Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque

The enchanting city of Muscat is washed by the blue waters of the Arabian Sea and guarded by the gigantic mountains that tower up against the sky forming a gorgeous skyline. Nature has always endowed the city of Muscat wit her enchanting and marvelous gifts. On top of that, the different places of sightseeing in Muscat also add to the splendors of this city. The main religion in Muscat being Islam, there are a number of mosques in the city. The Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque is the third largest mosque in the world and the most popular in the city of Muscat.

The Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque in Muscat is a must-see for the tourists to the city. Muslims are allowed to enter the mosque on any day. It is a custom for the women entering this mosque to wear dresses that cover their legs and hands. Even the men are preferred to be in long trousers and shirt. For non-Muslims, visiting this wonderful architectural creation, there are specific days and timings allotted for the same in the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque of Muscat in Oman

It was in the year 1992 that Sultan Qaboos wanted a Grand Mosque in his homeland. The whole process of planning and building this mosque took around nine years and the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque was opened to the public in 2001.

The Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque is constructed from 300,000 tons of Indian sandstone. The central dome rises to a height of fifty meters above the floor. The main building of the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque covers an area of 40,000 square meters. Accommodating up to 20,000 worshippers, the interiors of the mosque is made up of off-white and dark-grey marbles.

The most remarkable feature of the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque is the large carpet inside it. It is the largest hand-woven Persian carpet in the world. It has 1,700 million knots and has a weight of about 21 tons. The carpet itself took four long years to weave. It measures around 70 meters by 60 meters and has 28 varied colors in it.