On screen

Abu Lahab· Film, 1953 · Set in · historical drama

The Message· Film, 1976 · Set in · historical drama

Bilal: A New Breed of Hero· Animation, 2015 · Set in · for children

Inside Mecca· Documentary, 2003 · Set in · documentary

Dawn of Islam· Film, 1971 · Set in · historical drama

The Life of Muhammad· Documentary series · Set in · documentary

Muhammad: The Last Prophet· Animation, 2002 · Set in · for children

Muhammad: The Messenger of God· Film, 2015 · Set in · historical drama

Muhammad: The Final Legacy· Series · Set in · historical drama

Journey to Mecca· Documentary, 2009 · Set in · documentary

A Road to Mecca: The Journey of Muhammad Asad· Documentary, 2008 · Set in · documentary

Omar· Series · Set in · historical drama

One Day in the Haram· Documentary, 2017 · Set in · documentary

Reading levelSprouts (4–6)Explorers (7–9)Scholars (13+)Read it in the Kids' Wing

Mecca is a blessed and holy city, home to the sacred Kaaba and the Grand Mosque, toward which Muslims pray.

Mecca is the holiest city in Islam, the birthplace of the Prophet ﷺ Muhammad, and the cradle of revelation. It embraces the Grand Mosque, the sacred Kaaba built by Abraham and Ishmael, the well of Zamzam, and the hills of Safa and Marwah, welcoming millions of pilgrims annually for the Hajj in brotherhood.

Storytellers (10–12) read the Explorers text, then cross to the Scholars text.

Umm al-Qura (the Mother of Cities) and the holiest sanctuary in Islam, situated in a desert valley within the Hejaz mountains of western Arabia. Mecca encloses the Sacred Mosque and the Kaaba, the inaugural house of worship consecrated for humanity and the universal Qibla for Islamic prayer. Associated with Abraham, Hagar, and Ishmael, it flourished as a pre-Islamic commercial hub under Quraysh along the seasonal trade routes. The birthplace of the Prophet ﷺ Muhammad and the cradle of Qur'anic revelation, the sanctuary is governed by inviolable sacred boundaries, hosting millions of pilgrims annually during the Hajj.

Summary

A city in the Hijaz, birthplace of the Prophet Muhammad, site of the Kaaba and destination of the annual Hajj.

Location

Its approximate coordinates are 21.4225 N and 39.8262 E ¹.

In the museum

The museum's material on this place includes: events that took place here: 55; people born here: 43; people who died here: 14; people who lived here: 6; people who came here: 2; buildings here: 3; groups that lived here: 5.

Events that took place here

Three years of secret preaching (610 CE)
The first migration to Abyssinia (615 CE)
The boycott of Banu Hashim in the valley of Abu Talib (616 CE)
The second migration to Abyssinia (616 CE)
The two pledges of al-Aqaba (621 CE)
The Prophetic migration (hijra) (622 CE)
The Treaty of Hudaybiyya (628 CE)
The clash between Banu Bakr and Khuza'a at al-Watir (629 CE)
The Battle of Hunayn (630 CE)
The conquest of Mecca (the Great Conquest) (630 CE)

People born here

People who died here

People who lived here

People who came here

Buildings here

Groups that lived here

What this page covers

This page gathers what the museum links to the place: events, people and buildings. It is not a full historical description of the place. A description of the place and its history will be added from primary sources in the coming batches.

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Mecca

At a glance