--- description: Find out why Bab Al Salam Mosque is on TIME’s list of the World’s Greatest Places 2024. title: Bab Al Salam Mosque: World's Greatest Places 2024 image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt83c340933e9b4e29/698a5914096a9422666b0c02/worlds-greatest-places-bab-al-salam-mosque-2024.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 --- Jul 25, 2024 # Bab Al Salam Mosque Muscat, Oman by [Sarah Khan](/author/sarah-khan/) ## Sarah Khan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close  A group prays at Bab al Salam mosque A group prays at Bab al Salam mosqueFiras Al Raisi/Courtesy Altqadum For years, the Middle East’s cutting-edge skyscrapers have stood side by side with opulent mosques rooted in centuries of classical Islamic architecture. But lately, a wave of more contemporary houses of worship have emerged on the skylines of Gulf cities, often paying tribute to age-old design in fresh and unexpected ways. Take Abdulaziz Abdullah Sharbatly Mosque, the world’s first 3-D printed mosque in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia; the cascading tiers of Kuwait’s Mamluki Lancet mosque; or the futuristic [Education City mosque](https://www.qf.org.qa/community/education-city-mosque "undefined") in Doha, Qatar, its dual minarets soaring toward the sky at an improbable angle. Last year, Omani design firm Altqadum unveiled Masjid Bab Al Salam in Muscat, with a tranquil complex of blush-colored circular structures. An arc of water hugs the central building, while a delicate crescent is etched into the freestanding conical minaret; inside, a dome of over 1,600 crystal bulbs forms a chandelier over the main prayer hall, and in place of a mihrab, a niche that traditionally directs congregants toward Mecca, a slender floor-to-ceiling window is sliced out of the facade. The result: a minimalist wonder bathed in natural light, with a more restrained aesthetic than some of the region’s lavishly appointed religious spaces, leaving visitors to turn their thoughts inward. _Buy your copy of the World's Greatest Places issue_ [_here_](https://magazineshop.us/TIMEWGP24 "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"Article","@id":"https://time.com/collections/worlds-greatest-places-2024/6992364/bab-al-salam-mosque/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/collections/worlds-greatest-places-2024/6992364/bab-al-salam-mosque/"},"headline":"Bab Al Salam Mosque","datePublished":"2024-07-25T10:56:48.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-03T00:33:11.007Z","description":"","url":"https://time.com/collections/worlds-greatest-places-2024/6992364/bab-al-salam-mosque/","keywords":["World's Greatest Places","franchise"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt83c340933e9b4e29/698a5914096a9422666b0c02/worlds-greatest-places-bab-al-salam-mosque-2024.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Sarah Khan","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/sarah-khan/"}],"creator":"Sarah Khan","articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt83c340933e9b4e29/698a5914096a9422666b0c02/worlds-greatest-places-bab-al-salam-mosque-2024.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/worlds-greatest-places/","name":"World's Greatest Places"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/collections/worlds-greatest-places-2024/6992364/bab-al-salam-mosque/","name":"Bab Al Salam Mosque"}}]}] ```