Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, located in Abu Dhabi, the capital city of UAE, is one of the most dazzling Islamic architectural monuments in the modern world. It is the largest mosque in the UAE and can accommodate more than 40,000 worshippers. The construction of the mosque, commissioned by the late ruler of UAE, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan al-Nahyan, started in 1996 and completed in 2007. The mosque is spread over an area of more than 12 hectares, with a courtyard that measures about 180,000 square feet. The mosque is flanked by four imposing minarets, which rise 351 feet. There are 94 columns in the central prayer hall, which are overlaid with marble and inlaid with mother-of-pearl. The marble used in the mosque has been sourced from Italy, India and China.

The huge chandeliers have been imported from Germany and the carpet in the central hall, the largest in the world measuring 60,570 square feet, was made in Iran. The walls and the mihrab are embellished in the Kufi, Thuluth and Naskhi styles of calligraphy.

According to TripAdvisor, a travel planning and booking website, Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque has been ranked as the second most favourite landmark in the world. The mosque surpassed such world-renowned landmarks as St Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City, the Taj Mahal in India and the Eiffel Tower. In 2017, more than 52,00,000 people visited the mosque, of which 14,00,000 were worshippers, 28,00,000 visitors and tourists and 872,000 Iftar guests in Ramadan.

Interior of the mosque with the chandeliers


























The mosque has the world’s largest marble mosaic