The Id Kah Mosque is located on the central square in Kashgar City, Xinjiang Uigur Autonomous Region. As the biggest mosque in China, it is a group of old Islamic constructions with strong ethnic style and religious features. Every Friday, it houses nearly 10,000 worshippers and may accommodate up to 20,000.

 

 

It is said that this place was once a cemetery. The present Id Kah Mosque was built by Saqsiz Mirza in 1442 as a very small structure. Several renovations and enlargements have created it with today's scale and style. The whole complex occupies 16,800 square meters (about 4 acres) and consists of the courtyard, the Hall of Prayer, and the gate tower and as well as some other attached structures.

 

 

Every Friday afternoon Muslims living afar and nearby gather here to worship. During religious festivals all the Muslims in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region come to this sacred place to celebrate. At prayer time, the mosque, the square, the streets and the roads all around are full of piously kneeling Muslims. Afterwards, all the people get together on the square in front of the Id Kah Mosque and dance to show their happiness, with no sign of exhaustion.