Xi’an Great Mosque

Xi’an Great Mosque is the largest and most famous Islamic monastery in Xi’an. It is one of the earliest, largest, and better preserved, and one of the four major mosques in China.

The mosque is a long-established, large-scale Chinese palace-style ancient building complex, is the crystallization of the fusion of Islamic culture and Chinese culture. The temple was built in 742 A.D. The architectural form and tone of the temple is Chinese national style, however, all the arrangements in the temple are in strict accordance with the Islamic system, the carvings and decorations in the temple are composed of Arabic overlay carvings. The harmonious combination of Chinese traditional architecture and Islamic architectural art style is so amazing that it has been listed as one of the world’s Islamic cultural relics by UNESCO.

The temple covers an area of more than 12,000 square meters, with a construction area of nearly 4,000 square meters. The layout of the temple takes the form of traditional Chinese central architecture, complemented by the symmetry between the left and right buildings. Inside the temple, there is a large wooden pagoda built in the early 17th century with a height of 9 meters. The pagoda has a glazed tile roof, different angles and flying eaves, and fine carving; it runs east-west in a square shape and is divided into four courtyards. There are seven stone steles in the temple, with inscriptions in Arabic, Persian and Chinese. The second courtyard contains the calligraphy of Mi Fu, a great calligrapher of the Song Dynasty, and Dong Qichang, a great calligrapher of the Ming Dynasty. In the fourth courtyard, there is a hall with an area of about 1,300 square meters, which can accommodate more than 1,000 people for worship. Inside the hall, there are more than 400 murals with Arabic patterns, each with a different composition.

Highlight:

A UNESCO-listed World Islamic Heritage;

One of the only garden-style mosques in China;

Combines Islamic and traditional Chinese architectural features;

The painting and decoration reflect the artistic techniques of combining Chinese and Islamic cultures;

The worship hall can accommodate more than a thousand people at the same time.

Opening Time:

08:00-20:30 (Monday to Sunday).

How to Get There:

Bus: Take bus No. 4, 6, 7, 8, 11, 12, 15, 26, 29, 32, 35, 36, 37, 43, 46, 47, 201, 205, 208, 215, 218, 221, 222, 229, 235, 251, 252, 286, 300, 600, 603, 604, 605, 606, 608, 609, 611, 612, 616,618, 622, You8 (610), You7, K16, K45 and K203 to the “bell tower” station and walk for 7 minutes;

Metro: Take Metro line 2 to the “bell tower” station and walk for 7 minutes.