ABSTRACT
A minority group at home and abroad, the South Asian-based Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama’at is a tightly knit collective, with a central administration that clearly articulates the role and form of the mosque and prescribes a dome and minaret as prominent features. This perspective was articulated by the Ahmadiyya’s fourth caliph and has since informed the majority of Ahmadiyya mosque projects.1 However, this focus on dome and minaret is certainly not new. It is nearly an axiom to state that they have come to serve as key architectural referents for Islam. They often tower above other buildings, visually attracting the eye, and in many neighbourhoods, they establish the building’s very distinction. For Muslims living in the diaspora, mosques are much more than places for worship; they provide space for fellowship, education and interfaith dialogue. They are also visible representations of the community’s place in the contemporary city, a particular concern for Muslims living in Europe and the United States.
