Gallery
Description
Property Name: Grand Mosque of Brussels
Inventory No: 32-2-1
Date of infill of the inventory form: 2009-08-04
Country (State party): Belgium
Province: Brussels
Town:
Geographic coordinates: 50° 50′ 36.6″ N
4° 23′ 15.61″ E
Historic Period: 19th century, 2nd half
Year of Construction: 1880
Style:
Original Use: Pavillion
Current Use: Mosque
Architect: Ernest Van Humbeek – Boubaker
Significance
The building is located at the Cinquantenaire Park and was built as Oriental Pavilion of the National Exhibition in 1880. It was renovated and converted into a mosque with the support of King Faisal ibn Abd al-Aziz, by Tunisian architect Boubaker in 1978.
Selection Criteria
vi. to be directly or tangibly associated with events or living traditions, with ideas, or with beliefs, with artistic and literary works of outstanding universal significance
State of Preservation
This Mosque was severely damaged in the twentieth century due to a lack of maintenance. In 1967, at an official visit to Belgium by the King Faisal ibn Abd al-Aziz of Saudi Arabia, King Baudoin decided to turn the building into a place of worship. Designed by Tunisian architect Boubaker, this Mosque was opened in 1978. Nowadays, this Mosque is used as an Islamic school and as an Islamic research center to spread Muslim faith.
References
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