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The Great Mosque is where many of the faithful Muslims of Djenni
gather at noon every Friday, the Islamic holy day, to say their prayers.
The Great Mosque is built of sun-dried mud bricks, which are very strong and can last for many years. |
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Although the Great Mosque incorporates architectural elements found in mosques throughout the Islamic world, it reflects the aesthetics and materials used for centuries by the people of Djenni. Its use of local materials, such as mud and palm wood, its incorporation of traditional architectural styles, and its adaptation to the hot climate of West Africa are expressions of its elegant connection to the local environment. Such earthen architecture, which is found throughout Mali, can last for centuries if regularly maintained. The repair or maintenance of the Great Mosque is carried out by the senior masons, who also coordinate the annual spring replastering. Many of the citizens of Djenni work to prepare banco (mud mixed with rice husks) for the event. "Every spring Djenni's mosque is replastered. This is a festival at once awesome, messy, meticulous, and fun. For weeks beforehand mud is cured. Low vats of the sticky mixture are periodically churned by barefoot boys. The night before the plastering, moonlit streets echo with chants, switch-pitch drums, and lilting flutes. A high whistle blows three short beats. On the fourth, perfectly cued, a hundred voices roar, and the throng sets off on a massive mud-fetch. By dawn the actual replastering has been underway for some time. Crowds of young women, heads erect under the burden of buckets brimming with water, approach the mosque. Other teams, bringing mud, charge shouting through the huge main square and swarm across the mosque's terrace. Mixing work and play, young boys dash everywhere, some caked with mud from head to toe." In 1988, the old Town of Djenni and its Great Mosque were named a UNESCO World Heritage Site. | 
Famous Mosque of Djenne (not allowed for us to enter) |
