BEAUTIFUL MOSQUES OF THE WORLD:
AL SALEH MOSQUE: SANAA YEMEN
The entrance section of the Al Saleh Mosque
The mosque was constructed using different types of stone, including black basalt stones as well as limestone in red, white and black. The building is compared in its beauty and architectural elegance with the Masjid al Haram, in Mecca. It was built in a fusion of "Yemeni architecture and Islamic styles", with many Quranic verses inscribed on the walls. The layout is referred to as "Himyarite architecture". The building has wooden roofs and seven ornate domes. There are five domes in the main roof, the main dome measuring 27.4 metres (90 ft) in diameter with a height of 39.6 metres (130 ft) above the mosque's roof. The other four domes measure 15.6 metres (51 ft) with height of 20.35 metres (66.8 ft) above the roof level of the mosque. Windows fitted with stained glass are locally referred to as qamariyah. Of the fifteen wooden doors, ten of them are situated on the eastern and western sides, and five open south towards the Islamic college and ablution areas. The doors are 22.86 metres (75.0 ft) in height and include engraved copper patterns. Four of the six manarets are 160 metres (520 ft) in height.
The interior space is 24 metres (79 ft) from floor to ceiling. While the plush carpeting contains intricate patterns, huge chandeliers have colorful and flower-like patterns. The three-storied building which includes the Quran College, also contains libraries and over two dozen classrooms, enough space to accommodate 600 students. Three large rooms are specifically for women; a small hall can accommodate 2,000 women.
The mosque has a modern central air conditioning and sound systems, as well as full security arrangements, including bomb-sniffing dogs. The building stays lit through the night. Thorn Lighting International, through its distributor Al Zaghir, was the lighting contractor. Diah International served as the subcontractor for civil and mechanical engineering; Sodaco Engineering & Contracting also provided services in the building's construction.