Mecca Masjid – Hyderabad

Mecca Masjid is the oldest and the biggest of the mosques situated in Hyderabad city. About 10,000 people can offer prayers in this mosque at a time. It is said that Mohammad Quli Qutub Shah began the construction of the Masjid in 1617 but the Mughal Emperor Aurangazeb completed the construction in 1694. The Mecca Masjid of Hyderabad is located just 100 yards away from the famous and historic Charminar.

The name of the mosque has an interesting short story behind it. It is believed that some bricks were brought from Mecca and inserted in the walls of its main arch. Hence it came to be known as Mecca Masjid. There are fifteen arches that support the hall of the mosque. Three walls of the great hall have five arches each. This huge hall is 75 feet high, 220 feet wide and 180 feet long. No wonder it can accommodate about 10,000 people at a time during worship. It is said that about 8000 workers had been employed to construct this grand mosque. The mosque took 77 years to be completed.

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