Khamis Mosque
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The Khamis Mosque (;
transliterated Transliteration is a type of conversion of a text from one writing system, script to another that involves swapping Letter (alphabet), letters (thus ''wikt:trans-#Prefix, trans-'' + ''wikt:littera#Latin, liter-'') in predictable ways, such as ...
: ''Masǧid al-ḫamīs'') is believed to be the first mosque in
Bahrain Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...
, built during the era of the
Umayyad The Umayyad Caliphate or Umayyad Empire (, ; ) was the second caliphate established after the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and was ruled by the Umayyad dynasty. Uthman ibn Affan, the third of the Rashidun caliphs, was also a membe ...
caliph
Umar II Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz ibn Marwan (; February 720) was the eighth Umayyad caliph, ruling from 717 until his death in 720. He is credited to have instituted significant reforms to the Umayyad central government, by making it much more efficient and ...
. According to '' Al Wasat'' journalist Kassim Hussain, other sources mention that it was built in a later era during the rule of
Uyunids The Uyunid dynasty () were an Arab dynasty that ruled Eastern Arabia for 163 years, from the 11th to the 13th centuries. Their sect is disputed; some sources mention they were Shia, others Sunni. They were, like the majority of the people of Ea ...
with one
minaret A minaret is a type of tower typically built into or adjacent to mosques. Minarets are generally used to project the Muslim call to prayer (''adhan'') from a muezzin, but they also served as landmarks and symbols of Islam's presence. They can h ...
. The second was built two centuries later during the rule of
Usfurids The Usfurids () were an Arab dynasty that in 1253 gained control of Eastern Arabia, including the islands of Bahrain. They were a branch of Uqaylids who re-migrated to Arabia after the fall of their rule in Syria. Name The dynasty is named a ...
. The identical twin minarets of this ancient Islamic monument make it easily noticeable as one drives along the ''Shaikh Salman Road'' in Khamis.


History

It is considered to be one of the oldest mosques in the
region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...
, as its foundation is believed to have been laid as early as 692 CE. An inscription found on the site, however, suggests a foundation date of sometime during the 11th century. It has since been rebuilt twice in both the 14th and 15th centuries, when the
minaret A minaret is a type of tower typically built into or adjacent to mosques. Minarets are generally used to project the Muslim call to prayer (''adhan'') from a muezzin, but they also served as landmarks and symbols of Islam's presence. They can h ...
s were constructed. The Khamis mosque has been partially restored recently.


Structure

The present building has two main phases: *An early prayer hall with a flat roof supported by wooden
columns A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. In other words, a column is a compression member ...
dated to the 14th century. *A later section of the flat roof was added, supported on
arch An arch is a curved vertical structure spanning an open space underneath it. Arches may support the load above them, or they may perform a purely decorative role. As a decorative element, the arch dates back to the 4th millennium BC, but stru ...
es resting on thick masonry piers (which have been dated to 1339) Islam was propagated to Bahrain in the 7th century CE when
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 ...
sent an envoy Al-Ala'a Al-Hadrami, preaching Islam to
Munzir ibn Sawa Al Tamimi Al-Mundhir ibn Sawi al-Tamimi () was the governor of the Persian Sasanian Empire of historical Bahrain, the eastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula opposite of Tihamah. Al-Mundhir was a prominent Arab chief and Tabi'un in the 7th century who ha ...
, the Governor of Qatar and Bahrain at the time.


Mihrab Slab

Mihrab slab was a
limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...
slab Slab or SLAB may refer to: Physical materials * Concrete slab, a flat concrete plate used in construction * Stone slab, a flat stone used in construction * Slab (casting), a length of metal * Slab (geology), that portion of a tectonic plate that ...
, in the form of a
mihrab ''Mihrab'' (, ', pl. ') is a niche in the wall of a mosque that indicates the ''qibla'', the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca towards which Muslims should face when praying. The wall in which a ''mihrab'' appears is thus the "''qibla'' wall". ...
. The slab was discovered during restoration works on the mosque and is believed to have originated from the 12th century CE. Inscriptions of two verses from the
Qur'an The Quran, also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation directly from God ('' Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which consist of individual verses ('). Besides ...
are present on the slab, Qur'anic
sura A ''surah'' (; ; ) is an Arabic word meaning 'chapter' in the Quran. There are 114 ''suwar'' in the Quran, each divided into verses (). The ''suwar'' are of unequal length; the shortest ''surah'' ( al-Kawthar) has only three verses, while the ...
h XXI, verses 34–35, which are normally used on gravestones.
' Traces of Paradise: Archaeology of Bahrain from 2500 BC to 300 AD ,page 204''


See also

* List of archaeological sites in Bahrain *
History of Bahrain Bahrain was a central location of the ancient Dilmun civilization. Bahrain's strategic location in the Persian Gulf has brought rule and influence from mostly the Persian people, Persians, Sumerians, Assyrian people, Assyrians, Babylonians, Po ...


References

{{Authority control Mosques in Manama