Great Mosque of Medan

Masjid Raya Al-Mashun was built between 1906 and 1909 by Sultan Ma'mun Al Rashid Perkasa Alamsyah of Deli, whose revenue came from the tobacco plantations that made Medan rich in the late colonial period, and the money shows: the design by a Dutch architect is octagonal with a Moroccan-influenced central dome and four smaller ones, the marble came from Italy, the stained glass from China, the chandelier from the Netherlands and the ironwork from Europe, assembled into something that belongs to no single tradition. The interior has a wide open prayer hall under the dome with painted floral panels. The Maimun palace, built by the same sultan a few years earlier and in a similarly mixed idiom, is a short walk away and the two are normally seen together.

What you actually see

• An octagonal plan - the central dome with four smaller ones around it.
• Imported materials - Italian marble, Chinese glass and Dutch metalwork.
• Tobacco-boom money - the plantation wealth that paid for it in 1909.
• Painted floral panels - the decorative scheme inside the prayer hall.

When to go

All year, outside prayer times. An hour.

Honest expectations

Closed to visitors during prayers and around Friday midday. Modest dress and headscarves are required; robes are usually lent. Donations are solicited at the door.

Nearby

The Maimun palace is a short walk; Tjong A Fie Mansion is in the old centre.