08 December 2008

Great Mosque of Djenne

largest mud building in the world in present-day Mali...one of the remnants of the great empires that flourished in Afrika before the invasion of Europeans...definite Islamic influences can be seen in the style of design....peep it.






A centuries-old traditional festival is what keeps the mosque up to par in terms of maintenance. Since Djenne is situated on an island that is subject to serious floods each year, the mosque was built on higher ground to protect it from flood waters...which has so far been successful. Also, inside of each minaret is a spiral staircase that leads to the roof where on top of each minaret is an ostrich egg situated in the spire...

beautiful.

No comments: