Aceh Province
Aceh ( ), officially the Aceh Province ( ace, Nanggroë Acèh; id, Provinsi Aceh) is the westernmost province of Indonesia. It is located on the northernmost of Sumatra island, with Banda Aceh being its capital and largest city. Granted a s ...
sultan of Aceh
The Sultanate of Aceh, officially the Kingdom of Aceh Darussalam ( ace, Keurajeuën Acèh Darussalam; Jawoë: كاورجاون اچيه دارالسلام), was a sultanate centered in the modern-day Indonesian province of Aceh. It was a major ...
Friday prayer
In Islam, Friday prayer or Congregational prayer ( ar, صَلَاة ٱلْجُمُعَة, ') is a prayer ('' ṣalāt'') that Muslims hold every Friday, after noon instead of the Zuhr prayer. Muslims ordinarily pray five times each day according ...
at Ulee Lheue. Since then the name of the mosque became Baiturrahim Mosque.Babak-Disaster-and-Trace-Aceh -The Mass of Baiturrahim Ulee Lheue Mosque, Two Rains of Disaster and the Trace of Aceh of Silam '' Atjeh Post ''. Retrieved 23 July 2012
Since its establishment, the mosque has been restored several times. Initially the building was completely made out of wood, with a simple shape and was located next to the location of the present mosque. Because it was made out of wood, the building did not last long as weathering had torn the building down. In 1922 the mosque was re-built with long-lasting material by the government of the
Dutch East Indies
The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies ( nl, Nederlands(ch)-Indië; ), was a Dutch colony consisting of what is now Indonesia. It was formed from the nationalised trading posts of the Dutch East India Company, which ...
with European architectural style. However, this construction did not use iron or bone braces, and the building was built with bricks and cement only.
In 1983,
Banda Aceh
Banda Aceh ( Acehnese: ''Banda Acèh'', Jawoë: كوتا بند اچيه) is the capital and largest city in the province of Aceh, Indonesia. It is located on the island of Sumatra and has an elevation of . The city covers an area of and had ...
was rocked by a devastating earthquake, and it undermined the dome of the mosque. After that people rebuilt the mosque but they no longer installed the dome, thus replacing it with an ordinary roof. Ten years later, a massive renovation of the mosque was commenced, leaving the front part the only original part of the building. Sixty percent of the remaining parts were renovated. Until today, the original part of the mosque still looks solid on the front.
On December 26, 2004, an earthquake and subsequent tsunami leveled the entire buildings around the mosque, making Baiturrahim Mosque the only surviving structure in the area.Html Mosque of Baiturrahim, Ulee Lheue www.antara-aceh.com Retrieved July 23, 2012 The condition of the part of the mosque made of bricks was only damaged about twenty percent, and the people of Aceh highly honored this mosque as a symbol of God's greatness.