Larabanga Mosque
The Mosque of Larabanga in the village Larabanga in Ghana's Northern Region is the oldest existing mosque in the country and one of the oldest Islamic places of worship in West Africa . The building is located six kilometers south of the entrance to the Mole National Park and, according to local tradition, dates back to the beginning of the 15th century.
description
The mosque is built in traditional clay construction; the Sudanese - Sahelian style is also found in Burkina Faso and the Ivory Coast . In all of Ghana there are only eight mosques built in this style, including the mosque of Nakore . In Larabanga, the building has a square footprint of around 8 × 8 meters and has two pyramid-shaped towers. One stands above the mihra wall on the east facade towards Mecca . The other, in the northwest corner of the building, serves as a minaret . Twelve conical struts on the outer walls are reinforced with horizontal wooden beams. The white plastered building has four entrances: one for the head of the village, one each for men and women and a fourth for the muezzin . The mosque is a place of pilgrimage and is known as the "Mecca of West Africa".
The mosque is in possession of an old copy of the Koran , which, according to local tradition, was sent down from heaven to the then incumbent imam in order to answer his prayers.
history
According to a legend, a passing Islamic trader named Ayuba had a dream in 1421 in which he was asked to build a mosque next to a "mystical stone". When he woke up, he noticed that the foundations were already in place so that he could build the structure. The builder is said to have left orders to be buried next to the mosque, and the baobab that would grow on its grave was to be preserved for generations to come. The baobab tree that still exists today next to the mosque is said to stand on the site of Ayuba's grave; its leaves and branches are apparently used by the villagers to treat the sick.
The building is exposed to wind and weather and has had to be renovated and restored several times in recent years. After a failed restoration in the 1970s that rotted the building and caused termite infestation , the mihrab and minaret were destroyed by a severe storm in September 2002, after which the mosque was placed on the World Monuments Watch list and by the local residents has been professionally repaired with international financial aid.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Ghana Tourism Authority: Larabanga Mosque
- ↑ Labelle Prussin: The Architecture of Islam in West Africa . In: African Arts . 1, 1968, p. 74. JSTOR 3334324
- ^ Ghana Museums & Monuments Board: Ancient Mosques of the Northern Region
- ↑ World Monuments Fund : Larabanga Mosque , October 20, 2013
Web links
Coordinates: 9 ° 13 ′ 13.1 ″ N , 1 ° 51 ′ 35.6 ″ E