Imam Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab Mosque (Qatar State Mosque)

The Imam Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab Mosque, also known as the Qatar State Mosque or the Grand Mosque, stands in the Lejbailat district of Doha, on a slight rise near the Al Jamiaa area and the road to the north. It is the national mosque of Qatar and was completed in 2011, when the Emir, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, presided over its opening.

The mosque is named after Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab, the 18th-century scholar from central Arabia. Its design follows traditional Arab architecture in a modern form, with plain sandstone walls and rows of shallow domes, and no single dominant dome.

The complex covers about 175,000 square metres and can hold around 30,000 worshippers. The main prayer hall takes about 11,000 men, and a separate enclosure serves 1,200 women. Altogether the building has 96 domes, spread over the prayer hall, the arcades around the courtyard, the mihrab and the minaret. Inside, the hall is finished in marble and lit by large copper chandeliers, and the open courtyard is surrounded by shaded arcades. There is parking for about 3,000 cars.

The mosque hosts Friday prayers and the main Eid prayers in Doha, and its large plaza is one of the city's main gathering places during Ramadan.

Visitors are generally welcome outside prayer times, with no entry fee. Dress modestly with arms and legs covered, women should cover their hair, and shoes are removed before entering the prayer hall. The plain sandstone architecture looks best in the late afternoon light.

The figures behind the 96 domes are easy to break down: 28 large domes cover the central prayer hall and 65 smaller ones the outer arcades, while the mihrab adds two small domes outside and the minaret one more. Worshippers enter through three main entrances and 17 side doors. The built-up area of the mosque is 19,565 square metres, and an outer courtyard of 14,953 square metres links the car parks with the mosque courtyard by steps and ramps on three sides.

The interior is lit by 28 multi-layered circular copper chandeliers hanging 14 metres above the floor. The mihrab rises 11 metres inside and is faced in white marble with the name of God at the top, and four windows on the qibla wall are centred on the mihrab and the pulpit. The sound system is designed to cut echo in the large hall, and fixed cameras allow prayers to be broadcast live.

Polished earth-coloured marble covers the courtyard and arcades, and a green belt of trees of about 47,000 square metres surrounds the complex. The ablution areas take their design from one of Qatar's traditional freshwater sources.