The Mosque Hassan 2

Historical facilities in Morocco

The Hassan II mosque is located in Casablanca (Morocco). Planned on the site of the former municipal swimming pool, construction began on 12 July 1986 and its inauguration took place on 30 August 1993. The front of the mosque can accommodate 120 and 000 faithful prayer room 25 000 faithful. This is the 3rd largest mosque in the world, after Mecca and Medina. Built on the sea, it has a minaret 200 m high, which is the church, the highest in the world. Artisans recruited from all cities of the kingdom had 53 000 m² carved wood and painted more than 10 000 m² of zellige (ceramics) for the Hassan II mosque. The stability of structures to protect the sea has proved inadequate, significant strengthening of containment have been underway since October 2006. A sunroof large, allows as Hassan II hoped to link this building to the air, considered one of the three beneficial to life, with the land and water.

The first stone was laid on 12 July 1986 and the inauguration took place on 30 August 1993, after seven years of work. Since the mosque is located at the seaside, foundations need 26 000 m³ of concrete and 59 000 m³ of rockfill to fight against the effects of swell. For the construction of the building containing the prayer hall, minaret and the madrassa, eight cranes of 220 t per m² and twelve mobile cranes were installed. For the implementation of the minaret, a crane from a height of 210 m record was established. The structures of all the mosques are in reinforced concrete dressed decorations crafts from Morocco. The realization of all the work has raised approximately 35 000 workers and artisans making 50 million hours of work. The prayer hall is topped by a roof mobile 3 400 m² and 1 100 t, which can move in five minutes with a rotating chain. When the roof is closed, the prayer room is illuminated by 50 chandeliers and eight sconces in Murano glass. The largest measuring six meters in diameter, ten feet tall and weigh 200 kg 1. The coverage of the roof has required the installation of 300 000 specially made tiles cast aluminum group Bouygues (contractor) imitating terracotta tile glazed traditional Fez, but four times lighter. These tiles have made a gain of 65% compared to traditional tile performance with much higher reliability. For finishing and religious objects, artisans from across the kingdom have to cover more than 53 000 sqm of wood carved and painted more than 10 000 m² of zellij representing 80 original patterns. The carved and painted plaster was completely worked up by 1 500 artists over 67 000 m². The wooden domes were fixed on frames made with 971 tons of stainless steel and suspended from the reinforced concrete structure. The mosque is decorated with fountains and 124 basins in marble. The mosque was financed by contributions from the Moroccans. It cost over 400 million.