Dongsi Mosque

The Dongsi Mosque in Beijing's Dongcheng district is the oldest mosque in the Chinese capital - built either in 1356 under the Mongols or in 1447 under the Ming. It is the seat of the Beijing Islamic Association and a key center for the Hui, China's Chinese-speaking Muslim minority. Architecturally it's an unusual Sino-Islamic synthesis: from outside it looks like a classical Chinese temple with sweeping roof and wooden posts, but inside it's a proper Islamic prayer hall with a mihrab facing Mecca. The courtyard holds stelae with Arabic inscriptions. The mosque is still an active place of worship - tourists can enter the courtyard outside prayer times. It has been on Beijing's heritage list since 1984.