JEDDAH: The library of Makkah Grand Mosque, which is affiliated with the General Presidency for the Affairs of the Grand Mosque and the Prophet’s Mosque, is one of the oldest libraries in the Islamic world. It was established during the second century AH at the beginning of the Abbasid period in 160 AH.
It was named the Library of Makkah Grand Mosque in 1357 AH when King Abdul Aziz bin Abdul Rahman Al-Saud set up a committee of Makkah scholars to study its conditions and organize it in accordance with its status and importance.
The establishment of the Library of Makkah Grand Mosque project near the Grand Mosque and within the historical expansion project of the Grand Mosque affirms the status of the two Holy Mosques and the state’s keenness to take care of them and of the system of services provided and the scholarly and historical importance of the library.
The project is located on the Kaaba Mountain Road on the northwestern side of the services building for the third Saudi expansion project and is crossed by the first ring road.
The multi-purpose library project aims to establish a scientific center and a world-class cultural and knowledge center in the holy capital centered on a central library of 20 million titles.
The project includes the lower service floors, the transport station and several other floors. There are other components of the cultural center such as the exhibition hall, the museum, the planetarium and the galleries.
The library, in its present location, has 15 sections serving readers and researchers to help them access library information, books, manuscripts, periodicals, lessons and audio speeches. Rare books have been digitised to offer fast service in line with expansion technologies and digital information storage to accommodate 160,000 books, 5,314 original and photocopied manuscripts, 2,500, and 40,000 periodicals.

With more than 100,000 antiquities from India, China, Iran, Arabia, Syria, Egypt, North Africa and Andalusia, the museum of Islamic Art in Egypt is the largest institution of its kind in world. The museum, located in the Bab Al Khalk area in the heart of Cairo, is also the largest educational institute in the world in the fields of Islamic Archaeology and Islamic Art. It is renowned for its diverse collection, which includes works in metals, wood and textiles, among other mediums. The idea of a Museum in Egypt dedicated to Islamic art and archaeology began during the rule of Ismail Pasha. The museum has a library that contains collections of rare books and manuscripts in ancient and modern languages as well as a collection of books about Islamic and historical monuments. There are halls containing coins, and weapons, and another section devoted to items used by Egyptians in their daily lives throughout history. The museum of Islamic Art is one of the largest museums of Islamic archaeology in the world, thanks to its rare archaeological artifacts related to Egypt’s Islamic heritage.

Abu Dhabi – Abu Dhabi’s Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque came in third place among the top 10 world landmarks, according to global travel platform TripAdvisor.
The top ten list was announced as part of TripAdvisor’s ‘Travelers Choice Awards’. This year’s awards recognized 759 landmarks across 68 countries and eight regions across the globe.
According to TripAdvisor, the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque is “by far the youngest world landmark” on the top ten list, adding that the Mosque “holds its own against more established icons.”
Cambodia’s Angor Wat and Spain’s Plaza de Espana took in first and second place, respectively. Award winners were determined using an algorithm that took into account the quantity and quality of reviews and ratings from TripAdvisor travelers, gathered over 12 months. (UNA-OIC)

Muslim people feel the most satisfied with their lives because they feel more ‘oneness,’ or connection than people of other faiths, a new study suggests. Measuring life satisfaction is about as close to quantifying ‘happiness’ as we’ve been able to get thus far, and a German psychologist’s new study suggests that a feeling of ‘oneness’ predicts overall contentment. And when the researchers divided their 67,562 survey respondents by religion, Muslims felt the greatest sense of oneness.
Research from a number of disciplines, including religion, philosophy and psychology have suggested that varying types of connectedness lead to an over-arching sense of well-being. Daily Mail, UK

Istanbul: Having a combination of Ottoman and Seljuk architectural style, the gigantic mosque on Istanbul’s Asian side is now one of the symbols of the city.
The structure has may nods to the city and country. It sports six minarets representing six key aspects of Islamic belief including, the belief in one God, the prophets, angels, revealed books, the day of judgment and divine decree.
Four of the minarets stand 107.1 meters (352 feet) tall, an acknowledgement to the Seljuk Turks’ victory in eastern Turkey at Manzikert in 1071 against the Byzantine army which opened Anatolia to Turkish settlement.
The central dome hangs 72 meters (236 feet) above the ground, representing the 72 nations living in the city. The second dome, with a diameter of 34 meters (112 feet) — Istanbul’s official license number.Sixteen names of Allah are inscribed on the inner walls of the dome, symbolizing the number of states founded by Turks throughout history. And a three-piece finial sits on the main dome, weighing 4.5 tons at a height of 7.77 meters (25 feet) it is the largest of its kind in Turkey.
Camlica Mosque Complex has indoor parking available for 3,500 vehicles. The previous Turkish record holder in capacity was a mosque in the southern province of Adana.