Queen Arwa Mosque

Jibla, Ibb Governorate, Yemen

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The Queen Arwa Mosque is a historic 11th‑century mosque in Jibla, Ibb Governorate, Yemen, built between 1056 and 1111 CE by the remarkable ruler Queen Arwa al‑Sulayhi, who moved Yemen’s capital to Jibla and converted her palace, Dār al‑ʿIzz, into a place of worship.

Known also as the Hurrat‑ul‑Malikah Mosque (“Noble Queen” Mosque), it is one of Yemen’s oldest and most beautiful mosques, displaying clear Fatimid architectural influence with a rectangular layout, an open courtyard surrounded by four arcaded corridors, and two ornate minarets. 

Queen Arwa was buried inside the mosque, and her mausoleum—covered in gold and silver—turned the site into an important pilgrimage destination for Yemenis, especially among Ismaili communities. Still active today, the mosque stands as a rare symbol of female political and religious authority in medieval Islam and remains a focal point of Jibla’s cultural and religious life.