Maldives - Coral Stone Mosques of Maldives

Ihavandhoo Friday Mosque, N6° 57′ 17.45″, E72° 55′ 38.27″ Meedhoo Friday Mosque, N5° 27′ 27.84″, E72° 57′ 16.41″ Malé Friday Mosque, N4° 10′ 40.79″, E73° 30′ 44.56″ Malé Eid Mosque, N4° 10′ 29.41″, E73° 30′ 15.13″ Fenfushi Friday Mosque, N3° 29′ 21.65″, E72° 47′ 1.61″ Isdhoo Old Mosque, N2° 12′ 96.55″, E73° 58′ 00.74″ The Maldives lies in the middle of the Indian Ocean. Historically, it was famous for the cowry trade and as a transit point for seafarers crossing from East to West and vice versa. The initial settlers were from India, Sri Lanka, East Africa, Arabia, Persia and the western parts of the Malay Archipelago. The Maldives boasts a cultural fusion with a history that extends to 300 BCE, and an interesting interaction between different religions and importantly between Buddhism and Islam. The local people practiced Buddhism until the conversion Islam in 1153 CE. Construction in ancient Maldives was mainly dependent on the local availability of materials. Coral stone and timber were the only long lasting materials available and coral stone became the primary building material for monumental buildings. Live reef coral boulders or Porite corals are removed from the seabed, cut to stone blocks while they are soft and air-dried-before it gets used for construction. They were highly suitable for architectural and sculptural works. Coral stone construction methods or coral carpentry existed as early as the Buddhist period and continued until the introduction of masonry in the late 18th century.