Jamia Mosque, Religious monument in Central and Western District, Hong Kong
Jamia Mosque stands at 30 Shelley Street, at the junction with Mosque Street in Mid-Levels. Its rectangular prayer hall has a pointed-arch entrance between pinkish-brown stone pillars, a green balustraded upper tier with finials, and a small octagonal tier with a round window below a metal-railed dome. Inside, pale mint-green walls surround a white mihrab niche and a green-carpeted minbar.
The mosque was built in 1890 on land leased from British colonial authorities and expanded in 1915 to serve a growing Muslim community. Its early presence in the city shows how long Muslims have been part of Hong Kong's history.
The mosque's name comes from the Arabic jami, meaning Friday, when the main weekly prayer is held. Mufti Abdul Zaman leads prayers and taraweeh during Ramadan. The surrounding streets Mosque Street and Mosque Junction take their names from the building, and it is also known as Lascar Temple.
The mosque stands at 30 Shelley Street, at its junction with Mosque Street, in the Mid-Levels above Central. It can be reached on foot from Central MTR station via the Central–Mid-Levels escalator. The prayer hall holds about 360 people, so it fills during Friday prayers and Ramadan; time a visit outside those periods.
Although the mosque sits in one of the busiest parts of Hong Kong, it is tucked into a side street that many people ride past on the escalator without noticing. The facade is clearly visible from street level and makes for a good photograph.
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