The 210-metre tower at Morocco’s Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca is its minaret.
Completed in 1993, the minaret is the mosque’s most prominent vertical feature and is widely described as the world’s tallest minaret. The mosque stands partly over the Atlantic Ocean on a platform, reflecting a Qur’anic verse about God’s throne being built on water.
The building was commissioned by King Hassan II and designed by the French architect Michel Pinseau. Its complex construction incorporated Moroccan craftsmanship, including carved plaster, zellij tilework, marble, and cedar wood.
A minaret is traditionally a tower associated with a mosque, historically used for the call to prayer. The term should not be confused with an iwan, which is a vaulted hall open on one side, or a sahn, which is a courtyard. The Hassan II Mosque also has a retractable roof and a large prayer hall.