MECCA
MASJID
The prayer room of this mosque is 3 spans in depth, having 5 arch-shaped entrances on the east side and majestic domed minars in the north and south sides of the east front of the building. These minars have an octagonal arch-shaped balcony below the domes, creating a sophisticated appearance for the entire mosque. The roof of this mosque is flat and lacks a dome. Its edges are decorated by parapet, under which there are eaves. These decorations, as well as the pattern in the upper part of the large arch-shaped entrance, and medallions on either side of the pattern, give a lofty look to this noble white marble mosque.
To the east side of the mosque, there is a large forcount partitioned by stairs, in which many followers are able to pray. In the area near the south edge of the court, there is a rectangular building projecting to the east. It has three arch-shaped entrances in the east, more than ten arch-shaped decorations on the walls and a slender minar with a small dome near the west edge of the building. This attached building is a mausoleum, in which tombs of the sultan family in the Asaf Jah Kingdom, which ruled Golconda and Hyderabad, are situated on a marble-made floor. The great mosque has a majestic "transept"-like mausoleum and is a rare and precious example of the history of the relationship between mosques and mausoleums. (Matsuo Ara)