Stone gateway
20 m tall.
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One of China's oldest and most storied mosques, on Tumen Street in central Quanzhou, the city Arab travellers knew as «Zaytun», one of the greatest ports in the world in its day; its Arabic name, carved on its foundation stone, is Masjid al-Ashab, «the Mosque of the Companions», and it has been part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2021. Chinese sources date its founding to 1009, the year 400 of the Hijra, under the Song, with a rebuilding in 1310, the year 710 of the Hijra; it is considered the oldest surviving mosque in China built of stone in the Arab style, rather than in the timber Chinese style common to the country's mosques. Its highlight is the towering 20 m stone gateway of dark stone and white granite, whose roof was used for the call to prayer and is known as the «moon-sighting platform»; behind it stand the stone walls of the old prayer hall and a tablet of 1407 bearing an imperial edict protecting Muslims, alongside a prayer hall that is still in use. Admission is a token CNY 3 or so, per visitor guides; dress modestly and respect prayer times. The mosque is steps from West Street and the old town's sights, and the people who run it can point you to the nearest halal restaurants.
20 m tall.
Protecting Muslims.
The Arabs' port.
Tumen Street, central old Quanzhou
Chinese sources date it to 1009, the year 400 AH, with a rebuilding in 1310; it's considered the oldest surviving Arab-style mosque in China.
