Sunshine Mosque
History
Known as the Cyprus Turkish Islamic Community of Victoria, the organisation has had a history in Richmond, Clifton Hill, and then relocating to Ballarat Road, Sunshine in 1985.
Commonly referred to as the ‘Sunshine Mosque’ these days, it is the biggest Mosque in Victoria, and it has extended its services to cater for ladies, elderly and youth groups.
The Sunshine Mosque did not achieve its status within Victoria very easily, instead it endured some tough days and required extensive financial assistance from the local community. The whole project was managed by the late Mr Hasan Dellal, who had spent many hours to say the least coordinating its development.
Urban and Architectural
The Sunshine Mosque is an Ottoman/Turkish-style mosque located in Sunshine, a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The mosque contains 17 domes, a minaret, and a courtyard. The use of local Australian bricks with a yellowish tone reflects an attempt of the Australian architect to ‘localise’ the architecture of an Ottoman-looking mosque. The building's outside shell acts as a crossroads for local and international architectural discourses. The interiors of the Sunshine Mosque follow the same concepts of the original Blue Mosque, but in a more streamlined and synthesised form that represents the construction techniques and materials accessible in Australia at the time. The columns of the Sunshine Mosque are white and cylindrical, whereas those at the Blue Mosque are more elaborate and heavily ornamented with friezes and golden Arabic inscriptions on a blue background that surrounds their perimeter.
Description
The mosque is owned by the Cyprus Turkish Islamic Community of Victoria.
Today the Sunshine Mosque represents an achievement and a gift to the wider Australian community by the Turkish Cypriot community. To Muslims it is a place of worship and a meeting place, to non-Muslims it is a gift of Ottoman architecture which can be admired as they pass by the Ring Road to and from the city of Melbourne.
Details
Location
618 Ballarat Road, Sunshine 3020
Worshippers
750
Owners
Hasan Dellal, Muslim Community
Year of Build
1992
Area
1,954.68 m²
Drawings
Map
History
Known as the Cyprus Turkish Islamic Community of Victoria, the organisation has had a history in Richmond, Clifton Hill, and then relocating to Ballarat Road, Sunshine in 1985.
Commonly referred to as the ‘Sunshine Mosque’ these days, it is the biggest Mosque in Victoria, and it has extended its services to cater for ladies, elderly and youth groups.
The Sunshine Mosque did not achieve its status within Victoria very easily, instead it endured some tough days and required extensive financial assistance from the local community. The whole project was managed by the late Mr Hasan Dellal, who had spent many hours to say the least coordinating its development.
Urban and Architectural
The Sunshine Mosque is an Ottoman/Turkish-style mosque located in Sunshine, a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The mosque contains 17 domes, a minaret, and a courtyard. The use of local Australian bricks with a yellowish tone reflects an attempt of the Australian architect to ‘localise’ the architecture of an Ottoman-looking mosque. The building's outside shell acts as a crossroads for local and international architectural discourses. The interiors of the Sunshine Mosque follow the same concepts of the original Blue Mosque, but in a more streamlined and synthesised form that represents the construction techniques and materials accessible in Australia at the time. The columns of the Sunshine Mosque are white and cylindrical, whereas those at the Blue Mosque are more elaborate and heavily ornamented with friezes and golden Arabic inscriptions on a blue background that surrounds their perimeter.
Description
The mosque is owned by the Cyprus Turkish Islamic Community of Victoria.
Today the Sunshine Mosque represents an achievement and a gift to the wider Australian community by the Turkish Cypriot community. To Muslims it is a place of worship and a meeting place, to non-Muslims it is a gift of Ottoman architecture which can be admired as they pass by the Ring Road to and from the city of Melbourne.