Saudi Arabia

The holiest mosque in Islam, surrounding the Kaaba, the qibla direction toward which Muslims worldwide turn in prayer, and the focal center of the Hajj and Umrah pilgrimages. The complex covers about 356,800 square meters and encloses the Kaaba, the Black Stone (Hajar al-Aswad), Maqam Ibrahim, Hijr Ismail (Hatim), the Zamzam Well, and the two hills of Safa and Marwah.

Al Haram, Mecca, vùng Makkah

Photo: Saudipics.com, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

The second holiest sanctuary in Islam located at the heart of Medina, originally built of mud brick and palm trunks by the Prophet Muhammad and his Companions in 622 CE (1 AH) on the spot where his camel Qaswa knelt after the Hijrah, world-renowned for the iconic Green Dome (Al-Qubbah al-Khadra) rising above the Sacred Chamber housing the tombs of the Prophet Muhammad, Caliph Abu Bakr, and Caliph Umar, the blessed garden of Rawdah ash-Sharifah, ten 104-meter minarets, and the vast marble courtyards shaded by 250 automated retractable umbrellas.

Second Holiest Sanctuary in Islam (Al-Haram ash-Sharif of Medina, second only to Masjid al-Haram in Mecca) under the Custodianship of the Two Holy MosquesAl-Haram Central District, Medina (Al-Madinah al-Munawwarah), Al-Madinah Province, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Photo: Konevi, CC0, Wikimedia Commons

The very first mosque built in the history of Islam, whose foundation stone was laid personally by the Prophet Muhammad in September 622 CE (1 AH) upon his arrival at the oasis village of Quba on the southern outskirts of Medina during the Hijrah from Mecca, honored in the Hadith with the spiritual reward of an Umrah pilgrimage for two units of prayer performed within its walls, and celebrated for its gleaming 1986 white marble architecture by Abdel-Wahed El-Wakil featuring four 47-meter minarets and sixty-two domes.

The First Mosque Built in Islamic History (September 622 CE, 1 AH) and Fourth Most Revered Sanctuary in the Islamic WorldHijrah Road and Quba Pedestrian Avenue, Southern Medina, Al-Madinah Province, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Photo: Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

The historic sanctuary in northwestern Medina where, in early 624 CE (2 AH), divine revelation of Surah Al-Baqarah (2:144) commanded the Muslim congregation in the middle of prayer to pivot 180 degrees from the first Qibla of Jerusalem (Bayt al-Maqdis) in the north toward the eternal Qibla of the Sacred Kaaba at Masjid al-Haram in Mecca in the south, celebrated today for its 1987 white vernacular architecture by Abdel-Wahed El-Wakil featuring twin axial domes and two minarets overlooking Wadi al-Aqiq.

Historic Prophetic Sanctuary of the Change of the Qibla (624 CE, 2 AH) and Iconic Vernacular Masterwork of MedinaKhalid ibn al-Walid Road, Harrat al-Wabarah District, Northwestern Medina, Al-Madinah Province, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Photo: Wibowo Djatmiko ( Wie146 ), CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

The oldest mosque in Eastern Arabia and the Persian Gulf region, erected around 628 CE (7 AH) in the Al-Ahsa Oasis by the Banu Abd al-Qays tribe following their peaceful delegation to the Prophet Muhammad in Medina, celebrated in Sahih al-Bukhari (892) as the site of the second Friday congregational prayer in Islamic history, and inscribed in 2018 as a key component of the Al-Ahsa Oasis UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The Oldest Mosque in Eastern Arabia (c. 628 CE, 7 AH), Site of the Second Friday Prayer in Islam, and UNESCO World Heritage MonumentAl-Kilabiyyah Village, 12 km northeast of Al-Hofuf, Al-Ahsa Oasis, Eastern Province, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Photo: Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons