Ghadames has over 20 mosques among its six neighborhoods in the old town. The Atiq mosque (عتیق مسجد) is one of the largest, and is built of mud brick with little decoration. It was originally constructed in 1258/666 AH, but destroyed by aerial bombardment in WWII and subsequently rebuilt. The thick walls keep the mosque cool even in the heat of the desert summer. Mosques are whitewashed entirely on the inside and outside, giving them distinct contrast to the plainer mud brick walls of the city.
Sources:
Shawesh, Abubaker Mohamed. 1995. Traditional Settlement in the Oasis of Ghadames in the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya. Libyan Studies 26. 35-47.
