Gallery
Description
Property Name: Hukuru Miskiyy Mosque
Inventory No: 960-331-3
Date of infill of the inventory form: 2009-08-28
Country (State party): Maldives
Province: Malé
Town:
Geographic coordinates: 4° 10′ 40.76″ N
73° 30′ 44.99″ E
Historic Period: 17th century, 2nd half
Year of Construction: 1665
Style:
Original Use: Mosque
Current Use: Mosque
Architect: Unknown
Significance
It is located in the center of Malé with government office quarter, cemetery of saint Abu al Barakaath Yusuf, former Presidential Palace Mulee-Aage. The establishment of the mosque dates back to 1665, during the period of Sultan Ibrahim Iskandhar 1. Hukuru Miskiiy Mosque is the oldest architectural property in Malé. For a long time, it has been used as the major Friday Mosque. The mosque has no dome and the minaret of the mosque is a unique one. This minaret is also known with the name ‘Munnaaru’. It is constructed in 1975. As being constructed on the remnants of an old temple, the arrangement is not according the Qibla direction. The characteristics of the building remind Japanese architecture with its low eaves. The mosque is also significant with its Arabic calligraphy on the exterior surface and wooden carvings inside. The mosque is a masterpiece of coral curving and traditional workmanship.
Selection Criteria
iii. to bear a unique or at least exceptional testimony to a cultural tradition or to a civilization which is living or which has disappeared
iv. to be an outstanding example of a type of building, architectural or technological ensemble or landscape which illustrates (a) significant stage(s) in human history
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
The property is a well preserved one as being an old element in the country, surviving for about 4 centuries. Only waterproof sheet or galvanized steel thin plates substituted instead of the traditional material on the roof.
Between 1987-1988 CE Conservation work was carried out by a team of Indian experts from the National Research Laboratory for Conservation of Cultural Property, with the assistance of a team from the National Centre for Linguistic and Historical Research in Malé.
Known as the Old Friday Mosque is one of the oldest and most ornate mosques in the city of Malé,
The mosque was added to the tentative UNESCO World Heritage cultural list in 2008 as unique examples of sea-culture architecture.
References
Lyon, James. Maldives. Lonely Planet Travel Guides, 2003 (retrieved from the website of Google Books: http://www.books.google.com)