Kiswah Kaaba Replaced on 1 Muharam 1444 H

Makkah, MINA — The installation ceremony of the new Kaaba kiswah will attract the attention of the Islamic world. As reported by Arab News on Friday, the General Presidency of the Two Holy Mosques will perform the installation ceremony of the new Kaaba kiswah on the eve of the Islamic New Year 1 Muharram 1444 Hijri or on Saturday.

The change of the kiswah of the Kaaba on 1 Muharram is different because previously the kiswah of the Kaaba was changed on the night of Arafah.

“This marks a shift from the decades-long custom of replacing it on the eve of Arafah, as per a recent royal decree,” said Dr. Abdulrahman Al-Sudais, president of the agency.

The kiswah tau cover of the Kaaba is changed every year as a tradition that has continued for centuries. For decades the Kiswa was replaced on the morning of the 9th of Dhulhijjah, when pilgrims departed for the plains of Arafah. This moment is usually when the Grand Mosque is empty, to allow for the smooth replacement of the kiswah. The new kiswah will remain valid until next year’s hajj.

Meanwhile, a team of 200 Saudi technicians working at the King Abdulaziz Complex for the Making of the Kaaba Kiswah will carry out the task of replacing the kiswah. The factory does the weaving, sewing and printing by hand and machine using 47 sheets of fabric and thread. The world’s largest computerized sewing machine, 16 meters long, performs every process of making the kiswah.

The fabric is sewn into five distinct parts and fixed to the base with copper rings. About 670 kilograms of raw silk is dyed black in the complex. The Kiswah is decorated with Quranic verses embroidered onto cloth with 120 kilograms of 21 carat gold thread and 100 kilograms of silver thread. The cost of making the new 850 kilogram Kiswa is estimated at SR25 million, or more than $6.5 million. That makes it the most expensive cover in the world. (T/RE1)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)