Jama Masjid

Bharuch has around 57% muslims. Thus a good number of mosques can be found in Bharuch, out of which Jama Masjid is prominent and famous due to its rich ancestral historical background. This mosque is located at the base of Bharuch Fort. Thus this is a place of double delight for tourists.

Jama Masjid Structure

1. Probably dates from about the beginning of the 1300’s.
2. Largely composed of temple materials, it was planned and constructed as per mosque principles.
3. Consists of a courtyard with gateways on 3 sides and sanctuary in the west.
4. The sanctuary is of the open pillared variety i.e. without a screen of arches put across the front. It is merely an elaborated loggia or verandah.
5. All 48 pillars of the sanctuary are of bracket pattern.
6. They are arranged so as to divide the interior into 3 compartments, each corresponding to the three temple mandapas from where the pillars were taken.
7. The walls surrounding the sanctuary have been constructed out of stone cut for this specific purpose and are thus the earliest example of original masonry work for this style. The stones were quarried from existing temples and recut or reconditioned.
8. There are 3 mihrabs on the interior of the western wall and a series of arched windows filled with stone tracery designed in the indigenous manner.
9. The mihrabs are copies of niches found in Hindu temples with the Islamic pointed arch introduced under the lintel.
10. The sanctuary roof consists of beams supporting  3 large domes and 10 smaller ones.
11. Square sunk coffered ceilings are decarated with cusped and other geometrical patterns as found in temple roofs.
12. Except for a certain amount of direction and supervision from Muslim overseers, the actual production is the handiwork of local artisans who had probably never seen a mosque before.