The mosque was first built in 996 during the Liao dynasty by the local Muslim community in traditional Chinese style, with Arabic calligraphy inside. The article names Nazaruddin, the son of an imam, as designer. Genghis Khan's armies destroyed it in 1215. It was rebuilt in 1443, Muslim eunuchs funded repairs in 1496, and a significant expansion came in 1696.
The plan follows siheyuan courtyard norms, with two courtyards and a prayer hall on a cruciform plan. The site covers about 108,000 square feet (10,000 m²) and the prayer hall about 6,500 square feet (600 m²), holding more than 1,000 worshippers. The article lists timber as the material and mentions no minaret.
Renovations came in 1955, 1979 and 1996, with no details of the 1979 work. Non-Muslims may not enter the prayer hall. The lead credits the Kangxi Emperor with the 17th-century enlargement, but the body's 1696 sentence does not name him.
Comments