Masjed Al-Nabi in the heart of old bazaar of Qazvin, the capital city of Qazvin Province, is one the largest mosques in Iran with an area of 14000 square meters.
This glorious mosque also known as Masjed Nabi, Masjed Soltani or Masjed Shah is believed to has been built in Safavid Era and renovated by Qajars, however the inscriptions in the mosque indicates that the mosque was built upon the order of Qajar King, Fath Ali Shah (1797-1834).
Masjed Al-Nabi is a masterpiece of Iranian architecture with amazing tiling and calligraphic inscriptions. The beauty of the mosque has been heightened by other close cultural heritage sites such as Sad Alsaltane Caravanserai and Sadiye Bathhouse in old bazaar of Qazvin.
The vast Al-nabi Mosque contains a large courtyard surrounded with some porticoes and shabistans (vaulted columned space by the courtyard for prayers to avoid warmth of summer and cold of winter), four porches and a rectangle stony pool inside. A double layer dome with a diameter of 15 meters and 20 meters high from the bottom to top of first layer, is in the back of southern porch embellished by multi-colored tiling.
Al-Nabi Mosque, which is still in use for Friday Prayers, invites you to enjoy its magnificence and feel the tranquility of Iranian architecture, through its three entrances: eastern, southern and northern.
The eastern entrance leads you through Sad Alsaltane Caravanserai in bazaar to the mosque by a narrow corridor and a long rectangular pool in the middle, the southern one is the nearest entrance to parking space of the bazaar and the northern entrance connects Imam Khomeini Street to Al-Nabi Mosque which fascinates visitors with its glorious high façade decorated with azure and glazed tiles along with beautiful calligraphic inscriptions and a minaret on the top.