Kaaba, Sacred shrine in Mecca, Saudi Arabia.

The Kaaba is a cube-shaped stone structure standing 13 meters (43 feet) high in the center of Masjid al-Haram mosque, considered the oldest sanctuary in Islam. Black cloth drapes cover its upper walls and flat roof, while the base remains bare gray stone creating a clear contrast with the surrounding white marble courtyard.

Islamic tradition holds that Ibrahim and his son Ismail rebuilt the Kaaba; the Quran calls it the first house built for the worship of God. The current structure was built after fire damaged the earlier building during the Umayyad siege of Mecca in 683 CE. The granite blocks stand on a marble foundation, and the base course, the shadharwan, was added in 1627 to protect the foundation from groundwater.

The name Kaaba comes from the Arabic kaʿb, "cube". The family of Banu Shayba has held the keys to its door since the time of Muhammad, and twice a year they lead the ceremony of washing the interior, about two weeks before Ramadan and two weeks before the hajj.

The Kiswah is replaced on the 9th of Dhu al-Hijjah, the Day of Arafah, when the mataaf stands empty of circling pilgrims. The Kaaba's door sits 2.5 m above ground in the eastern wall, reached by movable steps, and opens only twice a year during the ceremonial washing. The Hijr Ismail, a low semicircular wall about 1 m high and 17.75 m long, marks the spot where pilgrims may pray between it and the Kaaba.

The eastern corner holds the Black Stone, set in silver bands, which pilgrims attempt to touch during their seven counterclockwise circuits. The gold-embroidered calligraphy on the Kiswah is created each year by artisans in a dedicated workshop in Mecca, following traditional patterns that reproduce centuries-old verses and religious texts.