What is the largest mud-brick building in the world, located in Mali?

What is the largest mud-brick building in the world, located in Mali? The answer is the Great Mosque of Djenné.

Located in the historic city of Djenné on the floodplain of the Bani River, the mosque is the best-known masterpiece of Sudano-Sahelian architecture. Its walls are made from sun-dried earth bricks and earth-based mortar, then coated with a protective layer of plaster. The result is the mosque’s distinctive sculpted, monumental appearance.

A mosque stood on the site by roughly the 13th century, but the present building was constructed in the early 20th century, with completion generally dated to 1907. Its three large minaret-like towers, projecting wooden toron beams and raised platform are among its defining features. The beams also provide ready-made footholds for maintenance.

The building needs regular replastering because seasonal rains can erode its earthen surfaces. That work traditionally becomes a major community event. The Great Mosque is also part of Djenné’s UNESCO-listed Old Towns, and its fame sometimes causes confusion with other Sahelian mosques, including the Grand Mosque of Mopti.