White mosque, Mosque in Ramla, Israel
The White Mosque is a historic mosque in Ramla featuring a distinctive square minaret that rises approximately 27 meters with five stories decorated by window niches throughout. Three large underground cisterns lie beneath the central courtyard, which once supplied water to the site.
Construction began under Umayyad governor Sulayman ibn Abd al-Malik in 715 CE and was completed under Umar II approximately a decade later. This building represented part of the ambitious architectural projects of the early Islamic period.
The mosque served as a major gathering place for prayer and community life in the city, with its underground water systems built specifically to support worshippers. These cisterns were essential to daily religious practice and demonstrate how the site was designed with visitors in mind.
Visitors can explore the surviving minaret, known as the Tower of the Forty Martyrs, which stands as the main feature remaining from the original structure. Access to the site is straightforward, though viewing the tower is best done during daylight hours.
The original building was constructed using white marble and featured doors made of cypress and cedar wood, making it exceptionally refined for its time. These luxurious materials demonstrate that it was designed as one of the most important mosques of its era.
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