Al Fateh Grand Mosque

The Al Fateh Grand Mosque stands on Al Fateh Highway in Juffair, Manama, Bahrain, and is the largest place of worship in the kingdom, able to hold around 7,000 worshippers. It was commissioned by Sheikh Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa, completed in 1987, and named after Ahmed Al Fateh, the eighteenth-century ruler credited with the Al Khalifa conquest of Bahrain. The building is a large modern composition of white marble and glass, topped by a single great dome made of fibreglass and weighing some sixty tonnes, which is among the largest fibreglass domes ever constructed. Materials were imported from several countries, including marble from Italy, teak doors from India and a large chandelier from Austria, giving the interior a rich finish. Calligraphy in Kufic and other scripts decorates the walls, and the carpets cover the prayer hall. The mosque complex also contains the Ahmed Al-Fateh Islamic Centre, with a library and a large collection, and is used for lectures and national religious occasions. The curatorial approach is not that of a museum but of a living mosque with a visitor programme. Non-Muslims are welcomed on guided tours conducted by trained staff, who explain the architecture, the Islamic practice of prayer and the role of the mosque in Bahrain society. Visitors must dress modestly, and women are asked to cover their hair; robes are available for loan at the entrance. Photography in permitted areas is allowed, but the prayer hall is closed during prayer. The building has been maintained in good condition since opening, with cleaning and upkeep by the religious authorities. Its seafront-adjacent site in Juffair, near the Gulf, makes it visible from many parts of eastern Manama, and it is often combined with the Bahrain National Museum and Beit Al Quran on a cultural itinerary.