History

Holland park mosque is now one of the oldest established mosques in Australia as it celebrated its century in 2008. The mosque was built in the 1880s by Afghan and Indian Muslims. The mosque is located in Holland Park, an Australian suburb 10 km south of Brisbane city. [1] In 1966, a new two-storey brick mosque was built to cater for the needs of the growing Muslim population. [2]

Urban and Architectural

Initially, the mosque held the image of wooden Queenslander, it looked pretty similar to houses built in the area. Over time, and as the Muslim population in Brisbane grew, the mosque has gone through various renovations and extensions. [1] The new mosque was designed by a Pakistani student at The University of Queensland and was constructed mostly by unskilled labour under the directions of the local community. The new mosque was built as a concrete slab-on-ground placed on a leveled site with a masonry veneer. [3] The construction of the new mosque was funded from donations collected from the Muslim population, as well as a significant contribution from King Fahd of Saudi Arabia. [2]

 Since then, several new buildings were purchased by the mosque including two halls and a house across the road. One of the halls is being used as a museum that aims to preserve the history of Muslim Queenslanders [1]. Currently, several functions take place in Holland Park mosque including daily prayers, Sunday schools and social activities. [2]

The primary axis of the building aligns with the boundaries of the site. A Qibla wall is featured in the main prayer all towards Mecca. The second story is about 300 square meters in area and is fully used as a prayer hall.  The mosque is topped with four twelve-meter-high minarets and a  white onion-shaped concrete dome. [3]

Description

References

1. Deen J. The history of the Holland Park Mosque [Internet]. SBS. 2017 [cited 2020 Oct 31]. Available from: https://www.sbs.com.au/guide/article/2017/11/01/history-holland-park-mosque

2. Brisbane Mosque [Internet]. Brisbane City Council. 2001 Available from https://heritage.brisbane.qld.gov.au/heritage-places/906#references

3. Harris J. Tradition, Identity and Adaptation: Mosque Architecture in South-East Queensland. In: Brown A, Leach A, editors. Proceedings of the Society of Architectural Historians, Australia and New Zealand 30, Open [Internet]. Gold Coast: SAHANZ; 2013. Available from: https://research-repository.griffith.edu.au/bitstream/handle/10072/61182/94965_1.pdf