History

Al-Nilin Mosque or The Mosque of the two Niles, is a mosque in Omdurman, Sudan. It is located on the western banks of the Nile river, just opposite to the confluence of the two Niles. It was built in the 1970s during the Nimeiry era of Sudan, and since then remains one of the fine architectural religious venues in the country. The mosque was inaugurated on Friday, 3 Muharram 1405 H corresponding to 24 September 1984.

It is located on the confluence of the two rivers, the Blue Nile and the White Nile at the entrance of Omdurman. The location of Al- Neelain Mosque is the closest location to the Nile and is therefore considered the largest mosque on the Nile from its source to its mouth in the Mediterranean.

It is also distinguished for being next to the National Council, and embraces the Faculty of the Holy Quran, the pearl of the U of HQIS’s faculties.

The location of the mosque overlaps through its view of the three cities with the meeting points of the sides of the triangular city (Khartoum / Bahri / Omdurman).

It Designed as a thesis project by a student in the department of architecture at the University of Khartoum, the mosque was selected for construction by the President of Sudan. It is a circular structure mounted by a lightweight aluminum space-frame in the form of a hemispherical dome. The mosque interior is lavishly decorated with geometrically patterned timber ceilings and plasterwork. Adjacent to the prayer space are twelve octagonal pavilions that house a school, library, and exhibition space.

This mosque in Sudan takes the iconic shape of a dome perforated with windows, something is first seen in the Hagia Sophia, an brings it thoroughly into the 20th century. The dome becomes a geometric hemisphere with a stylized minaret and pointed windows, which allow for sweeping views of the surrounding land.

Al- Nilin Mosque and its annexes were designed and constructed according to the Islamic architecture in terms of:

·        * Integration between the beauties of the gradation of its height and the artificial mound it was built on. This harmonizes with the glory of its significance, the service of faith and the supreme purposes of religion.

·         *The geometric patterns of the domes and their direction towards the Qibla on which the architectural design of the mosque and its annexes was based.

Description

Construction Works

Total area of the mosque: 12 thousand square meters.

Building area: 2500 square meters.

Excavation works: 2500 cubic meters.

The size of the excavations + artificial mound: 100 thousand cubic meters.

The foundations and concrete works:  2000 m3.

Capping works.                                       

Metal works in aluminum.

Gypsum works.

Glass works.

 Wood works.

 The Minaret.

Designers

Designer: Eng. Qamar Adawla Abd Al-Qadir Al-Tahir.

Estimation Architect: Major Architect (m) Babikir Ali Altoum.

Structural Designer, Architect: Sideeq Abd Al Wahab.

Architectural Consultants: Architect. Mohamed Mahmoud Hamdy.

Architectural Consultants: Architect. Saif Addeen Sadiq.

The Mosque Funding

Community-led Donations

His Highness the Ruler of Dubai

Government of Saudi Arabia

References

https://archnet.org/sites/279/media_contents/20268 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Nilin_Mosque http://www.quran-unv.edu.sd/sites/managements/39/about