The Great Al-A’la Mosque

Hama

The Great Al-A’la Mosque

Historic Souks and Khans

Preserved

August 3, 2025

The mosque is attributed to the gnostic Ibrahim al-Himsi (d. 897 AH). His disciples built it in a simple Mamluk style, and it houses the sheikh’s tomb, topped with a dome covered in green tiles. Its eastern facade bears an inscription in vertical poetry describing the sheikh’s spiritual station, and the interior prayer hall is adorned with muqarnas mihrabs. The mosque remained undamaged and was included in the Ministry of Tourism’s “Sufi Shrines” itinerary in 2019, with the aim of reviving spiritual heritage and Sufism in Hama.

التفاصيل المميزة

This mosque is known for its remarkable stone minaret, of which only half remains. Notable features include its northern minaret, its ornate wooden pulpit, the tombs and carved wooden coffins of the two Ayyubid kings (al-Mansur and al-Muzaffar), and the Dome of the Treasury. On the eastern side of the mosque courtyard, three entrances to the ancient temple are visible, adorned with exquisite vegetal and geometric carvings, dominated by ivy and acanthus leaf motifs – circa 250 BCE.

The Great Al-A’la Mosque

Hama