Urfa Grand Mosque

In Islamic civilization, the first congregational mosque (ulucami) is the Masjid an-Nabawi, built by the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and his companions in the first year of the Hijra. This mosque later served as a model for subsequent congregational mosques. The congregational mosque is one of the symbols of Islam and the central space of an Islamic city, the largest place of worship that brings Muslims together for Friday and Eid prayers, and a place for education, teaching, and consultation.

An example of this approach, the Urfa Grand Mosque, was first built in 641 by Sa'id ibn 'Amir ibn Hizyam al-Jumahi al-Qurashi, the governor of the al-Jazira region during the time of Caliph Umar (RA), and thus took its place in history. Its minaret was built by Emir Bozan during the Seljuk period. The dome covering the top of the minaret was destroyed in the late Ottoman period. In the early 1900s, a square-plan canopy was built in place of the destroyed dome. It was Nur ad-Din Mahmud Zengi, the Atabeg of Damascus and Aleppo, who rebuilt the Urfa Grand Mosque in its current form.

Kasım Şulul meticulously examines this mosque, which is one of the unique examples not only of our country but also of Islamic history and civilization, in terms of both its architectural and historical features, practically engraving the mosque into our memory with countless visuals.