La mosquée Sheikh Zayed est une mosquée construite à Abou Dabi. Son nom honore l'ancien président des Émirats arabes unis décédé fin 2004, Sheikh Zayed. Supervisé et coordonné par une société britannique, Halcrow, le chantier s'est achevé fin 2007 après sept ans de chantier sur un coût de 600 millions de dollars américains. La mosquée fait 20 000 mètres carrés. Il s'agit de la plus grande de l'émirat et la troisième du pays. La mosquée compte quatre minarets d'une hauteur de 107 mètres et 82 dômes de sept tailles différentes. Les plus grands dômes ont été formés à partir de panneaux de béton préfabriqués et fixés entre-eux tandis que les plus petits ont été moulés in situ à partir de fibre de verre. Le plus important culmine à 80 mètres de haut et fait 36 mètres de diamètre. De haute qualité artisanale, les aménagements intérieurs de la mosquée s'inspirent du monde musulman dans son ensemble, de l'Inde au Maroc en passant par le Pakistan et l'Algérie. Ils utilisent le marbre, le gypse, le bois et des mosaïques. Des milliers de pierres rares et semi-précieuses ont été utilisées pour les décors et notamment incrustées dans les marbres : des lapis-lazuli, des améthystes, des onyx rouges, des aventurines. La troisième plus grande mosquée au monde, la Mosquée Sheikh Zayed est un chef-d'œuvre architectural qui peut accueillir jusqu'à 40 000 fidèles et c'est la seule mosquée dans la capitale qui est ouverte aux visiteurs non-musulmans. Elle comprend environ 1000 colonnes, des lustres en plaqué or 24 carats, et le plus grand tapis Persan tissé à la main au monde. La salle de prière principale est dominée par l'un des plus larges lustres au monde - 10 mètres de diamètre, 15 mètres de haut et pesant plus de 9 tonnes. La première cérémonie qui y ait eu lieu fut l'enterrement de Sheikh Zayed, qui est enterré sur le site et qui a donné son nom à la mosquée. Des bassins réfléchissants entourent la mosquée, amplifiant sa beauté. Les couleurs vibrantes de blanc et d'or, scintillant au soleil sont remplacées de nuit par un système d'éclairage unique qui reflète les phases de la lune.

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Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque is located in Abu Dhabi, the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque was initiated by the late President of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), HH Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan. His final resting place is located on the grounds beside the same mosque. As the country's grand mosque, it is the key place of worship for Friday gathering and Eid prayers. It is the largest mosque in the UAE and numbers during Eid can be more than forty thousand people. Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque Center (SZGMC) offices are located in the east minarets. SZGMC manages the day to day operations, as a place of worship and Friday gathering and also a center of learning and discovery through its educational cultural activities and visitor programs. The library, located in the north/east minaret, serves the community with classic books and publications addressing a range of Islamic subjects: sciences, civilization, calligraphy, the arts, coins and includes some rare publications dating back more than 200 years. In reflection of the diversity of the Islamic world and the United Arab Emirates, the collection comprises material in a broad range of languages including Arabic, English, French, Italian, Spanish, German and Korean.

Design
The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque's design and construction 'unites the world', using artisans and materials from many countries including Italy, Germany, Morocco, India, Turkey, Malaysia, Iran, China, United Kingdom, New Zealand, Greece and United Arab Emirates. More than 3,000 workers and 38 renowned contracting companies took part in the construction of the Mosque. Natural materials were chosen for much of its design and construction due to their long-lasting qualities, including marble stone, gold, semi-precious stones, crystals and ceramics. The design of the Sheikh Zayed Mosque has been inspired by both Mughal and Moorish mosque architecture, particularly the Badshahi Mosque in Lahore and the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca being direct influences. The dome layout and floorplan of the mosque was inspired by the Badshahi Mosque and the architecture was inspired by both Mughal and Moorish design. Its archways are quintessentially Moorish and its minarets classically Arab. The design of the Mosque can be best described as a fusion of Arab, Mughal and Moorish architecture.

Dimensions and statistics
The mosque is large enough to accommodate over 40,000 worshipers. The main prayer hall can accommodate over 7,000 worshipers. There are two smaller prayer halls, with a 1,500-capacity each, one of which is the female prayer hall. There are four minarets on the four corners of the courtyard which rise about 107 m (351 ft) in height. The courtyard, with its floral design, measures about 17,000 m2 (180,000 sq ft),and is considered to be the largest example of marble mosaic in the world.

Sivec from Prilep, Macedonia was used on the external cladding (115,119 square metres of cladding has been used on the mosque, including the minarets)
Lasa from Italy was used in the internal elevations
Makrana from India was used in the annexes and offices
Aquabiana and Biano from Italy
East White and Ming Green from China

Some key architectural features
The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque has many special and unique elements: The carpet in the main prayer hall is considered to be the world's largest carpet made by Iran's Carpet Company and designed by Iranian artist Ali Khaliqi. This carpet measures 5,627 m2 (60,570 sq ft), and was made by around 1,200-1,300 carpet knotters. The weight of this carpet is 35 ton and is predominantly made from wool (originating from New Zealand and Iran). There are 2,268,000,000 knots within the carpet and it took approximately two years to complete. The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque has seven imported chandeliers from Germany that incorporate millions of Swarovski crystals. The largest chandelier is the second largest known chandelier inside a mosque, the third largest in the world and has a 10 m (33 ft) diameter and a 15 m (49 ft) height. The pools along the arcades reflect the Mosque's spectacular columns, which becomes even more glorious at night. The unique lightning system was designed by lightning architects Jonathon Speirs and Major to reflect the phases of the moon. Beautiful bluish gray clouds are projected in lights onto the external walls and get brighter and darker according to the phase of the moon. The 96 columns in the main prayer hall are clad with marble and inlaid with mother of pearl, one of the few places where you will see this craftsmanship. The 99 names (qualities or attributes) of Allah (God) are featured on the Qibla wall in traditional Kufi calligraphy, designed by the prominent UAE calligrapher - Mohammed Mandi Al Tamimi. The Qibla wall also features subtle fibre-optic lighting, which is integrated as part of the organic design. In total, three calligraphy styles - Naskhi, Thuloth and Kufi – are used throughout the mosque and were drafted by Mohammed Mandi Al Tamimi UAE, Farouk Haddad Syria and Mohammed Allam Jordan.