The sultanate's mosque
Built between 1906 and 1909.
CC BY-SA 3.0 · Nationaal Archief — CC0 · Mimihitam — CC BY-SA 4.0
Sumatra's most beautiful mosque and Medan's best-known landmark, built by Sultan Ma'mun Al Rashid of Deli between 1906 and 1909, with its first Friday prayer held in Sha'ban 1329 AH. The sultan held that the mosque should be grander than his own palace, so he built it near Maimun Palace at a cost of a million guilders, part of it paid by the famed merchant Tjong A Fie. Its architecture is octagonal, with four wings facing the cardinal points, blending Middle Eastern, Indian and Andalusian styles: a large black dome ringed by smaller domes, ornate arches, stained-glass windows brought from Europe, Italian marble, and chandeliers hanging from the high ceiling. Inside is the calm and grandeur fitting a sultanate's mosque. Entry is free; the mosque serves daily and Friday prayers, and welcomes non-Muslim visitors outside prayer times in modest dress, with head and body coverings lent at the entrance. Its grounds hold a burial ground of the Deli sultans. It stands about two hundred metres from Maimun Palace, so the two fit into one morning. The best photograph is from the front garden, with the black dome and minaret in the morning light.
Built between 1906 and 1909.
Middle Eastern, Indian and Andalusian style.
Windows and marble from Europe.
Jalan Sisingamangaraja, near Maimun Palace
Maimun PalaceThe palace of the Deli sultans and Medan's leading historic landmark, built by S5 minutes walk
North Sumatra MuseumThe largest museum in North Sumatra, opened in 1982 on more than ten thousand sq16 minutes walk
Tjong A Fie MansionA two-storey mansion in Chinese-European style in the old Kesawan quarter of cen17 minutes walkUsually yes outside prayer times, quietly and without photographing worshippers. Ask the attendant at the entrance if a lesson or event is under way.