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The Saparmurat Hajji ( tk, Saparmyrat Hajy metjidi) is a
The mosque has a dark green dome in the center, surrounded by four half-domes of lower height but same shade. The interior of the mosque is a square hall — extending outside to a square courtyard. Four minarets, each having a height of 63 meters, were installed at the four corners of this courtyard to represent the age of
mosque
A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...
in Gökdepe
Gökdepe, also Geok Tepe, is a city in and the administrative center of Gökdepe District, Ahal Region, Turkmenistan, north-west of Ashgabat. The city is built around a former fortress of the Turkmens which bore the same name. The city lies alon ...
, Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan ( or ; tk, Türkmenistan / Түркменистан, ) is a country located in Central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the sout ...
. Commissioned in memory of the defenders of Gökdepe Fortress, it was built between 1994 and 1995, during the presidency of President Saparmurat Niyazov. The mosque—with its blue dome and four minarets—is a prominent landmark in Gökdepe.
History
Ashgabat architect Kakajan Durdyyev designed the structure. The mosque was opened in 1995 and named in honor ofPresident of Turkmenistan
The president of Turkmenistan ( tk, Türkmenistanyň prezidenti), officially the president and chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers of Turkmenistan, is the head of state and head of government of Turkmenistan. The president is also the supreme c ...
Saparmurat Niyazov's Hajj in 1992. The tender went to Bouygues in 1994, who had the mosque built in one year.
In 2008, Turkish firm SUR Turizm Inşaat Ticaret ve sanayi LTD STI renovated the mosque, and additionally designed and built ritual banquet facilities with capacity of 1,000 guests plus the Gökdepe National Museum located on the mosque's grounds. The contract included landscaping of the surrounding territory. The cost of reconstruction plus building the banquet hall and museum was cited as $34 million.
Architecture
The mosque has a dark green dome in the center, surrounded by four half-domes of lower height but same shade. The interior of the mosque is a square hall — extending outside to a square courtyard. Four minarets, each having a height of 63 meters, were installed at the four corners of this courtyard to represent the age of Muhammad
Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد; 570 – 8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet divinely inspired to preach and confirm the mo ...
. Adjacent to the mosque in the east, is a two-floored complex centered around a star-shaped pool. Small white domes adorn the perimeter of the complex's ceiling as well as the mosque courtyard.
A chandelier—having 260 lamps—hangs from the center of the mosque. The walls are embossed with motifs of traditional Turkmen carpets while the interior of all domes are decorated with pastel blue designs. The mosque is reported to have a capacity for 8,000 worshipers.
See also
*Islam in Turkmenistan
According to a 2009 Pew Research Center report, 93.1% of Turkmenistan's population is Muslim. Traditionally, the Turkmen of Turkmenistan, like their kin in Uzbekistan are Sunni Muslims. Shia Muslims, the other main branch of Islam, are not numer ...
* Islamic architecture
Islamic architecture comprises the architectural styles of buildings associated with Islam. It encompasses both secular and religious styles from the early history of Islam to the present day. The Islamic world encompasses a wide geographic ...
* List of mosques
* Religion
Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, ...
* Türkmenbaşy Ruhy Mosque
Turkmenbashi Ruhy Mosque or Gypjak Mosque ( tk, Türkmenbaşy Ruhy Metjidi / Tүркменбaшы Рухы Mетҗиди) is a mosque in Gypjak, Turkmenistan and the resting place for Saparmurat Niyazov, the leader of Turkmenistan from 1985 to 2006 ...
Notes
References
{{Mosques in Turkmenistan 1995 establishments in Turkmenistan Mosques completed in 1995 Mosques in Turkmenistan Ahal Region Saparmurat Niyazov