Languages

Islamic Center of Washington DC


History


-The center was conceived in 1944 when the Turkish ambassador Münir Ertegün died without a mosque to host his funeral. In 1948 Egypt appointed Kamil Abdel Rahim as Egyptian Ambassador to the United States of America succeeding Ambassador Mahmoud Hassan.

-The project of building a Mosque lay dormant during the war years and was not revived until Ambassador Rahim took his duties as ambassador in Washington, D.C. in 1948.

The Egyptian ambassador, Kamil Abdul Rahim was appointed president of the mosque foundation and its executive committee.

He was instrumental in assembling all of the heads of the accredited emissaries of Muslim countries in the U.S. He made several trips to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Muslim countries to solicit funds for the building the mosque.

-Howar (Mohammed Issa Abu Al Hawa, 1879–1982) and other Muslim diplomats helped found and provide early funding to a committee to build a mosque in the U.S. capital.

In 1948, Howar, placing a silver dollar on the ground for luck, began work at the site.

-The mosque was completed in 1954 and dedicated by President Dwight Eisenhower on June 28, 1957.

The Washington diplomatic community played a leading role in the effort to construct a mosque.

Egypt donated a bronze chandelier and sent specialists who wrote Qur'anic verses to adorn the mosque’s walls and ceiling. Tiles came from Turkey along with the experts to install them. Persian rugs came from Iran.

Support for the project also came from the American-Muslim community.

-The site was purchased in 1946 and the cornerstone was laid on January 11, 1949. 

-The mosque was one of three buildings taken over in the 1977 Hanafi Siege. Muslim gunmen holding hostages made several demands, including the demand that the movie Mohammad, Messenger of God be destroyed because they considered it sacrilegious."

-The mosque has been visited by many dignitaries, including several presidents. President George W. Bush visited on September 17, 2001, only days after the attacks of September 11. On national television, Bush quoted from the Qur'an and worked to assure Americans that the vast majority of Muslims are peaceful.

-In 2015 a group of Muslim activists, politicians, and writers issued a Declaration of Reform which announced the founding of the Muslim Reform Movement organization to work against the beliefs of Middle Eastern terror groups.

That year Asra Nomani and others placed the Declaration on the door of the mosque.

Urban and Architectural


Architecture:

-The building plan is a three-iwan hall surrounded by an exterior double-riwaq arcade.

-The arcade is set parallel to the street, but the building is set at an angle to conform to the qibla axis.

-Traditional Mamluk buildings would have an open courtyard, but due to the climate the central space of the mosque is covered with a clerestory dome.

-A riwaq of five horseshoe arches serves as the entrance portal, another departure from the traditional Mamluk style.


 Facilities:

-In addition to the prayer hall, there is a library and multiple classrooms where courses on Islam and the Arabic language are taught.

-The center's board of governors is made up of various ambassadors.

-Around the building are arrayed the flags of the Islamic nations of the world.


Materials:

The interior furnishings represent a variety of nations and styles.

The mihrab is tiled in glazed tiles reminiscent of Ottoman Turkey, the wall tiles were a gift from Turkey, the chandeliers from Egypt, and the carpets from the Shah of Iran.



Description


-Outside the flags of the world’s Islamic nations are arrayed around the grounds.

 The building is listed, and protected by, the Historic American Buildings Survey. 

Details

Location

Washington, DC 20008, USA

Owners

Muslim Countries

Architect Name

Mario Rossi

Year of Build

1954

Drawings

Map

History

-The center was conceived in 1944 when the Turkish ambassador Münir Ertegün died without a mosque to host his funeral. In 1948 Egypt appointed Kamil Abdel Rahim as Egyptian Ambassador to the United States of America succeeding Ambassador Mahmoud Hassan.

-The project of building a Mosque lay dormant during the war years and was not revived until Ambassador Rahim took his duties as ambassador in Washington, D.C. in 1948.

The Egyptian ambassador, Kamil Abdul Rahim was appointed president of the mosque foundation and its executive committee.

He was instrumental in assembling all of the heads of the accredited emissaries of Muslim countries in the U.S. He made several trips to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Muslim countries to solicit funds for the building the mosque.

-Howar (Mohammed Issa Abu Al Hawa, 1879–1982) and other Muslim diplomats helped found and provide early funding to a committee to build a mosque in the U.S. capital.

In 1948, Howar, placing a silver dollar on the ground for luck, began work at the site.

-The mosque was completed in 1954 and dedicated by President Dwight Eisenhower on June 28, 1957.

The Washington diplomatic community played a leading role in the effort to construct a mosque.

Egypt donated a bronze chandelier and sent specialists who wrote Qur'anic verses to adorn the mosque’s walls and ceiling. Tiles came from Turkey along with the experts to install them. Persian rugs came from Iran.

Support for the project also came from the American-Muslim community.

-The site was purchased in 1946 and the cornerstone was laid on January 11, 1949. 

-The mosque was one of three buildings taken over in the 1977 Hanafi Siege. Muslim gunmen holding hostages made several demands, including the demand that the movie Mohammad, Messenger of God be destroyed because they considered it sacrilegious."

-The mosque has been visited by many dignitaries, including several presidents. President George W. Bush visited on September 17, 2001, only days after the attacks of September 11. On national television, Bush quoted from the Qur'an and worked to assure Americans that the vast majority of Muslims are peaceful.

-In 2015 a group of Muslim activists, politicians, and writers issued a Declaration of Reform which announced the founding of the Muslim Reform Movement organization to work against the beliefs of Middle Eastern terror groups.

That year Asra Nomani and others placed the Declaration on the door of the mosque.

Urban and Architectural

Architecture:

-The building plan is a three-iwan hall surrounded by an exterior double-riwaq arcade.

-The arcade is set parallel to the street, but the building is set at an angle to conform to the qibla axis.

-Traditional Mamluk buildings would have an open courtyard, but due to the climate the central space of the mosque is covered with a clerestory dome.

-A riwaq of five horseshoe arches serves as the entrance portal, another departure from the traditional Mamluk style.


 Facilities:

-In addition to the prayer hall, there is a library and multiple classrooms where courses on Islam and the Arabic language are taught.

-The center's board of governors is made up of various ambassadors.

-Around the building are arrayed the flags of the Islamic nations of the world.


Materials:

The interior furnishings represent a variety of nations and styles.

The mihrab is tiled in glazed tiles reminiscent of Ottoman Turkey, the wall tiles were a gift from Turkey, the chandeliers from Egypt, and the carpets from the Shah of Iran.



Description

-Outside the flags of the world’s Islamic nations are arrayed around the grounds.

 The building is listed, and protected by, the Historic American Buildings Survey.