Hazrat Sultan Mosque

Turns out that the largest mosque in Central Asia, Hazrat Sultan Mosque, is surprisingly new. It took three years to build and was inaugurated in 2012. Considered to be one of the main landmarks in Central Asia, its construction engaged around 1,500 builders and masters. The building is built in a classic oriental style with breathtakingly beautiful interiors and ornate details reminiscent of the craft of the bygone era. ‘Hazrat Sultan’ means ‘Apostolic Sultan’. The mosque was named in the honour of the Sufi saint Khoja Ahmed Yassawi, a poet, philosopher and sheikh. The mosque can house up to 10,000 people, and has rooms for tabernacles, wedding ceremonies, Quran reading and seminary lessons, and ablution.