Ancient Jamia Masjid (Grand Mosque) of Thall, Kumrat Valley
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In a corner of Thall Bazaar, there is a historic mosque made of
wood called Darul Salam Mosque, which is identifiable by its unique
characteristics. Our purpose for staying an hour in Thall was to visit the historical
Jamia Masjid and purchase necessary items. If you enter Thall Bazaar and go to
the beginning of the bazaar, you will see the historic Darul Salam Mosque
located before the bridge built over the Panjkora River. The bridge is not very
decorated but strong. The mosque has two entrance gates on its right and left
corners. The foundation of this mosque is said to be over three hundred years
old, and it has been rebuilt three times.
About 80 years ago, due to a fire, the mosque suffered a lot of
damage and it was reconstructed. In front of the mosque is a courtyard, with
wooden stairs on the right side leading up to the second floor. The mosque has
been completely reconstructed with wood, and no bricks were used from the
exterior or interior doors. This is a beautiful and exquisite masterpiece of
architectural art, where the hard work and skill of the craftsmen is evident in
every part. In the right side of the mosque was a room where an ablution area
was constructed. There were stairs on one side of the ablution area, while on
the other side was the Beit-ul-Khala. We entered the hall along with the
entrance to the courtyard of the mosque. Inside the hall, there were six
extremely strong and thick, colorful wooden columns supporting the ceiling. In
addition to these, when entering from the outside, the columns were also
visible along the walls. The columns were decorated with carvings, and the wall
and column decorations in the mosque were astonishing.
The wooden carvings, the intricate woodwork design, and the
paintings made with colors and oils showcased the culture of the area. The
pillars were extremely strong and had thick wooden beams placed on top of them.
To the right of the mihrab was a podium from where the sound of recitation of
the Holy Quran and teachings of the Prophet echoed. There were two pillars
around the mihrab, with one-half of them outside and the other half inside the
wall, providing support to both the wall and the ceiling at the same time. The
wooden shelves were made on these pillars, on which copies of the Holy Quran
and other Islamic books were placed. The hall consisted of approximately ten
rows, and old-style lanterns were also hanging in the mosque hall. The mosque
had arrangements for fans and lights.
Inside the hall of the mosque, there was another hall whose door
was made in the middle of the wall. The inner hall was also quite large and the
use of pillars and beams was made for its roof. The large pillars inside were
round and four-cornered in shape. A mihrab was also built in the inner hall.
The walls of the inner hall were decorated with different designs of
calligraphy as compared to the outer hall, and a tile-like design was made on
the walls of the inner hall, which appeared from a distance as if precious
stones were used. The outer jungle-like walls of the mosque's courtyard were
about three to four feet tall. The Jami Masjid is a very high-quality
masterpiece and example of architecture and engineering of the area.
