Page 156 - DK Eyewitness Travel Guides - The World's Must-See Places

Mosque of Hassan II, Casablanca
AFRICA

With a prayer hall that can accommodate 25,000 people, the
SPAIN
Mosque of Hassan II is the second-largest religious building in
ATLANTIC the world after the mosque in Mecca. The complex covers
OCEAN
96,840 sq ft (9,000 sq m), with two-thirds of it built over the
sea. The minaret, the lighthouse of Islam, is 656 ft (200 m)
Mar!alaaeh e
MOROCCO high, and two laser beams reaching over a distance of 18.5 miles
(30 km) shine in the direction of Mecca. The building was
ALGERIA
designed by Michel Pinseau and it took 35,000 craftsmen to
WBTE. RN SAHARA build it. With carved stucco, zellij tile work, a painted cedarwood
ceiling and marble, onyx, and travertine cladding, the mosque

HASSAN II is a monument to Moroccan architectural virtuosity.
M oul ay Hassan succeeded to the throne
of Morocco on the death of his father in 1961 .
A skillful politician, he alternated liberalizing
policies with repression. He introduced the
country's first constitution in 1962 and
parliamentary elections in 1963, but the road
to reform was rocky. When Spain withdrew
from the mineral-rich Western Sahara in 1975,
Hassan initiated the Green March, in which ~ Fo u nta in s
3 50,000 civi hans crossed the border to assert
Morocco's claim to the regton Spatn agreed
to the transfer of power, but Algenan-backed
Poltsario Front guerrillas began a violent
campatgn for Independence A ceasef1re
was agreed to 1n 1991 Hassan II died 1n 1999.

INSIDE THE MOSQUE
Mosque door,
The waterfront Mosque of Hassan ll1s the interior view
crowning glory of the king' s retgn Butlt for ns
60th birthday, the mosque was mamly fmanced
~ Marble - -----------.
by donations from the Moroccan people.lnside,
Used throughout the
the massive marble-floored prayer hall sparkles building- on the columns
in the glow of Venetian chandeliers. Cedarwood of the prayer hall. doorways.
fountains, and stairs-
from Morocco's Middle Atlas range has been
marble is E?Verywhere. It is
shaped and carved to form doors and screens also sometimes combined
and the paneling of 70 cupolas. Even the s liding with granite and onyx.
roof is painted and gilded. The hammam
(traditional bathhouse) is below the prayer hall.

MUSLIM BELIEFS AND PRAC11CES ~ Min bar ----~.f'--t~_.;.jll;~~r-"'-1= ~L ,.,_.
......
Muslims believe in one God (Allah), and their The minbar, or pulpit, d@~~~~~
located at the western ;::
holy book, the Koran, shares many stories and
end of the prayer hall.
prophets with the Bible. H CNVever, Muslims hold is particularly ornate.
that Jesus was JUst one tn a hne of prophets, the It is decorated with
last being Mohammed, who brou~t the f1nal verses from the Koran.
revelation of God's truth to mankind Musl1ms
believe that Allah commun1cated the texts of the
~Prayer Hall
Koran to Mohammed through the Archangel The vast prayer hall measures
Gabnel. Muslims pray five times a d"f, wherever 656 ft (200 ll'V by 328 ft
they m"J be, and the cals to prayer are broad· (100m). The central part of the
roof can be opened to the sky.
cast from the mosque. Those who 1.1Sit a mosque
to pray remove thetr shoes and wash their feet,
head, and hands outSide before entenng. Inside,
KEY DATES
women and men pray tn separate areas. When
1980 1986 1993
praying, Muslims face Mecca in Saudi Arabia.
In a prayer hall, the direction is indicated by the King Hassan II Construction begins The mosque Is
declares his on t he Mosque finished, four years
mihrab (a niche in the wall). Kneeling and
intention to build a of H a$iln 1 1. afterthe klng's
lowering the head to the ground are gestures landmark mosque. 60th birthday.
of humility and respect for Allah.