History of the Kaaba Door (Baitullah) - From Prophet Ibrahim (AS) to the Golden Door Today

There’s only one entrance to Baitullah, the Kaaba door, and it’s the House of Allah in Makkah. First of all, the Prophet Ibrahim (AS), along with his son Ismail (AS), constructed the original structure of the Kaaba with two ground-level openings, one on the eastern side and the other on the western side, without installing a lock on the door; later, the Kaaba was raised off the ground by 7 feet, and the door was replaced several times, with a door weighing 280 kg of pure gold installed in 1979 that is still in place.

The Kaaba, also known as Baitullah (Arabic: بيت الله), which means The House of Allah, and every Muslim from the world faces in the same direction Kaaba located. 

In this guide, we’ll talk about the full timeline of the doors of the Kaaba, from the first simple door to the golden one we see today.

Based on Islamic tradition and historical sources, the Prophet Ibrahim (AS) and Ismail (AS) built the original structure of the Kaaba in c. 2000 BCE, with two open portals, eastern for entrance and western for exit, set directly on the ground.

The first locking door was built in 350 CE, in the late 4th century. Built and gifted by King Tubba III (Abu Karib) of Yemen.

In 608 CE, the Quraysh rebuilt the Kaaba, along with raising the door of the Kaaba by 2.20 to 2.25 metres above ground level, protecting it from floodwater and intruders (security/political control). 

Authentic Hadith:

Aisha reported: The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said to her, “O Aisha, had your nation not recently left ignorance, I would have had the Ka’bah pulled down and rebuilt to include the portion which had been missing. I would have made it level with the ground, with two doors, one towards the east and the other towards the west. By doing so, it would have been upon the foundation laid by Abraham (Source: Sahih Muslim 1333a).

Why the Door Has Never Returned to Ground Level

Being elevated from the ground level indicates that it safeguards against floodwater and still controls access, since floods struck Makkah several times in history. And that’s the main reason it was elevated for the first time to cope with this danger.

In 683 CE, during a fierce siege by the Umayyad caliph Yazid I, a devastating fire severely damaged the structure of the Kaaba. Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr, who held control over Makkah, took the opportunity to completely rebuild the sanctuary using stone. 

To honour the precise, historical foundations of Prophet Ibrahim (AS) and fulfil the structural wish of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, he altered the layout to feature two ground-level doors: an eastern entrance and a western exit. This historical event is the definitive source of the "second door" narrative.

This is the source of the idea of a 2nd door of Kaaba. Today, only one Kaaba door stays in use.

In the Umayyad, Abbasid and Ottoman periods, the caliphs and sultans repaired and replaced the Kaaba door to keep it in the right condition for the sacred house.

The traveller Ibn Jubayr saw the Kaaba in 1183. He found it still kept its eighth-century Abbasid form.

From 1269 to 1517, the Mamluks of Egypt ruled the Hijaz. Sultan Qaitbay built a school beside the mosque in that era.

The Ottomans heavily renovated the mosque under Sultan Suleyman I and Selim II, funded by them. Then floods hit in 1630 and destroyed the Kaaba and the mosque; Sultan Suleyman I and Selim II were not alive during the 1630 flood.

Sultan Murad IV of the Ottoman Empire, who was the ruler at the time, ordered and funded the entire 1630-1631 demolition and structural rebuild of the Kaaba; it’s the same Mosque that we see standing today.

This history shows why the raised door of Kaaba mattered; since the floodwater had to stay out of the House.

Since the start, several major expansions have been done by different kings of their time, while caring for the door as part of Grand Mosque projects.

To accommodate the rapidly rising number of pilgrims, in 1955 the first historic Saudi expansion modernised the grand mosque.

In 1399 AH (1979 CE), King Khalid bin Abdulaziz ordered a new Kaaba door of pure gold to replace the previous one, masterfully handcrafted by artisans using 280 kg of pure 24-carat gold. Makers shaped it with fine Islamic geometric patterns and Arabic calligraphy featuring holy Quranic verses.

The curtain of the Kaaba door is called Sitara (also known as the Burqu'); it’s a very heavily embroidered curtain 7.5 metres high and 4 metres wide. Due to its massive size, the curtain is integrated into the larger Kiswah (black cloth that covers the Kaaba), so that its calligraphy, made with gold and silver thread, aligns perfectly and frames the 3.1-metre-high golden door beneath it. This curtain is replaced each year during Hajj.

Staff open the door on set occasions, such as Ceremonial Washing (Ghusl al-Kaaba), using Zamzam water mixed with premium rose water and luxury oud oils, which happens once a year. Officials, scholars, and the Al-Shaiba caretakers attend to wash.

The door of the Kaaba stays closed year-round. Regular pilgrims do not enter the Kaaba, as there are millions of pilgrims who perform Umrah and Hajj. They worship around it during tawaf.

The part of the wall between the Back stone and the Kaaba door is known as Multazam. Many pilgrims try to make dua there when crowds allow, without pushing or hurting other pilgrims.

Authentic Hadith: “I saw the Messenger of Allah ﷺ place his chest, his hands, and his cheek flat against it.” (Sunan Abu Dawood, 1899) 

Touching the door of the Kaaba is not a required part of tawaf, and your tawaf stays valid without it.

During Tawaf, the Kaaba door can be seen from the Mataf. Crowds usually keep changing throughout the day, so ask your guide for the calmer hours. Follow the mosque's photo rules and put your phone away during worship.

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said to Umar (RA): "O Umar, you are a strong man, so do not push through the crowds to reach the Stone, lest you harm the weak. If you find a clear space, then touch it; otherwise, just face it and say the Takbir (Allahu Akbar)." (Musnad Ahmad, 19o).

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