Making the most of their Mosques

While on our many meanderings through the neighborhoods in Xinjiang, we periodically would catch sight of neighborhood mosques. What made these so intriguing is that they sit on the edge of a large cluster of mud-brick houses along tree-lined streets such that we tended to stumble upon them without warning. Most of the Uighur houses we saw were enclosed by high mud walls, with overtall entry doors that lead to small gardens that grow immediately in front of the houses themselves. These housing walls were periodically interupted by a crumbled section, a cluster of trees, or a mosque. Most unexpected on these quiet, back-lane country roads.

Please note that in the second photo, there are Chinese characters above the entryway. They read "guan xiang si" or "closed village mosque." While it is entirely possible that this mosque is indeed closed, it would seem odd to go through the trouble of painting such a careful sign to proclaim it as such. Of particular interest is that this is written in Chinese. We did not see Chinese script in wide use around mosques in Xinjiang. If anyone out there can enlighten us as to the significance of this sign, we'd love to hear it.