Nizwa
is a diverse, prosperous
area, which has many
agricultural, historical,
governmental and
recreational aspects. Nizwa
Fort, located in the town
proper, is an imposing
structure; 24m high, with an
external diameter of 43m and
an internal diameter of 39m.
This was the headquarters of
the ruler of Nizwa and was
built by the Imam Sultan bin
Saif bin Malik al Ya'rubi.
With its connections to the
root of Islam, Nizwa has a
number of important mosques,
such as Nizwa Mosque, a
Friday mosque heralded as a
'beacon of science'; So'al
Mosque, built in the 2nd
century AH; and the Al
Shawadhana Mosque which is
located in the district of
Aqr. The Nizwa souq is
situated next to the fort
and was renovated in the
1990's, costing
RO2.5million. The souq
covers an area of around
7600m2 and
consists of separate
buildings housing the likes
of vegetables, fruits, meat,
fish, dates, spices and
handicrafts. The design of
the souq compliments the
fort in every way. It has
been constructed using the
same traditional materials,
such as sarooj, a gypsum
material which is burnt
until it turns brown. In
1993, Nizwa won the
'Organisation of Arab
Cities' award.
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