Nakhoda Masjid
Encyclopedia
The Nakhoda Masjid is the principal mosque
of Kolkata
, India
, located in the Chitpur area of the Burrabazar
business district in Central Kolkata , at the intersection of Zakariya Street and Rabindra Sarani.
Emperor Akbar at Sikandra, Agra by Kutchi Memon Jamat, a small community of Sunni
Muslim
community from Kutch.Abdur Rahim Osman, a leader of the Kutchi Memon Jama'at, who funded the building ( Rs.1,500,000) was a shipping prince. Hence the mosque was named Nakhoda meaning Mariner.
The foundation stone of this mosque was laid on 11th September, 1926. The total cost incurred for the construction was 1,500,000 of Indian rupee
spent in year 1926.
The masjid has three domes and two minarets which are 151 feet high. There are an additional 25 smaller minarets which range from 100 feet to 117 feet high.
The gateway is an ersatz
of the Buland Darwaza
at Fatehpur Sikri
. For this purpose granite stones were brought from Tolepur. Inside is a superb exhibition of exquisite ornamentation and artistic extravaganza.
Mosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...
of Kolkata
Kolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, located in the Chitpur area of the Burrabazar
Burrabazar
Burrabazar is a neighbourhood in central Kolkata, earlier known as Calcutta, in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is an assembly constituency. Burrabazar expanded from a yarn and textile market into the commercial nucleus of Kolkata and one of the largest wholesale markets in India...
business district in Central Kolkata , at the intersection of Zakariya Street and Rabindra Sarani.
Construction
The mosque was built as an imitation of the mausoleum of MughalMughal Empire
The Mughal Empire , or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...
Emperor Akbar at Sikandra, Agra by Kutchi Memon Jamat, a small community of Sunni
Sunni Islam
Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam. Sunni Muslims are referred to in Arabic as ʾAhl ūs-Sunnah wa āl-Ǧamāʿah or ʾAhl ūs-Sunnah for short; in English, they are known as Sunni Muslims, Sunnis or Sunnites....
Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
community from Kutch.Abdur Rahim Osman, a leader of the Kutchi Memon Jama'at, who funded the building ( Rs.1,500,000) was a shipping prince. Hence the mosque was named Nakhoda meaning Mariner.
The foundation stone of this mosque was laid on 11th September, 1926. The total cost incurred for the construction was 1,500,000 of Indian rupee
Indian rupee
The Indian rupee is the official currency of the Republic of India. The issuance of the currency is controlled by the Reserve Bank of India....
spent in year 1926.
Architecture and Specifications
The mosque's prayer hall has a capacity of 10,000.The masjid has three domes and two minarets which are 151 feet high. There are an additional 25 smaller minarets which range from 100 feet to 117 feet high.
The gateway is an ersatz
Ersatz
Ersatz means 'substituting for, and typically inferior in quality to', e.g. 'chicory is ersatz coffee'. It is a German word literally meaning substitute or replacement...
of the Buland Darwaza
Buland Darwaza
Buland Darwaza , meaning 'high' or 'great' gate in Persian, is the largest of gateways in the world. It is located in Fatehpur Sikri which is located 43 km away from Agra, India. It is also known as the "Gate of Magnificence".Buland Darwaza or the loft gateway was built by the great Mughal...
at Fatehpur Sikri
Fatehpur Sikri
Fatehpur Sikri is a city and a municipal board in Agra district in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. Built near the much older Sikri, the historical city of Fatehabad, as it was first named, was constructed by Mughal emperor Akbar beginning in 1570...
. For this purpose granite stones were brought from Tolepur. Inside is a superb exhibition of exquisite ornamentation and artistic extravaganza.
See also
- Islamic architectureIslamic architectureIslamic architecture encompasses a wide range of both secular and religious styles from the foundation of Islam to the present day, influencing the design and construction of buildings and structures in Islamic culture....
- Islamic artIslamic artIslamic art encompasses the visual arts produced from the 7th century onwards by people who lived within the territory that was inhabited by or ruled by culturally Islamic populations...
- SahnSahnA sahn , in Islamic architecture, is a courtyard. As per the traditional Islamic architectural style, almost every mosque has a sahn, which is surrounded by an arcade from all sides. In Persian architecture, the sahn usually contains a howz, a symmetrical pool, where ablutions are performed...
- Timeline of Islamic history