The Grand Mosque of Mataram, in the heart of Kotagede, is the oldest mosque in the Yogyakarta region and the spiritual centre of the original Mataram court. Three concentric walls and a split gate enclose a wide shaded courtyard planted with sapodilla and frangipani trees, and at the centre stands a low pavilion-style prayer hall with a stepped pyramidal roof — the recognisable Javanese masjid form.
The atmosphere inside the compound is quiet and unselfconscious; women in prayer dress, attendants tending the graves, and the smell of incense rising from the relic chamber. Take off your shoes at the gate, dress modestly, and walk softly. Non-Muslim visitors are welcome in the courtyard at any time except during the five daily prayer windows.