 108.9364
Affiliation Islam
Architectural description
Specifications

The Great Mosque of Xi'an[1] (Chinese: 西安大清真寺; pinyin: Xīān Dà Qīngzhēnsì) is located near the Drum Tower on 30 Huajue Lane of Xi'an, Shaanxi province, China. The mosque covers 12,000 square meters.

History

It is the oldest and one of the most renowned mosques in the country, founded in 742[2] during the Tang dynasty (618-907).[3] However, the majority of the existing Xi’an Great Mosque was constructed during the Ming dynasty and further expanded in the Qing dynasty.

It was built and renovated in later periods (especially during the reign of the Hongwu Emperor of the Ming dynasty). It remains a popular tourist site of Xi'an, and is still used by Chinese Muslims (mainly the Hui people) today as a place of worship. Unlike most mosques in Middle Eastern or Arab countries, the Great Mosque of Xi'an is completely Chinese in its construction and architectural style, except for some Arabic lettering and decorations, for the mosque has neither domes nor traditional-style minarets.[4]

Occupying an area of over 12,000 square meters, the Great Mosque is divided into four courtyards, 250 meters long and 47 meters wide with a well-arranged layout. Landscaped with gardens, the further one strolls into its interior, the more serene one feels.The first courtyard contains an elaborate wooden arch nine meters high covered with glazed tiles that dates back to the 17th century. In the center of the second courtyard, a stone arch stands with two steles on both sides. On one stele is the script of a famous calligrapher named Mi Fu of the Song dynasty; the other is from Dong Qichang, a calligrapher of the Ming dynasty. Their calligraphy because of such elegant yet powerful characters is considered to be a great treasure in the art of handwriting.At the entrance to the third courtyard is a hall that contains many steles from ancient times. As visitors enter this courtyard, they will see the Xingxin Tower, a place where Muslims come to attend prayer services. A 'Phoenix' placed in the fourth courtyard, the principal pavilion of this great mosque complex, contains the Prayer Hall, the surrounding walls of which are covered with colored designs. This Hall can easily hold 1,000 people at a time and according to traditional custom, prayer services are held five times everyday respectively at dawn, noon, afternoon, dusk and night.[3]

Gallery

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Great Mosque of Xi'an.

Notes

  1. ↑ Kees Versteegh; Mushira Eid (2005). Encyclopedia of Arabic Language and Linguistics: A-Ed. Brill. pp. 379–. ISBN 978-90-04-14473-6.
  2. ↑ Britannica Educational Publishing (2010). The Geography of China: Sacred and Historic Places. Britannica Educational Publishing. pp. 181–182. ISBN 978-1-61530-182-9.
  3. 1 2 http://english.shaanxi.gov.cn/articleTourism/tourism/touristproduct/attractions/201303/30839_1.html
  4. ↑ Asian Historical Architecture at www.orientalarchitecture.com

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Sunday, January 24, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.