It is located at the front of the mosque in the Qiblah wall, decorated with pieces of colored marble and Quranic verses written in a calligraphic style of great artistry. ‘Umar ibn ‘Abd al-‘Azīz established it at the spot where our master ‘Uthmān ibn ‘Affān used to lead the people in prayer, following the expansion of the sacred mosque. Later, Sultan Qaytbay renovated it in 888 AH, and the imam’s place of prayer remains there to this day.
At the upper right side of the Miḥrāb, a square marble plaque can be seen, gifted by Sultan Abdülhamid I in 1198 AH for the Sacred Mosque of the Prophet ﷺ. The plaque is situated at the top right side of the Ottoman Miḥrāb’s crown and features beautiful Kufic calligraphy with part of the verse where Allah says: "There has certainly come to you a Messenger from among yourselves. Grievous to him is what you suffer; he is deeply concerned for you, and to the believers he is compassionate and merciful."
On the other side, there is another square marble plaque gifted by Sultan Abdülhamid I in 1198 AH for the Sacred Mosque of the Prophet ﷺ. The plaque is situated at the top of the other side of the Ottoman Miḥrāb’s crown and features beautiful Kufic calligraphy with the verse where Allah says: "Muhammad is not the father of any of your men, but the Messenger of Allah and the last of the prophets. And Allah is All-Knowing of everything."
