| Mukhtarov Mosque Мухтаров мечеть | |
| Religious Affiliation: | Islam |
| Location: | Vladikavkaz, Russia |
| Established: | 1908 |
| Architect: | Józef Plośko |
| Architecture Type: | Mosque |
| Architecture Style: | Mamluk |
| Dome Quantity: | 1 |
| Minaret Quantity: | 2 |
The Sunni Mosque or the Mukhtarov Mosque is a historic mosque on the left bank of the Terek River in Vladikavkaz, Russia. The mosque owes its name to the Azerbaijani millionaire Murtuza Mukhtarov who financed its construction in 1900–1908. The architect Józef Plośko was inspired by Al-Azhar and other mosques of Cairo.[1] Plośko was also the architect of Mukhtarov Palace in Baku. The mosque serves the Ossetian Muslim minority.
The Sunni Mosque is known for its picturesque setting against the dramatic backdrop of the Caucasus Mountains. It also used to serve the Ingush residents of Vladikavkaz before they were expelled from North Ossetia in the 1990s. The mosque has been protected as a historic landmark since 1934. In 1996, it was badly damaged by an explosion[2] and later restored.
The permission to build the mosque was issued in 1900. The city government allocated a plot of land on the left bank of the Terek river for this construction. The newspaper reported that the construction of the mosque cost 80,000 rubles, of which more than 50,000 were contributed by the Azerbaijani millionaire and a prominent philanthropist in the Caucasus Murtuza Mukhtarov, from which the mosque gets its name. The project was commissioned from his favorite architect Józef Plośko. The opening of the mosque took place on October 14, 1908.
On January 24, 1914, a letter of gratitude to M. Mukhtarov from Ingush representatives was published in the :[3]
In 1960, under Soviet rule, it came under complete protection, in which a branch opened an indoor museum. Communism's fall brought the collapse of the Soviet Union, but within dispersion over the gatherings of Ossetian Muslims, the mosque returned to its usual function as a house of worship in 1996.