Ghulwating Mosque

Situated inside the historic Dharamshala settlement, this mosque was built around the mid -19th century, by an elder belonging to the Ghulwating clan of Hunza. It is believed to belong to the Yarpakutz sub -clan of the Ghulwating clan (of the Burrowing tribe). Its construction is a typical example of the small - family mosques of the area, with a single prayer chamber marked by a verandah on two sides. The verandah contains varyingly -styled wooden arches with carved pillars. The walls are made of wood, and the windows contain carved wooden blinds. The mosque is built on a high platform of rough and round granite boulders held together with earth. Its walls are consisting of a timber - framed cribbage and cator structure, filled with 20 rubble-stone set in mud mortar. The exposed timber and its structural and architectural elements are profusely carved in motifs borrowed from the decorative tradition of Baltistan. The ceiling structure is a rotated square made of timber, and the roof is covered with thick earth held in place by a timber base.