THE LEGACY OF AL SHARJAH MOSQUE IN NIZWA
The huge number of mosques in Oman differ in their designs, architecture and the number of people they host. However, they serve the same purpose, which is holding prayers and spreading and teaching Islam. Building mosques has always been a big priority in Oman.
Al Sharjah is one of the most ancient mosques in Oman built on a historical village dating back to prehistoric times. Many archaeological monuments were found in the mosque dating back to the second and first millennia. It was built on a plain area surrounded by several Islamic tombs and ancient residential buildings.
This amazing mosque is located on the northern side of Nizwa in a village called Saal. The mosque was named after the area in which it is located, which is called Al Sharjah, and it is one of the most popular rural agricultural villages in Nizwa. Therefore, it was inhabited by dozens of tribes, so it was necessary to build a religious, intellectual and social mosque for the five daily prayers to be performed and for them to gather in it like one family connected by the bond of faith and religion.
Al Sharjah Mosque is distinguished for its historical character in design and shape. It can host about 50 people and it has two cylindrical columns that form two obtuse arches, forming the prayer room and two prayer galleries. It also has four windows and three curved wooden doors preserving the heritage character common in the doors of ancient mosques in Oman.
Inside the mosque is a masterpiece that combines history and architecture.
The mihrab of Al Sharjah Mosque dates back to the year 924, and it maintained its durability even before the restoration process began. This mihrab is one the most magnificent works of Abdullah Al Humaimi, an architect from the Wilayat of Manah.
Its size is proportional to several other Plaster mihrabs of ancient mosques in Nizwa. Above the mihrab are the letters of the Shahada written in
Kufic calligraphy. Most amazingly are the decorative shapes spread throughout the mihrab using plaster.
In the corners of the mihrab, there are four recesses decorated with Chinese porcelain, part of which fell, as did the ceramics that decorated the largest recess in its middle. The mihrab also contains several interwoven letters in Naskh calligraphy, their words distributed on different parts of it.
In its first part, the names of those responsible for building the mihrab, and in its second part, the name of Al Humaimi, the architect of the mihrab, and the of its construction. In its third part, it is mentioned that the mosque’s nearby community had contributed to its construction.
The mosque had been renovated in 2017 giving it back the life it lost due to degradation and preserving it to remain as a cultural and religious centre along with many other historical mosques in Nizwa.