The Great Mosque of Kufa was first built, according to the infobox, with the city's foundation in 638, and it lists Saad ibn Abi Waqqas as founder. Governor Ziyad ibn Abihi rebuilt it in brick and expanded it in 670, bringing in craftsmen and importing columns from Ahwaz. The article names no architect. Ali ibn Abi Talib was assassinated in the mosque in 661, and the shrines of Muslim ibn Aqil, Hani ibn Urwa and al-Mukhtar are inside.
The interior area is 120,000 square feet (11,000 m²). The article gives the historic mosque as about 361 by 367 feet (110 by 112 m), though a later passage says the side walls were 381 feet (116 m). The golden dome over the tombs and the tilework were added in the 17th and 18th centuries.
Dawoodi Bohra leader Mohammed Burhanuddin began reconstruction in 1998, finished in early 2010. Groundwater threatens the excavated palace remains on the south side.
Comments