Juma Mosque Derbent

The Juma mosque in Derbent's old town dates in origin to 733 or thereabouts, which makes it the oldest mosque in Russia and among the oldest anywhere outside the Arabian peninsula and the Levant; the building was converted from an earlier structure, and there is a long argument about whether that was a Christian basilica, which the plan is sometimes said to suggest. It has been rebuilt after earthquakes, notably in the fourteenth century, so the fabric is layered. The prayer hall is long and low with rows of columns and arches, plain rather than ornate. The courtyard in front holds plane trees of great age, planted to stabilise the ground against earth movement, with trunks several people cannot reach around; they are as much the reason to come as the building. In the 1930s the mosque was closed and used as a prison, reopening in 1943. It is an active Friday mosque today.

History

In 733 a mosque was built in each of Derbent's seven quarters, along with a larger one for the common Friday prayer, completed around 734, and by 1796 the town had 15 mosques. An inscription over the entrance records that Tazhuddin of Baku restored the mosque after an earthquake in 1368-1369, a madrasa was begun in 1474-1475, and the complex took its final form in 1815. Soviet anti-religious campaigns ended worship here in the 1930s, from 1938 to 1943 the building served as the city prison, and in 1943 a decree from Moscow returned it to the imams; in Soviet times it was the largest mosque in the North Caucasus and the only one in southern Dagestan, it was restored in 2015 for Derbent's 2,000th anniversary, and it is part of the Old Derbent World Heritage Site (Wikipedia, Juma Mosque of Derbent).

The main sights

• The 733 origin - the oldest mosque in the country, built on an earlier structure.
• The plane trees - very old trees in the courtyard, planted against ground movement.
• The prayer hall - a long low space of columns and arches, plain in finish.
• The prison years - closure in the 1930s and use as a jail until 1943.

When to go

April to June and September to October. One hour. Avoid Friday prayer times if visiting as a tourist.

Things to know

An active mosque - shoes off, modest dress, and women enter separately or are asked not to enter the hall at prayer times. Photography is restricted. The interior is plain and there is no interpretation for visitors. The old town lanes leading to it are steep.

Nearby

Naryn-Kala citadel is uphill; the old town walls run either side.

Key facts