The Al-Qantara Mosque (), also known as Al-Madhoun Mosque () or Qabil Mosque (), is an abandoned historical

mosque A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a place of worship for Muslims. The term usually refers to a covered building, but can be any place where Salah, Islamic prayers are performed; such as an outdoor courtyard. Originally, mosques were si ...

from the

Ottoman era The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Central Euro ...

in the neighbourhood of Al-Mathnah in the city of At-Ta’if,

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

Background and history

Built during the time of

Sharif Sharīf or Sherif (, 'noble', 'highborn'), also spelled shareef, feminine sharīfa (), plural ashrāf (), shurafāʾ (), or (in the Maghreb) shurfāʾ, is a title used to designate a person descended, or claiming to be descended, from the fami ...

Abd al-Muttalib ibn Ghalib in the 19th century, the mosque is believed to be constructed upon one of the sites where the

Islamic Prophet Prophets in Islam () are individuals in Islam who are believed to spread God's message on Earth and serve as models of ideal human behaviour. Some prophets are categorized as messengers (; sing. , ), those who transmit divine revelation, mos ...

Muhammad Muhammad (8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious and political leader and the founder of Islam. Muhammad in Islam, According to Islam, he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the tawhid, monotheistic teachings of A ...

and his adopted son,

Zayd ibn Harithah Zayd ibn Ḥāritha al-Kalbī () (), was an early Muslim, Sahabi and the adopted son of the Islamic prophet, Muhammad. He is commonly regarded as the fourth person to have accepted Islam, after Muhammad's wife Khadija, Muhammad's cousin Ali, a ...

, took rest in an orchard while they were on their way back to

Mecca Mecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia; it is the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valley above ...

, in the aftermath of their expulsion by the leaders and residents of At-Ta’if around 620 C.E., during the

Year of Sorrow In the Islamic tradition, the Year of Sorrow (, also translated Year of Sadness) is the 10th year of prophethood in which Muhammad's wife Khadija bint Khuwaylid, Khadijah and his uncle and protector Abu Talib ibn Abd al-Muttalib , Abu Talib died. ...

. Pilgrims travelling to Mecca to perform

Hajj Hajj (; ; also spelled Hadj, Haj or Haji) is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims. Hajj is a mandatory religious duty for capable Muslims that must be carried out at least once in their lifetim ...

and

Umrah The Umrah () is an Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, the holiest city for Muslims, located in the Hejazi region of Saudi Arabia. It can be undertaken at any time of the year, in contrast to the '' Ḥajj'' (; "pilgrimage"), which has specific d ...

often pay visits and offer prayers in the mosque. After Taif's tribal leaders and residents rejected the message of

, they ordered their children to throw rock and stones at him and Zayd ibn Harithah. Both Muhammad and Zayd were badly injured and started bleeding as a result. Once outside the walls of Taif, Muhammad almost collapsed. After travelling for a short distance, they stopped in an orchard that belonged to Utaba and Sheba. The owners of the

orchard An orchard is an intentional plantation of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit tree, fruit- or nut (fruit), nut-producing trees that are generally grown for commercial production. Orchards are also so ...

had seen Muhammad being persecuted in Mecca and on this occasion they felt some sympathy toward their fellow townsman. The owners of the orchard sent a slave, named

Addas Addas () was a young Christian slave boy who lived in Taif, a mountainous area south of Mecca, during the times of Muhammad, the prophet of Islam. Originally from Nineveh, he was supposedly the first person from the western province of Taif to conv ...

, a young

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

boy who took Muhammad into his hut, dressed his wounds, and let him rest and recuperate until he felt strong enough to resume his journey across the rough terrain between At-Ta’if and Mecca. The mosque is said to have been constructed during the reign of

Abd al-Muttalib ibn Ghalib in mid-19th century, when Taif used to be part of the

Habesh Eyalet Habesh Eyalet (; ) was an Ottoman eyalet. It was also known as the Eyalet of Jeddah and Habesh, as Jeddah was its chief town, and Habesh and Hejaz. It extended on the areas of coastal Hejaz and Northeast Africa of Eritrea that border the Red Se ...

of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

. It derives its name from the al-Madhoun mountain.

References

External links

{{Mosques in Saudi Arabia 19th-century establishments in the Ottoman Empire 19th-century mosques in Saudi Arabia Former mosques in Saudi Arabia Mosque buildings with minarets in Saudi Arabia Mosques completed in the 1840s Mosques in At-Ta'if Religious buildings and structures completed in 1846 Year of establishment unknown

Background and history

See also

References

External links